In honor of National Lobster Day, which is September 25 each year, we checked with our writers for some of the best lobster meals they’ve experienced on their travels. Here are some lobster recipes and recommendations, from our seasoned (with drawn butter, please) pros. Don’t miss the links to two delicious recipes at the end of this article.

Montreal

Charlie’s Shack in the Place des Arts for fried fish baskets and lobster rolls when attending the Montreal Jazz Festival – or anytime! — Elizabeth Margolis-Pineo, Where to Eat in Montreal Off the Beaten Path.

A lobster roll from Charlie’s Shack in Montreal.

New York

New York’s Fraunces Tavern is one of the places where George Washington drank (and ate), that you can still go to. Go for the lobster tortellini but also enjoy the jambalaya,  beef and chicken pot pies, Scotch eggs and something called George Washington’s Horseback (bacon, dates and almonds). The atmosphere? It could not be better. The main dining area (the Tallmadge Room, named after the Colonel) has a gorgeous room of wood tables lit by candles. There is a maze of corridors that lead to private dining areas and a bar with stuffed chairs, a roaring fireplace, and enough wood and prints to make George feel at home. — Rich Grant, Drinking with George. 

Portland, Oregon

During Portland Dining month this year, Ataula restaurant featured its paella which included prawns, mussels, calamari and clams. “The bomba rice appeared darker than normal paella, which we later found out was due to the chef’s use of lobster fumet, condensed seafood broth with tomato sauce added. It gave the rice a deeply rich seafood flavor. The rice also featured plenty of socarrat, the crispy bottom-of-the-pan bits so prized by paella lovers. ”  — Bobbie Hasselbring, Portland Dining Month: Atoula’s Delicious Spanish Vibe.

Lobster fumet is the secret ingredient in the cooked-to-perfection Paella Ataula.

Prince Edward Island

MacKinnon’s Restaurant: Lobster on the Wharf is a local landmark that has both a seafood market and a sit down restaurant that offers unobstructed shoreline views. The market’s daily prices for seafood are listed on an oversize blackboard. Fresh shellfish swim in bins submerged inside a large water tank. In the restaurant, we were served a half portion of a modest-sized lobster roll. The chunks of freshly caught lobster meat were combined with mayonnaise and celery. This mixture was served on a bun brushed with garlic-tarragon butter and garnished with lettuce. — Sandy Bornstein,  A Bite-Sized Taste of Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island

Lobster on the Wharf, affectionately known to locals by the originating family’s name, MacKinnon’s.

Island of Nevis, West Indies

With a sunset in view and a rum pairing dinner at the Four Seasons Resort, courses included Nevisian Lobster Fritters, Ceviche, Wagyu Steak Fajita, Mango’s Famous Barbecued Ribs (still dreaming of the Coconut Coleslaw) with a fascinating array of rums from Venezuela (Pampero Anniversario), St. Croix (Naked Turtle), Jamaica (Appleton Estate 21 Year Old) and Guatemala (Ron Zacapa 23 Year Old). — Leslie Long, Rum Appreciation in Nevis.

Richmond, British Columbia

Steveston Pizza Company has an $850 pizza that comes with, as the menu points out, a seafood “medley of tiger prawns, lobster ratatouille, smoked steelhead, Russian Osetra caviar, snowed with Italian white truffles.” Here’s the merely $52 version, laden with shrimp, crab legs, tiger prawns and smoked salmon. — Yvette Cardozo, Where to Eat in Richmond, British Columbia.

$52 pizza made by Steveston Pizza Company, The “Mermaid” pizza, topped with shrimp, crab legs, tiger prawns and smoked salmon.

Along the Lobster Trail

Writer Betsa Marsh and her cousins traveled near and far to eat lobster every which way they could. Find out where they went.

Lobster Recipes:

Sauteed Lobster Scampi
A luxuriously decadent recipe courtesy Union Oyster House, Boston, MA. You can find this recipe and many others in the Union Oyster House Cookbook. Get the recipe here obtained by Bobbie Hasselbring, RFT founder and contributor.

Lobster Pizza
Celebrated chef Lydia Shire’s Lobster Pizza from her restaurant, Scampo, in Boston, Massachussets. Get the recipe here obtained by Bobbie Hasselbring, RFT founder and contributor.