You know, any day when you have to ask “Do I have lobster stuck in my teeth?” is a good day.  For me, that day was when I ate at Bite of Boston in beautiful La Jolla in San Diego.  They have locations in Boston, as you might assume, but they’re also open in 3 locations here.  I’d never eaten there before but one day shopping I found myself standing in front of a poster with a large photo of a lobster sandwich and after that I got a bit blurry.

This place is so cute with its little wood tables and abbreviated menu and giant pots of soup.  I just wanna pat the place on the head and say “awww”.  They do normal sandwiches, they call them submarines, but what really drew me in was the seafood.  Their pride and joy is the lobster roll.  A tasty fresh baked hot dog bun filled with huge succulent chunks of steamed Maine lobster.  I’m not talking about that mayonnaise clogged salad of little canned bits, I’m talkin’ meaty chunks of imported lobster flesh; whole claw pieces and big ol’ hunks of sweet tail.  A touch of lemon juice and dollop of mayo bind the lobster together in a dreamy spoonable thing.  They have a regular and a large… but take my word for it, you wanna order the large, or two, cuz you can’t stop eating this sandwich. And since they have to cook all those lobsters, they have all those leftover shells.  Well, that’s not trash, as any real foodie knows, that’s an ingredient, for a true and authentic lobster bisque.

Now, your host has eaten lobster bisque at some of the most expensive restaurants in the country and been disappointed by some of the most prestigious chefs, so I feel confident in telling you that this is by far the best lobster bisque in San Diego, maybe in California and possibly on the west coast.  Rich and creamy, sure.  That’s to be expected. But these guys actually do it right.  They char the leftover shells to get that smoky briny crustacean flavor in there.  They put in the two secret ingredients and you’ve got a world class bisque.  They’re saffron and vanilla, real vanilla.  There’s a hint of red dancing on the surface of the soup, and the whole thing sends up a delightful wisp of long-simmered sherry.  It’s hot, rich, complex, soul warming stuff.  Of course they also have some other of my favorites which I couldn’t get since I was entirely too full of lobster, another thing that if you need to say it then you’re having a good day.

The staff is courteous and fun, the seating is close and intimate and on a fair day you can almost see a rainbow forming overhead.  Maybe that was just me.  They also carry the Tasty Cakes that inspired a Seinfeld episode and jars of Marshmallow Fluff which you can buy and take home to make the world’s most beloved maternity sandwich. This place also tickles the armchair traveler in me. Now I can satisfy my east coast lobster roll craving without having to get drunk enough to board a plane, which, for those who know me, is too drunk.  So for now we get to enjoy the succulent east coast food, without having to endure the sucky east coast people.  I predict Boston’s will do well here, for what goes better with sand and surf than seafood in a sandwich?