Our Search for the Perfect Lobster Roll in Maine {Boston Trip 2013 Day 1}

While in New England the one thing my mother in law and I knew we wanted to do was to find the perfect lobster roll. Now I knew  nothing of lobster rolls before but the one thing I did know is that you can probably find the best lobster roll in Maine.

So on our first full day in Boston after exploring Concord we hit the road and headed north.

To get to Maine from Massachusetts we drove a short while in New Hampshire. I didn’t notice a big difference between the scenery in Boston and the scenery in our short drive through New Hampshire but my mother in law remembers a lot more concrete vs. greenery in New Hampshire.

I’ll take her word for it!

On the way we ran into a few more tolls. I didn’t mention it before but on our whole trip we spent $18 in tolls! Being a native Californian I had no clue we were going to pay so much to drive around. I’m sure we would have paid more if we didn’t realize to click “avoid tolls” on our GPS.

Now before our trip my mother in law mentioned tolls. She said she’d bring a few rolls of coins because she remembered each booth being about 40 cents or so as we passed. Well… we didn’t see any 40 cent booths. Tolls ranged from $1.25 to $3.

Shortly we arrived in Maine. We got off the main highway here and decided to take the coastal route. Luckily for us we found the outlets! We’d return to those later in the evening for some last minute shopping.

Since the kids were getting a bit antsy and just woke up from their naps we decided to do a little exploring and followed the signs for York Harbor.

We found a little place to park with a view of the ocean and stepped out to explore. Turns out we discovered a cool park with public access to the beach.

As soon as the kids saw the ocean they were off to explore. They quickly got down to the beach and made a run for the water.

I stayed back a bit to take it all in and grab a few photos. I don’t recall ever being near the Atlantic ocean so it was nice to see how different the beaches are on the East Coast. Definitely a lot rockier and colder. Similar to the Oregon beaches I visited with my parents as a kid.

But the cold didn’t stop the kids. They had their shoes off as quickly as they could and were running around. My son quickly found some rocks to climb and the search for crabs was on.

My mother in law and husband took a little walk while the kids played and my mother in law found a crab leg on the ground… a decomposing crab leg. She picked it up and handed it to my husband.

Before he realized what it was she dropped it in his hand. It took quite a while to get that stench off of him!

As we played and explored, my mother in law got to talking to a lady enjoying a book on the beach. She asked if there were any mom and pop places to stop by for a lobster roll.

The woman suggested the Maine Diner and just told us to keep following the 1 north and we’d run into it. So after a quick seagull chase we headed back to the car for our next adventure.

We drove in and out of cute little towns and beachfront communities until we finally saw what we were looking for! The Maine Diner.

Since we weren’t sure where to park (and didn’t realize there was a huge parking lot on the opposite side of the diner), we parked right in front of the store next to the diner. I immediately saw that there was a bargain table right out front with all of the items on the table on sale for a dollar.

I’m always up for a bargain. So while we waited for a table to be available, we shopped around and found some great goodies at the store.

Once we were seated we quickly figured out what we wanted. My mother and I both ordered the lobster roll and my husband ordered the crab sandwich. The kids got their usual chicken tenders and hot dog (which they always split and share) with french fries.

As soon as our food was brought out I knew I’d be happy with my order! For $16.95 I received a massively stuffed lobster roll and some fries. OMG! Seriously the best thing I’ve eaten in a while.

I assumed that the roll would have a lot of mayo but there was just enough to coat the lobster meat a bit. The roll was perfectly toasted and fresh and the lobster meat kept spilling out! My mother in law and husband loved their meals as well.

Our trip to Maine was a success and our search for the perfect lobster roll in Maine was complete. If you’re looking for a great meal in Maine I’d highly suggest stopping by the Maine Diner for a bite.

I can’t wait to head back and drive up to Maine just for another meal!

Have you tried a lobster roll? Love them or hate them?