Lobster Roll: Captain Scott's and Abbott's!

So I was going to be in the area near New London for a climate adaptation conference (I like saying that, climate adaptation conference.  Sounds rather Important, and belies the scariness of what is implied, i.e., sea level rise, inundation of lots of coastal cities, including mine, billions of dollars and livelihoods lost, sometime within the next several decades, maybe less?), and I figured I'd take advantage of what was another superlatively gorgeous weekend to get....yes!  Hot lobster rolls. Get them while you can.
 
Captain Scott's Lobster Dock in New London is, in fact, on a dock.  Points for truth in advertising.  The "Captain Scott's" part is a little more dubious, but check out the history page on their website for some interesting non sequiturs, including Captain Scott being included in "Ripley's Believe It Or Not" as a "Human Cork."  Connecticuters do love their history.

Anyway, Captain Scott's dock is tucked away, across the water from Bank St., the main drag in New London.  Driving to it, you come to a somewhat desolate road that has you facing the Amtrak train tracks, which might confuse the first time visitor.  Persevering, you turn onto an industrial, derelict-seeming dock that does, in fact, have an eatery on it, and you breathe a sigh of relief.

The restaurant is a open-air, picnic-y type place with a walk-up counter. For $10.95, you can get a small lobster roll, or for $15.95, you can get a larger one.  I was planning on eating two that day, so I opted for the small one.  Unfortunately, I was so excited about eating the lobster roll, I forgot to photo it, but suffice to say, the lobster meat was a good amount of large chunks, good butter, on a nicely toasted top loading bun.  The meat was clearly fresh, and the bread was good.  It wasn't anything to write home about though.  In a way, it was like a baseline standard for the hot lobster roll.  "Exhibit A - This is a normative hot lobster roll."

At this point, I began to wonder whether I had reached a kind of hot lobster roll quest dead end, where no level of lobster roll greatness would every attain the idealized heights of my imagined, mystical, "OMERGERD!" hot lobster roll.  But, as with most quests in life, there are inevitable dark moments, times of extreme doubt, that end of the rope feeling, a sense of only a yawning dark abyss ahead of you, and behind you….  …yeah, this is lobster rolls.  Facing down dark abysses is not the point.  It's sunny, I'm eating tasty food, I'm alive, I'm in Connecticut.  It's all good.  Really good, in fact.

Incidentally, I didn't particularly love lobster rolls when I started on this little journey. (*gasp*)  They just seemed like a nice, indulgent way to embrace spring.  With a little more experience literally under my belt, I've discovering the delightful subtleties of hot lobster rolls that would have previously gone unnoticed, like the type of meat or toasting of bread.  Stranger still, I'm finding myself craving lobster rolls.  As in, literally, this morning I wanted lobster rolls for breakfast…

Thought this was Nikki Sixx and his girlfriend...

My second goal was to get to Abbott's of Noank.  (Be sure to check out the newsclip on Abbott's homepage for clues on how they make their lobster roll.)  It might be one of the most tucked away places I've ever been.  It's deep in the very cute village of Noank, a part of Mystic. Walking along blooming flowers, lovely houses with attached lighthouses, soaking up the relaxing, quaint seaside atmosphere, Noank will charm your socks off.  A walk around before or after your lobster roll is sure to reward.

 

Scroll down for more Noank pictures.  Amelia Earhart was married in Noank!

People say that Abbott's hot lobster roll is the best in the state.  I'm not ready to judge, but certainly, this hot lobster roll is very unique.  First of all, it's on a sesame bun!  Second, it's shaped.  Like pressed into a small cup and dumped onto the roll.  Third, the meat is not like all the other lobster meat I've had so far.  The chunks are good size, but what I really noticed was that it is salty, not overwhelmingly so but somehow flavored.  Did they put a dash of some extra seasoning in it?  Could it be the way the purportedly steam their lobsters?  We speculated that perhaps they cooked it with seaweed which might impart extra umami to the meat.  Whatever it is, it's tasty.  It comes with coleslaw, chips, and pickle, and in two sizes, normal ($15.95) and why-is-it-so-big (probably $20)?

"Large"

Normal size

Abbott's is a wonderful place to be, looking over Mystic Harbor.  Indoor and outdoor seating is plentiful, though I hear in the summer the place is utterly packed.  As it should be.  If you find it is too crammed, you could scoot on to another well-hidden place in the neighborhood, Ford's, that has a reputation for excellent food as well.  The quest continues!

Near Abbott's dessert stand.