Mason's Famous Lobster Rolls — Restaurant in Baltimore

I did my undergraduate studies north of Boston, thirty years ago. I remained on the North Shore for the next fifteen years. I have many friends all over coastal northern New England, including Maine (which, aside from some odd account about Milford CT, is essentially the home of the lobster roll).

I have eaten a lot of lobster rolls, both the hot & cold style. A lot.

And I'll be honest, I've never really known what all the fuss was about. Having a hot dog bun with something other than a hot dog in it is ... odd. Having a cold salad as a hand-held meal is ... odd. Having what should basically be a pasta topping as a hand-held meal is ... just wrong.

But my wife had heard good things about Mason's, & so in spite of my past experiences & in spite of lobster not really being a Mid-Atlantic catch, we decided to give it a go.

I'm so glad we did.

We had their "classic" (I just can't bring myself to eat warm, buttery lobster on bread, I just can't, it isn't right). Too many places overdress with mayo & it coats your tongue & you can't taste anything. This was lightly dressed & the lemon butter helps cut the fat so you can actually taste the lobster. The salad was cold, the bun was warm, it worked.

Get the cole slaw. I know. I know. Cole slaw is the depressing side people on a diet get because they can't have fries. Not here. Some of the best slaw I've had I didn't make myself in spite of all the bbq joints I went to during my fifteen years living in Texas.

OK, sure. What's a lobster roll joint doing in crab country? Why is the one alternative on the menu shrimp instead of crab? Why don't they do a soft shell crab sandwich?

And yes, the whole Inner Harbor has been taken over by big box chains & this is a small box chain.

I hear you.

But given the alternatives along the harbor, ESPECIALLY given all the seafood joints convert from lunch to brunch on weekends & their menus have NO seafood on them at brunch, if you're in town for the aquarium or the other fun activities along the water, this is the quick lunch...

FOOD - Not bad, but not exceptional either. In a city known for seafood, expectations are high, and when you factor in service issues (see below), it can be difficult to hit the mark. Wife's lobster roll was fine, potato salad was fine (albeit in a tiny cup), lobster Mac was fine, lobster grilled cheese was...fine. If you'd asked me to pay the same prices for the same food outside of Baltimore I'd have said you were out of your mind. Probably a worthy eating experience overall, but not one I would repeat, even on a second visit to the city.

SERVICE - We placed a DoorDash order* due to an excessive heat advisory the city. Shortly after, we received a call telling us that they didn't have anyone available to deliver the order...but that they also couldn't cancel and refund the order at that time. We went ahead and walked a few blocks in 103° to avoid being out $75 for two people (including ~$15-20 in delivery fees and tips). Once there, we were told the manager's husband would take care of the refund the following day (here's hoping? Will update if we find out...).

*The DD order was placed through Mason's website. Maybe if done through DD itself this may have been avoided, but I can't be sure, and that doesn't explain why a restaurant with a dozen locations and a delivery option programmed into its website had this problem to begin with.

ATMOSPHERE: Nothing to write home about, but also not the real purpose of the visit.

If you're stopping by on foot you may have a much more positive, 4-star experience; however, we're not sure if we'd ever be back. Given the price and confusing hassle just to get the food we'd already paid for, what we unbagged back at our hotel was...

Delivery order from Arlington store.

$4.00 for a 5.5 oz condiment container of very weak cole slaw is ludicrous (I've had larger servings of catsup to go with fries)! It tasted like somebody forgot the vinegar and there was absolutely no fresh pepper. The NE clam chowder bowl (more resembling a cup than bowl) contained a sum total of 2 large pieces of clam and 5 or 6 very small pieces, all without taste and rubbery. The soup's cream sauce tasted like someone had used clam water instead of clam juice, a very weak taste, again with no fresh ground pepper (nor butter taste at all). The Bar Harbor Bacon Lobster roll was an even bigger disappointment, how does a roll with mayo and tomato on it end up dry? The included tail was both tasteless and very rubbery, even allowing for delivery time.

Food was worse than a tourist trap clam shack on Rt 1 in Maine just a block off the beach. I've had bigger sides of slaw included just to top a pulled pork bbq sandwich even in New England!

Overall: VERY OVERPRICED, not quality prepared food with many obvious cost cutting techniques poorly executed. Based on this delivery order, it is extremely unlikely I will actually try their dine in. (This is the worst review I have written, you really need to f it up for me to...