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Harraseeket Lunch and Lobster
(207) 865-4888
36 Main Street, South Freeport
Hospitality-Counter service with clear directions and clean picnic tables
Open daily 11-8:45 from Memorial Day till Labor Day, till 7:45 last weekend in April to May and after Labor Day to Columbus Day
Entrées $9 to $19; lobster rolls $14; no credit cards accepted, but there's an ATM inside
Pretty waterside spot for well-made lobster rolls, lobster dinners, and seafood
When things are hopping at Harraseeket Lunch, as they almost always are, the attendant in the parking lot will give you fair warning-"There is a 40-minute wait on all orders," she told us one sunny Wednesday in July. Even for a lobster roll? Even for a lobster roll. That's because they steam and shuck and mix the lobster meat right before they put it in the roll and send it out for you to eat.
But with everyone around you waiting for his or her order, this can be a convivial scene. A seat at one of the clean red picnic tables under the blue-and-white-striped awning has the shade you need, and the drink orders can be filled right away.
"Is number 133 almost ready?" a 12-year-old boy who couldn't take the wait asked plaintively at the order window.
When the lobster roll came, in exactly 40 minutes, it was in a white paper bag and wrapped in a white napkin-a buttered and toasted roll that still felt warm, full of big pieces of fresh lobster in a light mayonnaise dressing. It tasted great, even though the others at the table groused about the small size. This one cost $14, and I thought it had everything going for it.
The location on the water allows you to watch the latest crate of lobsters being unloaded, and at another order window steamed lobster dinners are available. A friendly worker inside volunteered to show off a lobster for a woman with a camera, and a child reached out to touch the mysterious creatures that attract visitors from around the country and the world. It's summer in Maine.