Luke's Lobster Portland Pier — Restaurant in Portland

Luke's Lobster is a small business with 20 locations located throughout the U.S. they started as a small lobster shack in NYC serving up authentic Maine lobster rolls. We visited this location and loved the atmosphere here. It's right on the pier and they have indoor and outdoor seating with some amazing views if you see my pictures. The service was okay but the food was great! A little pricy for the size but overall good quality. They showcase where they source their food on a board out front near the host stand. If you want an on the pier lobster experience with great views then Luke's Lobster is the spot to try!

To start, My wife and I were quoted about a 30 minute wait but only waited about ten minutes before getting a table which was nice. We got a two person table in the shade and was greeted by our server in a reasonable time. We both shared the Fried Haddock Bites with house made tartar sauce and a Luke's Trio which consisted of 1/2 a lobster roll, 1/2 a crab roll, 1/2 a shrimp roll, a pickle spear and a bag of chips for $28. We substituted the chips for a side salad for $2 more. To drink, I had the Seadog Blueberry Ale and the wife had a Passion fruit Margarita on the rocks.

Our server had actually forgot to put in our appetizer and we received the main meal before the fried haddock bites and we didn't get them until we were almost done with the main meal. We still ate and enjoyed haddock bites but no use ordering it as an appetizer if it doesn't come out as one. The appetizer came with about 9-10 pieces of fried haddock that seemed to have a cornmeal/flour breading that had a nice crunch but wasn't too thick. The haddock was nice and moist with great flavor and their tartar sauce was some of the best homemade tartar sauce I've had in a while. I really liked it! Just wish they served a bit more with the fish but I'm sure if we had asked the server she would have brought more out.

Luke's Trio was a wonderful way of trying the different rolls that Luke's had to offer. The lobster roll was tender and moist and was a classic lobster roll served cold on a toasted bun with a sprinkle of seasoning on top. They don't serve it with drawn butter so you'll have to ask for that but I think they put some on top for you already. The crab roll was also great served cold with lots of shredded crab meat on a toasted bun and topped with butter and seasoning. Not completely shell free as I found a couple tiny bits of shell as I was eating it but assume they pull the meat by hand so it wasn't something to cry about. And finally, the shrimp roll. Tons of cold baby shrimps on the same toasted roll and topped with the same seasoning. I don't think they add butter to this one. The shrimps were tender and juicy and you can taste the freshness in every bite!

Our drinks were good. The flavor of the blueberry ale was satisfying and had subtle blueberry flavor without losing sight of being a beer and not just some fruit drink. My wife liked her passion fruit Margarita, however they put Tajin on the rim which didn't really fit the flavor of the drink. Maybe just a colored sugar would have been a better alternative. Also, my wife and I agreed that we could barely taste the passion fruit flavor and mostly just tastes like a regular margarita.

If you follow me, you know that I like when servers ask if we've been there before when we go to places. We like being told what the restaurant is all about and what stands them out from the others and we also like being recommend drinks and food that the place is known for without having to ask the server. Otherwise, your food and atmosphere better speak loudly because your service is like any other place and isn't special and doesn't make for a special or unique experience. Sadly, our server did not do this here. And on top of forgetting our food, it was mediocre service at best.

Food - 5 ⭐ Atmosphere 5 ⭐ Service - 3 ⭐ Overall - 4 ⭐

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If you want the best, freshest lobster this is your place! When I say the lobster is fresh, I mean it is FRESH! I've had lobster rolls before, but never like this. I, along with two other members of the group ordered the lobster roll flight. Shut the front door! They have ruined me on ever being able to fully enjoy lobster in Louisiana. The truffle butter roll had such a perfect subtle truffle flavor that just kicked the roll up a notch. The lemon butter roll was just classic. Perfect flavor that really highlighted the sweetness of the lobster. The spicy honey butter roll was also impressive. It was not spicy, but it had a tiny little kick. It was just the right amount to not overpower the flavor of the lobster. We also ordered the Haddock bites, steamed clams, and smoked pollock dip to start off. The haddock bites were perfectly battered, and the fish was white, flakey and cooked to perfection. I could have eaten the whole order by myself they were so good. I am very funny about fish and seafood. If it isn't fresh I just can't do it. THIS STUFF IS FRESH! The smoked pollock dip.....Damn! It was so good. I could have eaten that on a roll! It was served with bagel chips, which was great, but they could easily use that dip for one of their rolls. Now, I am not a big clam person. I typically don't eat it. The steamed clams were pretty good, although the rest of the group disagreed and said they were great. The beer selection was really good, and the beers were nice and cold. I ordered the Sea Smoke, which is one of their signature drinks. It was perfect for warming up a little since it was so cold. Bonus, each purchase of this drink gives $1 to Luke's student lobstering mentorship program! I absolutely love this! The views from the restaurant are simply beautiful. We really enjoyed that while we had lunch. Service was great, as well. Our server even humored us and went out on the cold deck to take a group pic for us. If I lived anywhere near Luke's they would get sick of me! Definitely a must if you are in the area looking for...

NEWCOMERS WARNING: Don't bring a car here unless you're ready to spend $30 for 2hrs of parking (+$5 for each additional hour), just book close by and walk here or get an Uber/Lyft. Trust me, it's more affordable that way!

On to the review!

This is my first Maine food experience!

It was pretty good overall! No complaints really, just tasty food, friendly atmosphere and plenty of variety.

The seafood is incredibly fresh, like the lobsters and clams are literally sitting in water the water in crates just waiting to be...well, you know. 😰

The sights were pretty great! Notntge prettiest view, but a genuine one; it was a nice little fisherman's spot and was overall quite pleasant.

I suppose the reason for the 4 stars is just that it didn't quite meet my expectations, but it did get very close. I've had better Lobster Rolls in Texas (one of those Maine Lobster Food Trucks made me one and it was delectable). The clam chowder was 80% Campbell's New England Clam Chowder (there has got to be a Clam Chowder out here that is the local favorite, the one here can't be it), but it WAS tasty, don't get me wrong.

Now, my recommendation based on the sampling that I had would be:

Shrimp Roll: this thing was stupid good, totally didn't expect that, an absolute must try.

Lobster Bisque: the best one I've ever had. It was spectacular and jam packed with flavor. Not your typical bisque that is 99% tomato soup with Lobster seasoning. This was the real deal.

Sourdough Toast: This stuff was basically crack, like, it was actually ridiculously tasty.

The Clams and Mussels were actually a really good value and very tasty, no fishy smell. Well cleaned and seasoned.

So I would definitely recommend this spot to others, just temper your expectations and you'll have a blast.

4.25/5 stars...