Thursday, July 31, 2008

Red Lobster - check

One of the things on our "Bucket List" (if you don't know what I'm talking about, you can read this post) was to try lobster. Now, I'm not a very big seafood fan, so I was a bit wary of this one, but heck - that lobster on all the commercials sure looked tasty, even after we read the pamphlet at the Aquarium about being sure to get fresh seafood so as not to get food poisoning, which is hard to find in Utah.

When Caryn and I went to look at some housing on Saturday, we were right by a Red Lobster. This was one of the only places we could figure had lobster - since they didn't have it at Joe's Crab Shack (yes, I know it says Crab, but we figured they might have other seafood, too, and they do, except not lobster) or any other place we'd gone like Chili's or Applebee's.



As we walked in, the first thing we saw was a GIANT tank of lobster, hanging out at the front of the restaurant. We knew we were in the right place. Caryn decided she wanted a picture in front of the lobster tank, gesturing how big of a lobster she wanted. Or had caught. Or maybe she was acting like a lobster with claws? I never really asked. They were scary-looking buggers, with giant eyes and claws.

Anyway, we finally got beyond the front and got seated. Our hostess came and brought us the fish of the day list and our menus.

"Don't get this kind," she said, pointing to one of those listed. "It's disgusting. Well, it's not disgusting, it just doesn't taste like anything."

We were like, "Thanks for your honesty. Okey dokey - we won't get that type of fish."

She took our orders for waters and left us to decide.

Dang, Gina- lobster's expensive. We looked at all the dishes with lobster, which all topped out at $24 - I might never have had lobster, but I still didn't like seafood that much and wasn't willing to risk not liking something with $24 in the mix.

We finally found the lobster and shrimp pasta, with an alfredo sauce, that wasn't outrageously expensive. Also, since we were feeling adventurous, we tried a seafood platter appetizer with bacon-wrapped mussels, fried clams, and mushrooms stuffed with crab and lobster - to give us a taste of lobster before getting our main course.

We were brought our salads with honey mustard (delicious!) and our appetizer. I was wary, but enjoyed the fried clams and mushrooms - although the mussels weren't too bad, just slimy.

Then the main course came out. I promptly gave all the shrimp to Caryn. My first bite was...interesting. It definitely tasted fishy, but it wasn't too bad. Caryn pointed out that the texture was kind of velvety, which I agree with. It's not too bad - until it gets stuck in your teeth. Ew.

The more I ate it, the more I decided that it was okay, but basically like every other kind of seafood I'd ever had - not very palatable, but edible.

My favorite part of the meal was the chocolate chip cookie filled with chocolate and topped with ice cream. I have a love affair with chocolate. Seafood's more like an acquaintance that's not particularly liked - I can deal with it when I have to, but I'd rather not.

Ah, the things we learn about ourselves.

5 comments:

Brooke said...

maybe not liking seafood is a family trait.

Jessica :) said...

Amy you are awesome! I miss you and your wonderful personality! I'm glad I can see bits of it through your posts here!

Unknown said...

I ruther enjoy seafood to be honest. I think it's to do with growing up on it. You probably weren't fed it as a child. I was. I used to loathe it. Now I love it. And that's the only thing I've ever gotten at the red lobster the only two times I've been. Yay for shrimp and lobster pasta! Good bravery. Next stop: Es Cargo (I'm sure it isn't spelled this way but I'm not French so I can spell it however I choose)!

Becky said...

Good job on trying something new! Next...sushi!

Brenna said...

Ha, this post is so sweet. We are taught to believe that lobster is an intense delicacy - and it is - but I also think that it's a little intimidating to try (especially if you don't like shrimp, which, I also don't care for unless it's been seriously deep fried). I first tried it on a cruise ship, just because I could. Just the other night I had lobster corndogs, which sound crazy, but in a tiny gourmet heaven in a swanky venue, you've just got to have them. Way to broaden your culinary horizons. I praise you for trying mussels- that is still somewhere I don't go. Just wait until you're ready to try oysters-- you taste the ocean!