My boyfriend and I recently went to Ed’s Lobster Bar for the first time. We were concerned about a long line on a Friday night, but we didn’t have to wait at all to sit at the bar. This may have been due to the fact that it was already 9:15pm and there were only two of us. We noted two groups of four waiting. The restaurant itself is quite small (long and narrow) with most of the seating at the gray and white marble bar. From what I could see there were about six or seven tables in the back behind a brick column at the very end of the bar. There are also some seats along a ledge, facing the wall behind the bar.
My impression of the décor was that, in New York City, where everything’s been done a million times over, Ed’s Lobster Bar has done a decidedly fresh take on the typical, what I like to call, “upscale, trendy seafood joint.” Without mentioning the actual names of other notable, trendy, cute, and cramped seafood restaurants in the city, most of them attempt to transport the diner to another place, perhaps even another time. One restaurant that comes to mind evokes a decidedly New England, white washed feel. The other, its fierce competitor, possesses a more laidback Floridian fish shack vibe. Ed’s Lobster Bar, however, goes for what a great New York fish joint would be like if fish joints were actually native to New York City.
The brick walls are painted an almost gray-ish white and the light fixtures that hang above the bar are modern and sleekly silver without feeling cold. The lighting is soft and the mood clean, spare, but intimate. The chalkboards scattered throughout the room serve the basic function of displaying the ever-changing catches of each day, albeit in a quaint manner.
The menu is printed on the paper place setting lending a casualness to the noticeably sophisticated atmosphere. On the chalkboards were written some special dishes and drinks side by side with some of the menu staples like the lobster roll and the raw seafood sampler.
This past Friday (10/05/07) some of the specials were crab dip, crab cakes, and the lobster burger. Some of the special cocktails included a spiked lemonade, kir royale, and Bourbon punch. The beer and wine menu are fairly extensive compared to what I’ve seen at some other small seafood places. My guy had the Jever Pilsner, which he seemed to enjoy. I had the aforementioned spiked lemonade which was refreshing, but not worth $12 (I don’t think any cocktail is really worth $12 though).
We started by sharing the raw sampler which included two oysters, two little neck clams, two crab claws, two jumbo shrimp, and half of (what we estimated to be) a 1-lb lobster served with cocktail sauce, a spiced mayo, and mignonette. At $29 dollars, this seemed to be a very good deal.
In terms of the oysters, they gave us one Malpeque and one Beau Soleil, both East Coast oysters if I’m not mistaken. These were the oysters featured that night along with one other kind whose name has escaped me now. I had the Beau Soleil which was small and full of flavor with just the right level of brininess. My companion said the Malpeque was also delicious. The little necks were brinier and good, not great, though this may be due to the fact that I don’t love raw clams as much as I love raw oysters. The shrimp were truly jumbo, fresh, and tasty, all I ask for in shrimp cocktail, nothing more, nothing less. The crab claws were meaty and delectable and the lobster was wonderfully tender and sweet. As I already mentioned, the cocktail sauce was as good as cocktail sauces get (I’ve never been wowed by a cocktail sauce, to me it’s either good cocktail sauce or bad cocktail sauce). The mignonette was good, although I don’t believe they used the usual red wine vinegar. It seemed like maybe cider or champagne vinegar. As for the mayo, when I tasted it on its own I thought, eh, just regular mayo with a little seasoning in it, no big deal. But when I tasted it with the crab and the lobster, I realized that the subtle, mediocre-seeming seasoning of the mayo was very purposeful and brought out the sweetness and richness of the lobster and crab very well.
Part of me wanted to order the famous/infamous Ed’s Caeser salad, but we didn’t have the appetite for two appetizers. Maybe next time. The woman next to us ordered it and it looked delicious and was a very generous portion.
For the main dishes, we decided to get two but share them. We ordered the lobster roll (naturally) and the lobster pot pie.
Let me begin with the lobster pot pie. It came in an adorable mini cast-iron (what looked like) cauldron. The flaky crust was floating atop the pie “filling.” The filling contained more creamy lobster broth than chunks of lobster, but I’d gladly sip that “soup” or “broth” every and any winter’s night. It was spectacularly well-seasoned and rich without being thick or heavy. The filling consisted of finely diced potatoes, carrots, onion, and (a ton of) cremini mushrooms, along with sliced haricot verts and, of course, lobster. The haricot verts (small, very thin French string beans) were a pleasant surprise, bringing a crisp freshness to the luscious dish. The crust was difficult to cut since it was floating on so much broth. I thought of the whole dish as more of a bowl of lobster stew/soup that happened to have a crust on top than a pot pie, per se. The crust would just sink to the bottom whenever I tried to cut into it. Eventually all of it sat at the bottom and continued to be difficult to cut with a spoon, but some of the crust, because of its flakiness, melted into the soup, which was nice. Again, I could have done with more chunks of lobster and fewer mushrooms (perhaps a substitute for more lobster), but the dish as a whole was a success.
Next, the lobster roll. I had simultaneously high and low expectations of Ed’s lobster roll: high, because the name of the place was Ed’s Lobster Bar, and low, because of all the other seafood places where I’ve tried lobster rolls, there is only one that I absolutely love (the one at Pearl Oyster Bar, but shhh, don’t tell Ed I said that). When I tried Ed’s, I smiled. It was delicious, but it was different than Pearl’s and so I could rest easy that I didn’t have to declare where my lobster roll loyalties lie. I could love both.
There was plenty of lobster, enough so that you could (and, really, had to) eat some of the lobster on top of the mound first before even picking up the sandwich. The lobster salad was very lightly seasoned, letting the taste and texture of the lobster shine. The ingredient (aside from the lobster) that stood out the most was the clean bright flavors of lemon juice and chives. I love lemon juice, so I thought I may have been biased, but my boyfriend thought it was just the right amount too. The mayo was minimal and the celery was there, but played only a faint role. The roll itself was the traditional hot dog bun-like roll, lightly brushed with butter and toasted, unlike at Pearl’s where it is soaked in butter and toasted (also a decadently delicious way to do it). All in all Ed’s lobster roll is lighter and more subtle with the lobster taking center stage over all else. So if you like a more lemon-y lobster salad without too much butter-y, mayo-y richness, this is the one for you (not that there is anything wrong with a richer lobster roll).
But don’t let the lack of butter and mayo fool you into thinking that when I say the lobster roll is “lighter” that I mean the dish as a whole is lighter, because once you taste Ed’s fries, forget about any calories you may have saved from the small amount of mayo or butter. Ed’s fries are absolutely fantastic: crispy on the outside, very tender on the inside, and perfectly salted. I was holding my breath before I saw the mound of Ed’s fries because lobster rolls are often served with these potato stick-like fries that I really despise and I was so happy to see that Ed’s fries were not only a normal shoe-string cut (maybe just a bit bigger), but also some of the best fries I’ve had in a long time. As great as the lobster roll was, the supporting role of the fries really made the dish, for me.
Additionally, on the plate, were a few leaves of mesclun (that neither of us touched) and some very vinegar-y slices of pickles which were tasty, but a little too vinegar-y even for me (I have an unhealthy obsession with vinegar and all things sour). They had no business being on that plate. I kept going back and giving the pickles another chance, but no dice, they were just too pickled. I had to wash my palate with water each time before I took another bite of lobster.
Lastly, the service was attentive without being overbearing and the food came out at a good pace.
If you haven’t already gathered, I will undoubtedly be returning to Ed’s Lobster Bar, if for no other reason than to try that notorious Caesar salad…and the fried clams and the clam chowder…and the steamers…and, well, you get the point.
AfterTaste (by Sherry) 
