It cannot be that we spend over three weeks wandering around Canada’s Atlantic Provinces without adding some value to the common good. At least that part that enjoys lobster. And so, one of our sub-missions was to survey lobster rolls everywhere we could find them offered along our journey. One must eat, so conducting a survey is a vaguely multi-tasking add-on that is highly portable and available for thoughtful consideration and evaluation post-consumption. And helps drive the process of finding even more lobster rolls. What is not to like about that? Ponder that for a moment.
To be clear, lobster rolls are not generally available even when in season, even though McDonald’s would sometimes like you to believe otherwise. As well, we likely missed some opportunities that didn’t coincide with the timing of lunch. One cannot allow the add-on mission to upend the primary mission. There must be some guidelines.
Québec’s north shore is apparently not a mecca for lobster rolls. Our apologies to the North Shore if that is not a fair assessment. It was only when we disembarked from the Baie Comeau to Matane ferry that the survey became serious. After all, it was time for lunch, and our itinerary said that it came next. As the first lobster roll to be surveyed, the one served by Le Bistro du Capitaine in Matane set the bar low, although the opportunity to order a gluten-free hot dog bun did raise it a little bit. Perhaps it was the shaky cafeteria ambience, but our initial foray into the land of lobster rolls, while not leaving a bad taste in our mouths, did not impress as we had anticipated. To be sure, even a mediocre lobster roll is still a lobster roll.
Later, the lobster roll experience levelled out until we almost inadvertently came across Treena’s Takeout on Lighthouse Road, located beside the Woods Island Ferry Terminal on the southern tip of Prince Edward Island. The inadvertent part was related to it being an “off itinerary” discovery. It also represented our last chance for a diet-friendly meal before boarding the ferry for Nova Scotia. Once we sorted out how one ordered and where such food arrived from, we were in for a real lobster roll treat. Lots of lobster in a very light and flavourful sauce (perhaps it was just mayonnaise, but food magic inspiration argued otherwise), falling out of a fresh and seemingly purpose-built roll, presented with black-and-white checkered wax paper and fries. A truly OMG lobster roll moment and a clear potential winner, even though the road ahead was long.
As things turned out, it was a good thing that we chose to line up for the ferry and enjoy our Treena’s fare while in line. Shortly after finishing our excellent lobster rolls, one of us ventured off to explore the comfort facilities seemingly located just over there across the staging area. Moments later, and somewhat out of the blue, the people who run the ferry stuff decided to start the boarding process, despite an important passenger wandering the staging area somewhat lost. Given the circumstances, pulling out of line was called for. One of those occasions when a bright red car leads to a successful rescue. Goes to show that with lobster roll surveys comes a little risk, best mitigated by driving a red car. But we digress. With a honk of the ferry’s horn, we were off to Nova Scotia on our journey.
We drove many days through five provinces in search of lobster rolls to add to our survey. The closest competition to Treena’s came from the Whale’s Back Grub Hub just south of Gros Morne’s Western Brook Pond on Newfoundland’s west coast along the Viking Trail. Another off-the-itinerary lunch destination, following the advice of our host at The Turnip Bed and Breakfast. Competition, as used here, is a bit of a sketchy stretchy concept, as these two purveyors of lobster rolls are something like 830 kilometers and a 6-hour ferry ride apart. Maybe a seventeen-hour drive if you don’t stop for the night. Clearly, there is a lot to like about Newfoundland, but if you are in Prince Edward Island or Nova Scotia, Treena’s is a saner choice anyway. Heading off to Newfoundland for a lobster roll is likely difficult to justify. But if you are going there anyway, add the Grub Hub to your travel itinerary. We expect that the results of this survey will likely not alter the business prospects of any of these food service providers. It did provide these two travellers with a little extra sense of purpose. And maybe, if a lobster roll enthusiast reads this (?), they will be motivated to add a couple of starred favourites to their go-to map app in case a journey to the Atlantic Provinces presents itself as a good idea. And our effort to improve the common good will have been fulfilled.
