Montauk Pioneer - August 8, 2008 -

No outing of mine is complete without some sort of gastronomical endeavor. Like when we go out on the boat and bring enough food to feed an army. It could be as simple as sandwiches, hard-boiled eggs and potato chips, or as exciting as eating the freshest lobster ever at Gurney's Inn Oceanfront Lobster Bake, which I had the opportunity to attend this past week.

It should come as no surprise that I jumped at the chance to indulge in one of the finest crustaceans to be pulled from the sea. In my world lobster is, unfortunately, not an everyday food - it's an indulgence, a treat - so you can imagine how badly I was craving lobster, and Gurney's certainly did not disappoint.

Now, I'm no expert on lobster, and I don't believe I've ever cooked it myself. I do recall my mom making them for my dad when I was younger, though I most definitely did not try them then (those were among the "yucky" foods). I've eaten enough good (and bad!) lobster to know when I've found a winner, and the lobsters Gurney's serves up (every Wednesday night throughout the summer) are among the best lobsters I've ever had the pleasure to eat - and I was a bit of a glutton, eating both my own and my boyfriend's lobster. They are served whole, with melted butter for dipping, and the chef kindly gives the bright red crustacean a few whacks with his cleaver to help you get to the delicious meat, which is perfectly cooked and pleasantly moist.

My first bite was nearly indescribable. I couldn't help but close my eyes and chew very slowly, savoring the flavor, not wanting it to end. The meat was fresh and tasted of the sweet smell of the sea, as if it had just been plucked from the ocean. Along with your lobster, you get corn on the cob, which may seem ordinary, but was soaking in a vat of what I think was buttermilk - it was crisp and sweet, and when I was done, I slurped the juice until the cob was dry.

Included in your admission ticket (besides the giant pound-and-a-half lobster) are unlimited trips to the extensive buffet, which was loaded with mouthwatering goodies like smoked fish, barbequed chicken, mussels in white wine, corn on the cob, a mountain of cocktail shrimp, hamburgers, hot dogs, sausages.......the list goes on!

I have to tell you all a funny tidbit from our evening at Gurney's that begs to be shared. While I am an adventurous eater and will try just about anything (within reason!) my friend (and Art Director here at Dan's Paper's) Kelly is not so adventurous - at all. Unbeknownst to her, and to me, Kelly chose to eat what she thought was a barbequed chicken breast. She raved about how moist and tasty it was, so naturally I needed to try it myself. The meat cut very easily with just my fork, and I took a huge bite. She was right, it was curiously moist and flaky, and had a deep smoky flavor that I'd never experienced before. It turns out we were not eating chicken, but a fillet of barbequed Mako shark, which our significant others knew, but thought it amusing to not tell us until after we had eaten all up like good girls.

So the moral of this story would be: go to Gurney's Inn Oceanfront Lobster Bake before the summer ends, and if you are not sure of what something on the buffet is, do not trust your spouse to tell you what it is.