Lobster Rolls - Tackle Box

When I first learned about Tackle Box, the new (and “first”) lobster shack in D.C. and sister business to neighbor Hook, I remembered my time in Maine two summers ago and my daily trips for lobster rolls. I was there for a week long film workshop and met a girl from Mexico City, who then joined me on any excuse to leave campus daily, even if it meant forgoing our free lunch. We found a convenience store down a two-lane highway close to town, and there on the other side of the parking lot was a little wooden structure no bigger than two parking spots with a big sign that said, “Lobster Rolls!”

Neither one of us had eaten a lobster rolls before but somehow we instinctively knew this was heaven. More a hotdog than, say, a round dinner roll, the bread looks like a slice of white bread specially baked as if it had been folded in half and sealed at the bottom, like a hotdog bun. It’s then stuffed with large chunks of white lobster tail that have been mixed with a light mayonnaise dressing and eaten as is. The filing was warm and the bun was perfectly toasty, a feat that amazed us, as it seemed that each had just been cooked the minute we arrived.

Lobster is plentiful in the area, and at $14 dollars a roll, the meal was excellent and affordable. After the amazing quality, the humble outside argues that a few planks of wood, some pots, and good ingredients can deliver great food to the masses. Like the taco stand and halal cart, the lobster shack is a fundamental eatery that isn’t duplicated enough.

Especially in DC, which was my first attraction to Tackle Box. I didn’t believe the lobster would be as good as our lobster shack in Maine, which likely fished their lobster that morning from the bay 15 miles away. I imagine higher quality seafood at Hook next door or superior lobster rolls at Hanks Oyster Bar or Kinkead’s. Better yet, why not opt for the local favorite lobster burger at Central if you’re looking to feed your lobster craving.

What the Tackle Box offers is the nostalgia and setting to eat lobster differently: lobster is wonderful, but it’s just food after all, and you can have it any time you want to. I rode my bike to west M Street in Georgetown after running some errands and didn’t worry about what I was wearing or how long this would take. The rolls had thin strips of meat and were filled sparingly – a predictable disappointment – but still delicious. The sweet potato fries (the roll comes with house cut fries, though they allowed the substitute this time) were fried to the point of brittleness, unfortunately. I had hoped for a more natural and unique hole-in-the-wall quaintness, but the place felt a bit more like a cross between Chipotle and Potbelly, two very well known chains.

Tackle Box boasts a frequently changing menu of sustainable seafood, and currently offers several of sides, like mac & cheese, grilled asparagus and even chorizo hot dogs. Though the most exciting feature of Tackle Box have to be the lobster pots to go, which include Maine lobster, oysters, mussels, chorizo, potatoes and corn. Just add water and boil. The various possibilities and no-frills aspect of picking up a quick bite of seafood are enough to bring me back for more, and hope other similar dives are soon to follow.