Lobster dinners?

[friendlyfifer]

Lobster seems to have a cult following from most Americans. No one seems concerned about whether or not it is sustainable, how it is caught, where it comes from and, very importantly, how it actually tastes. The lobster must be frozen on board and it tastes nothing like fresh lobster, well cooked, in a local restaurant. I would consider the menu options and perhaps speak to the catering crew before automatically following the herd and choosing lobster. Perhaps there will be something more appealing on the menu.

[Nippy Sweetie]

As ever, I agree with Friendly Fifer. I was going to ask what 'a lobster dinner' actually was! Is it just lobster being one of several main courses on offer or is lobster in some form for all courses? Lobster pavlova for a dessert example! 

I enjoyed some small pieces of lobster in a salad starter on our last cruise on Viking Sun but that was the only sign of lobster that I saw. 

[Clay Clayton]

No lobster eclair either.  Below are screenshots of this Wednesday’s menu which included the lobster. Oops, some of them loaded out of order.  Hopefully you can figure out which are starters, which are desserts and which are the mains. 

[terrydtx]

4 hours ago, friendlyfifer said:

Lobster seems to have a cult following from most Americans. No one seems concerned about whether or not it is sustainable, how it is caught, where it comes from and, very importantly, how it actually tastes. The lobster must be frozen on board and it tastes nothing like fresh lobster, well cooked, in a local restaurant. I would consider the menu options and perhaps speak to the catering crew before automatically following the herd and choosing lobster. Perhaps there will be something more appealing on the menu.

I have to mostly agree, the best lobster I ever ate was in Portland Maine they were caught in the morning and boiled that evening. I do not go crazy for lobster on a cruise, however I have read in this forum that VO actually keeps the whole lobsters alive under refrigeration on the ship until they are cooked.

[Nippy Sweetie]

Clay Clayton - what a fabulous menu. I'd really struggle to choose! Most likely wouldn't be lobster though. 

[Clay Clayton]

Well if you want fabulous, be sure and order the Creme Fontage chilled potato and pie soup.  Tonight was the first  time we’ve had it. As per our usual, we share our appetizers halfnhalf (as an order of French Fries and Onion Rings is known at a burger joint in the South)and we both loved it.  So much so that hubby ordered his own bowl for dessert! And we asked them for two bowls to go to have for lunch tomorrow!  Seriously lucious!

[lackcreativity]

3 minutes ago, Clay Clayton said:

Well if you want fabulous, be sure and order the Creme Fontage chilled potato and pie soup.  Tonight was the first  time we’ve had it. As per our usual, we share our appetizers halfnhalf (as an order of French Fries and Onion Rings is known at a burger joint in the South)and we both loved it.  So much so that hubby ordered his own bowl for dessert! And we asked them for two bowls to go to have for lunch tomorrow!  Seriously lucious!

Ah, as I sit here with my breakfast of  80 calorie nonfat yogurt, I sure wish I was back on a Viking ship right now. Enjoy yourself, for all of us sitting at home!

[Clay Clayton]

4 minutes ago, lackcreativity said:

Ah, as I sit here with my breakfast of  80 calorie nonfat yogurt, I sure wish I was back on a Viking ship right now. Enjoy yourself, for all of us sitting at home!

Unfortunately for our waistlines we are definitely doing that!  I didn’t mention the wonderful diver scallops since I didn’t want to rub it in!  lol

 

[Clay Clayton]

Happy to report Hubby was very pleased with his split lobster this evening. Cookes perfectly (he did request it to be cooked lightly since we had noticed that most seafood aboard had been over cooked). Although the menu mentioned roasted with tarragon and coral (whatever that is) butter, he said he noticed neither and the butter in the little dish was just plain clarified butter.  

[irishwitchy]

From this NJ girl who has eaten plenty of lobsters and loves fine dining in NYC, this lobster discussion is starting to scare me about my cruise next year on Viking.  
 

I don’t want to go on a cruise and crack my lobsters and pull them apart and make a mess.  I can do that in my backyard.  Will they serve them out of the shells if asked?  
 

As for the coral,  that is AKA the roe or the eggs.  

[Clay Clayton]

3 minutes ago, irishwitchy said:

From this NJ girl who has eaten plenty of lobsters and loves fine dining in NYC, this lobster discussion is starting to scare me about my cruise next year on Viking.  
 

I don’t want to go on a cruise and crack my lobsters and pull them apart and make a mess.  I can do that in my backyard.  Will they serve them out of the shells if asked?  
 

