Farley Mowat, the Canadian environmentalist and author, in Sea of Slaughter tells of the vast supplies of Newfoundland lobster that allowed it to be used in fodder for farm animals. Colonists wouldn’t eat lobster because it was “poor man’s meat” but used them as fertilizer for potato crops. In some regions lobster was still being used to fatten pigs in the 1940s.
I think crawfish (the smaller, freshwater lobster-like things that are popular in cajun cooking) taste similar enough to lobster. I think they’re generally much cheaper, indeed seem to still be in the “poor man’s food” status.
The taste and texture of the meat is similar, but being smaller and fresh-water, they seem more like insects (if that part grosses you out) which may be why they are still cheap.
Of course I don’t know how available they are the further away from Louisiana you are.
You kiddin’? Growing up in Central Ohio, we caught crayfish all the time. Some people called them crawdads. All the same kind of critter.
That being said, there are literally hundreds of species of cra(w/y)(fish/dad) [I don’t much care how you say it, still tasty]. I’m sure the little snappers that we caught in Ohio aren’t the same as those in Louisiana. Cook the same, though.
Yeah, I have yet to have a lobster I really found exquisite (all the preparations I’ve had were straightforward: no battering or spices or anything, just pure lobster.) I’m certain it’s just a matter of freshness, and next time I’m on the East Coast, I’ll try to find a decent, fresh lobster to compare. I mean, it’s okay, but there’s so much other seafood I prefer: mussels, shrimp, Dublin Bay prawns/langoustines, crawfish, etc. that I would never pay a premium for lobster that tastes like the ones I’ve sampled thus far.
If you’re eating it basted in fats and seasonings you should take a look at the menu in the restaurant you are eating this lobster in. If it says “Red Lobster” I think you are on to the first clue why. 
Has anyone here ever sampled a lobster roll from a Maine McDonald’s? shudder
I love lobster! I’ve only eaten it in Maine though. I don’t really care for lobster chowder (that particular cooking process isn’t kind to the meat), but I do enjoy real lobster rolls and, of course, whole lobster. It’s already been mentioned, but nothing beats a freshly caught lobster. I also love watching tourists trying lobster for the first time – especially when they try to remove the meat from the tail.
A darn good reason to keep eating lobster. (Story continues over several days; use “Next day” to continue, if it wasn’t obvious enough.)
Personally, I think it’s okay but I don’t get the fuss either.
Yes - giant, scuttling cockroaches, with squirmy legs and big, nasty claws.
I would be glad to assist any Doper in exterminating them from their immediate presence, on thirty minutes notice. I will bring my own drawn butter, even.
Lobster isn’t my favorite, either. Way too much work for far too little reward and wayyyyyy too damn expensive.
I don’t think that means what you meant to say.
Did I ever tell you about this Japanese Dungeness crab video I found on the internet?
To what cooking process are you referring?
I was once at a lobster restaurant with some friends and one of them had an unusual method of eating his lobster. While the rest of us were picking apart our lobsters and eating the meat as we acquired it, he disassembled his whole lobster and set the accumulated meat aside. The result was that he spent twenty minutes preparing his meal and when he was done he had an amount of food he was able to eat in under two minutes.
I honestly don’t know how that particular chowder was prepared; the lobster just felt and tasted way too overdone.
As Shark Sandwich mentioned above, the difference between frozen and fresh lobster is enormous. The first time or two I ate lobster, it was frozen, and I wondered what all the hoopla was about. I preferred just about any other shellfish.
Then I had some fresh (as in it was still living when it went into the pot) lobster and I became a convert. We have it once a year now, on New Year’s Eve. A little butter, some wedges of lemon, and it’s heaven in a red shell.
It had better be, I wouldn’t eat one that wasn’t.
And what’s the deal with scalloped potatoes? They don’t even have any scallops in them! Yet everyone accepts it. If I ordered lobstered potatoes and there was no lobster, I would be upset.
My Seinfeld needs work.
I know, I know! As soon as I posted this thread I realized that the title sounded like some worse-than-usual Seinfeld routine.
I read the title as “What’s The Deal with Lobsang?”
That said, I think lobster is overrated when compared to a mud crab or only on a par with a Moreton Bay Bug.
Same here- we eat a LOT of lobster here in the Keys and there is something amazingly delicious about yanking them out of the water and dropping them on a plate within the hour. I usually just split my tails and grill them to JUST JUST done, not a moment longer. Tender, delicious and awesome. No need for butter if you don’t want, it’s great on it’s own. Same goes for fresh caught and pan seared tuna. If you’ve only had it in a restaurant, you’re missing out.