June is Lobster Month at SoDel Concepts restaurants

During SoDel Concepts’ Lobster Month, Thompson Island Brewing Company in Rehoboth Beach is turning up the volume with a wood-grilled 1.25-pound lobster with clarified butter, chimichurri sauce and bok choy. SUBMITTED PHOTOS

SoDel Concepts is kicking off the summer with one of the coastal area’s most coveted crustaceans: lobsters. All 12 restaurants will feature a lobster dish on their specials list.

“Lobster is so versatile that it can complement all our concepts, from Italian to Mexican,” said Chef Doug Ruley, vice president of culinary operations. “Of course, it’s a natural for our seafood restaurants, including Northeast Seafood Kitchen, which was inspired by the cuisine in the Maine area.”

Throughout the month, the chefs at each restaurant are encouraged to flex their creative muscles with the star ingredient. “We love to engage in a little friendly competition to see who can come up with the most innovative dish,” Ruley said. “However, guests can expect to see traditional preparations as well. Few summer dishes can beat lobster with warm butter.”

Following is a sampling of some of the lobster dishes one might see on the menus: Catch 54 in Fenwick Island - steamed whole lobster with hot butter, whipped potatoes and grilled asparagus; Papa Grande’s Coastal Taqueria in Fenwick Island - tacos with buttered, broiled lobster meat, shaved cabbage, pickled red onion and spicy mayo; Northeast Seafood Kitchen in Ocean View - Portuguese lobster stew; Bluecoast Seafood Grill + Raw Bar in Bethany Beach - whole steamed 1.25-pound lobster with hot butter, roasted marble potatoes and grilled asparagus; Matt’s Fish Camp in Bethany Beach - lobster bake with a 1.25-pound whole lobster, half-pound of steamed shrimp, six steamed clams, corn on the cob and peewee potatoes; Lupo Italian Kitchen in Rehoboth Beach - Lobster Fra Diavolo with saffron calamarata pasta, cherry tomatoes, aji amarillo (a chile) sauce and lobster reduction; Bluecoast Seafood Grill - grilled whole lobster with chipotle butter, a pea tendril and radish salad, drawn butter and lemon; Thompson Island Brewing Company in Rehoboth Beach - wood-grilled 1.25-pound lobster with clarified butter, chimichurri sauce and bok choy; Crust & Craft in Rehoboth Beach - wood-fired pizza with roasted lobster meat, Baywater Farms’ tricolor cauliflower, poblano-smoked Gouda, sweet corn and tarragon puree; the Clubhouse at Baywood in Millsboro - grilled half lobster with truffled arugula, peas and smoked bacon mac-and-cheese; Matt’s Fish Camp in Lewes - Lobster Fra Diavolo; and Fish On in Lewes - whole steamed lobster with drawn butter and lemon, mashed potatoes and chefs veggies or lobster salad with Baywater Farms hydroponic tomatoes, roasted corn, pickled red onions and basil.

All SoDel Concepts restaurants are currently open for dine-in service and continue to offer carryout. For information, go to www.sodelconcepts.com.