As for the coral,  that is AKA the roe or the eggs.  

Don’t be scared, just order something else! LOL

 

They arrive split so the only cracking needed is for the claws. And they provide nice pliers and a long removal device to assist.  You can see it under Mike’s left hand in the 2nd picture. 

 

Didn’t see anyone asking for assistance but I presume they would if you ask.  

 

I figured that was what coral was, but no sign of anything but clarified butter. 

[Cyber Kat]

We just got back from doing the Montréal to NYC run, and if you love lobster, this is the itinerary for you!  
 

On the ship I had a very tasty pasta dish with lobster early on - maybe the 2nd or 3rd night.  We had delicious whole lobster on maybe the 5th night.  They were doing the Seafood buffet at the World Cafe. One of these days, I’m going to do that instead of the Restaurant, but we’re not wild about buffet dinners, and lobster is what I really wanted. 
 

I had wonderful lobster rolls in Portland and Boston. Boone’s in Portland does a warm lobster roll and the meat is drenched in melted butter. Yummy. They were also having a special - guy handed us a flyer on the street, but we were going there anyway. Price of the lobster roll included lobster bisque or clam chowder. Difficult choice, but I went all in lobster.  Was THE best lobster bisque I have ever eaten. Very tasty with big chunks of lobster meat. 
 

We are partial to the Black Rose near the Quincy Market in Boston and their lobster roll is fabulous, just a touch of mayo and a very generous portion of lobster. 
 

We did the Boston by Night and Lobster dinner excursion also. This was excellent. The tour was great, just at dusk and we could see the lights coming on, then we stopped at the Union Oyster House for a most excellent lobster dinner. 
 

My husband doesn’t eat lobster so I asked Viking Guest Services if he could get something else. They arranged it with the restaurant and they were most accommodating. 
 

I have to say that the restaurant deserves a medal!  It’s a big noisy place that was packed!  They served our large group clam chowder, lobster and tasty corn, quickly and efficiently.  And the lobster - they had to be 2lbs or close to it - was perfect.  We all declared it so!  
 

We happened on a fun group for table mates and some were lobster newbies. We were giving lessons on how to eat a lobster. They were not split, but so easy to crack and open we had no need for crackers - just lots of napkins! So good.

 

 I was really amazed that they were able to cook a vast quantity of lobsters so well!

 

This was one of the more pricey excursions, but it was well worth it!

 

On our penultimate (I don’t get to use that word often enough 😆) night on board, they had Lobster  Thermidor , but we had reservations for Routes des Indes at the Chef’s Table. I had eaten enough lobster by then not to feel deprived. 😆  It was a good choice, much as I enjoyed the Thermidor, this meal was incredible!  I’m glad I didn’t miss it. 

 

[pacruise804]

9 hours ago, Clay Clayton said:

 

 

I figured that was what coral was, but no sign of anything but clarified butter. 

 

We had whole lobster once as part of a kayak excursion with Princess in Saint John, NB.  Being whole it also included the roe which we were advised was edible but had a unique taste we might not enjoy.  I'm willing to try most foods at least once so I did try it, but would agree that it was a different flavor than the rest of the lobster.  I don't think your husband missed much not having it.

[Vineyard View]

Well since  I started this thread, we have been gone on our trip, only to return to wildfires, evacuation, etc. I am just now getting caught up on CC tonight. I need to take a totally non cruise related moment to say that firefighters and first responders are nothing short of heroes. 

 It has been interesting to see all the posts while I was unavailable. The comments about California menus before the actual menu was posted made me laugh. There was no California menu in Chefs Table, however we were able to eat there several times and it was excellent! (As was Manifredis and the Restaurant). 

Back to my lobster dinner question. There was a lobster dinner early in the cruise - it occurred on a special night for us in Manifredis. However - Lobster Thermidor was served towards the end of our trip.  DH thoroughly enjoyed it, and our amazing server in the restaurant (Singh) brought him a second helping!  He was beyond a Happy camper! 

Trip was fantastic, and while we didn’t get our usual California  granola bar dinner 😂 we sure enjoyed our meals in all the venues! 

Edited November 6, 2019 by Vineyard View

[pacruise804]

I hope your family, pets, and home are all safe.  You are right that firefighters and first responders are amazing.

 

I'm glad you had a good trip!

[Vineyard View]

We are all safe, including our family. Having it happen twice in two years is pretty surreal, but we are grateful. Thank you very much

 

We might need another trip sooner than later though!