Ed’s Lobster Bar Annex – Exceptional Lobster and Shellfish in the Lower Eastside

**THIS RESTAURANT HAS CLOSED, BUT THEIR SISTER RESTAURANT IN SOHO IS STILL OPEN**

Ed’s Lobster Bar Annex specializes in lobster rolls and other shellfish.  I’ve heard about Ed’s Lobster Bar in Soho for a long time, but for some reason I never got around to trying it.  However, when I heard they opened up a branch in the Lower Eastside, I immediately decided to try it as it was an exciting addition to the neighborhood.

The restaurant is located in the space previously occupied by the now defunct Sachiko’s on Clinton Street across from Clinton Street Bakery.  The space has been nicely redecorated with white walls, white marble counter tops and light wood.  The motif works well as I feel like restaurants serving lobster rolls are supposed to have spring colors because I immediately think of New England / Martha’s Vineyard architecture when I think of lobster rolls and this matches that idea.  The restaurant is laid out with a bar at the front of the restaurant, a raw bar in the middle and full tables and outdoor seating in the back.  I enjoy sitting at the raw bar as you can talk to the staff and watch them prepare some of the dishes.

Here’s what we’ve tried:

Oyster Sampler Plate:

This was a platter sampling all of their different types of oysters.  It included Beausoleil, Canada Cup, Rappahannock, St Simon and Tatamaguchi. While each of the oysters had a different flavor, they were all very good and tasted very fresh.  They gave a trio of condiments including a vinaigrette, a chunky cocktail type sauce and horse radish. This was excellent.  8.25/10

Clam Chowder:

I’m a huge fan of clam chowder so I was excited to try their version.  I don’t think I’m a clam chowder connoisseur and I’ve never lived in New England, but I thought this was one of the better clam chowders I’ve ever had.  It was rich and creamy, but not overly salty like a lot of the clam chowders that I’ve tried have been.  The clam in it was nice and didn’t taste overcooked like most clam chowder.  I really liked adding the oyster crackers to it as it added a nice crunchy texture to the soup.  This was great. 8.5/10

Lobster Bisque:

We also tried the lobster bisque, which was also excellent although my girlfriend preferred the clam chowder.  It was creamy and smoky and you could taste the flavor of the lobster.  I really like the smokiness of it. They also added a single lobster ravioli into the soup, which was a nice touch.  This was delicious. 8.25/10

Octopus Crudo:

This was simple poached octopus with olive oil and salt.  The octopus was beautifully tender and the combo of olive oil and salt went really well with this.  This was probably the second best octopus I’ve had in NY with 15 East’s octopus being the best.  8.5/10

Mini-Lobster Roll:

We wanted to try a lot of stuff, so instead of getting the full lobster roll we decided to get the mini-lobster roll.  The roll is toasted brioche, which was really good, it had a nice sweetness to it that really complimented the lobster well and the crunchy texture of the toasted bread was nice.  The lobster meat was excellent; it was perfectly cooked and had a little bit of creaminess because of the sauce they use.  This was really good and I think this might have been better than Luke’s which has been my go to lobster roll spot.  8.75/10

Fried Clam Slider:

This was clam that had been fried in a corn meal batter served on a toasted mini sesame hamburger bun with lettuce, tomatoes, pickled red onions and tartar sauce.  I really liked the corn meal batter as it complements the clam very well.  I did scrap off some of the tartar sauce because I’m not a huge fan of tartar sauce.  Overall, this was solidly good.  7.75/10

Fried Oyster Slider:

This was oyster prepared in the same way as the fried clam except it was served on a tiny brioche with tartar sauce only.  The oyster tasted very similar to the clam and the whole thing was quite good. 8/10

Pickles:

They gave these as a side to the fried clam and oyster sliders.  They are sweet and tart at the same time.  I thought they were really good. 8.5/10

Lobster Tacos:

These were hard taco shells filled with lobster dressed in a Panamanian green sauce and red cabbage coleslaw. The lobster meat was good, but the sauce was too sweet.  While I thought it was good, it was the one thing that I don’t think I’d order again as I thought the sauce was too sweet.  6.75/10

Lobster Ravioli:

These were homemade ravioli stuffed a minced lobster meat filling. The ravioli were nicely al dente and you could tell they were homemade.  The filling was nice albeit quite simple.  The sauce was just a simple cream sauce although I thought it was a bit on the bland side.  It was good, but I think that the dish needs to be a tweaked a little because the sauce led it to being a bit bland. 7.25/10

Fried Apple Pie a la mode:

This was a freshly fried apple pie that looks like an empanada and is dusted with cinnamon sugar.  The filling is apple and cinnamon and the exterior is flaky pastry dough.  It honestly tastes like a really good McDonald’s apple pie. It pairs very nicely with vanilla ice cream. 8/10

Neapolitan Ice Cream Sandwich:

This was three small brioches with a scoop of strawberry, vanilla and chocolate ice cream.  The brioche is excellent and the buttery and sweet flavor of the brioche goes well with the ice cream.  We both liked the strawberry ice cream the best, but they are all good.  8.25/10

Belfast Bay Lobster Ale:

I kind of had to order this because it’s a “lobster ale”, typical ale that is a big bitter and hoppy, but just wanted to show it because I liked the lobster theme.

Overall, I really enjoyed Ed’s Lobster Roll Annex, I thought the food was exceptional and I’d highly recommend checking it out.

Address:
25 Clinton St (bet Avenue B & Houston St)
Manhattan, NY 10002
(212) 777-7370
www.lobsterbarnyc.com/