December is tourist season in SoFlo, which means snow birds have flocked to the 305 for fun in the sun. But people aren’t the only things we are getting from the north … a Northern delicacy is calling Miami home.
Maine has come to Miami … Luke’s Lobster at Brickell City Center is on a roll.
Ben Conniff: “Luke’s Lobster is a sustainable seafood restaurant. We are fast casual, which means you come in and order at the counter, grab a seat, or take out with you.”
The menu is simple — seafood.
Their claim to fame is the lobster roll.
Ben Conniff: “We think the lobster roll is the greatest food in the world. We don’t want to have a huge menu that distracts us from what’s in our minds, the absolute key and that’s lobster rolls.”
Lobster, shrimp and crab rolls are staples in New England. But if you can’t fly to Maine on a whim — Luke’s is the next best thing.
Daniel Folks: “It’s a fast, casual place where I can go and get good seafood, which is a uncommon concept. Usually when I think of seafood, I think of a sit-down restaurant.”
You can get Luke’s seafood in soup or on a salad. And in the winter, you can even get it in an ooey gooey grilled cheese, but their specialty is inside a New England style bun.
Ben Conniff: “It’s similar to a hot-dog bun, it’s split on the top and the sides are shaved off. So when you butter it and put it on the hot griddle, the sides get crispy and it almost melts in your mouth.”
A quarter of a pound of the North Atlantic’s best goes into the crispy bun with a little bit of mayo, topped with lemon butter and Luke’s secret seasoning.
Ben Conniff: “We never mix the lobster with anything beforehand, so it’s not a gooey mayo lobster salad. We put a tiny bit of mayo inside the bun before we make it. And everything is made to order, so if you don’t like mayo, no mayo. If you don’t like lemon butter, no lemon butter.”
The taste and flavors lets you know it’s fresh … the board lets you know where it’s from.
Ben Conniff: “We have relationships with lobstermen all throughout the state. We really get them from all up and down that coast. We go as far south as Portland, which is far in the southeastern part of Maine. Out to places like Milbridge and Bills Island, which is practically Canada.”
South Florida knows seafood — but now we can take a bite out of the Northeast’s pride and joy.
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