Originally published by Two Thousand in 2015
I feel like you’ll be able to buy unicorn dumplings before somewhere serves a proper lobster roll in Sydney. Every few months somewhere new pops up offering their take on the coastal American classic, and these takes can range from the roll containing more potato than it does lobster to a quaint little bun the size of a cupcake.
A lobster roll is simple and can be perfected with just three ingredients: lobster, butter and a hot dog bun. Specifically: fresh lobster meat, slathered in butter, heaped into a warm hot dog bun. If you visit Maine, Connecticut or Nova Scotia, a lobster roll will set you back somewhere between five and ten bucks, with a pickle and some potato chips on the side. If you’re in New York you’ll be able to find the same thing for about double the money. If you’re in Australia you’ll find something completely different for about three times the price.
Burger Liquor Lobster opened last week, in the space above the London Hotel in Paddington. My eyes immediately ignored the first two words of their name. Their menu is divided into three sections, with the lobster portion offering a lobster roll, popcorn lobster, a lobster cobb salad and for some reason, crab and prawn burgers. All the lobster-y options cost $15. I ordered all three of them, because the L in YOLO stands for lobster.
No piercing screams were heard from the kitchen as my three course lobster meal was prepared and after a short wait it was brought to the table. The three dishes each featured salt and pepper lobster – this was deep fried chunks of frozen lobster meat, which I should’ve figured given the price point. On its own, the salt and pepper lobster is crunchy, salty and vaguely fishy. Dipped in lemon aioli, it’s a decent drinking snack. If you’ve ever wondered what deep fried seafood and blue cheese taste like together, try the lobster cobb salad.
The lobster roll features the salt and pepper bites in a hot dog bun with lettuce, onion, aioli and chives. They haven’t been dishonest – it is lobster in a roll, therefore it is a lobster roll. But it’s not the lobster roll that I cry myself asleep about each night, this seemingly simple dish that, due to the cost of fresh lobster in Australia, is anything but.
I realise that Burger Liquor Deep Fried Seafood doesn’t have as nice a ring to it, and that maybe I should just give up on my dream of eating a proper lobster roll in the Southern Hemisphere. Pass the unicorn dumplings.
Where
85 Underwood St, Paddington
When
Mon-Sat, 12pm-12am
How much
$15
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