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The best lobster rolls in Singapore

Natasha Hong surveys Singapore’s growing risk of lobster rolls that are populating menus across town. Photography by Ahmad Iskandar Photography

Written by
Natasha Hong
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Boston Seafood Shack
  • Restaurants
  • Seafood
  • Buona Vista
Boston premium lobstah roll, $14
Given its rock-bottom price, the lobster is padded with crayfish meat in this take. Having said that, this ‘lobstah’ roll’s not awful – a regular hot dog bun is slathered with avocado spread, and the varied meats are complemented with slices of tomatoes and lettuce. A passable, wallet-friendly starting point, if you’re looking to get into lobster rolls.
Clifford Pier
  • Restaurants
  • Singaporean
  • Raffles Place
The Pier lobster roll, $29
Cooked to retain its juiciness in a water bath, then seared quickly with butter for colour, chef Ken Zheng at The Clifford Pier coats the meat from one full crustacean in a house made mayo and lemon juice, which gives the roll – made daily in the kitchen – a nice tangy, tartar sauce-like quality. A simple side salad and sumac-spiced fries complete the plate.
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Dancing Crab
  • Restaurants
  • American
  • Bukit Timah
Lobster roll, $23
The tail of one lobster (with some claw meat thrown in) is tossed in a paprika-addled béarnaise sauce and baked into two dense buns. We appreciate the additional whisper of spice and smoke with each bite, though it feels a little too oily eventually towards the finish. A side of purple cabbage slaw and cucumber pickles helps cut that richness.
Ding Dong
  • Restaurants
  • Contemporary Asian
  • Tanjong Pagar
Blue lobster bao with hoisin, cucumber & crispy shallots, $26
Thinly-sliced slabs of sous vide Canadian-grown Boston lobster are seared and placed with Japanese cucumber, fried shallots, coriander, and a slathering of hoisin sauce in a steamed rice bun for this Asianinspired take. The hoisin alone is incredibly salty, but when balanced with the herb and freshness of the added vegetables, it delivers on its Eastern promise.
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Luke's Oyster Bar
  • Restaurants
  • Seafood
  • Chinatown
Lobster roll, $45
Available only at lunch, this lobster roll pioneer and Gemmil Lane stalwart could give lessons to the new kids on the Club Street block on how it should be done. Steamed and enriched with a house-made aioli, crunchy lobster chunks are stuffed in a butterseared soft roll with a sprinkling of chives. Paprikaspeckled shoestring fries accompany the roll. Simply made, yet big on flavour.
Manhattan Bar
  • Bars and pubs
  • Cocktail bars
  • Orchard
Maine lobster roll, $26
Taking the lobster roll moniker more literally than the rest, this bar bite version of the dish curls a poached and sliced lobster around king crab flavoured with baby celery cress sauce. Before eating one of the three, mop up the accompanying sauce of avocado cream, gremolade sauce and chilli powder for balance. At $26, it’s certainly pricey, but pairs well with the superb cocktails at Manhattan.
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Market Grill
  • Restaurants
  • Grills
  • Tanjong Pagar
Lobster sliders, $45
The judicious and clever addition of pommery mustard seeds is a genius move on the Market Grill’s part. Adding a lovely lift to the mustard mayo-draped homarus americanus lobsters sourced from a sustainable fishery in Canada, the full lobster with claw meat plays well with the delicate crunch and light sweetness of its brioche shell.
Pince & Pints
  • Restaurants
  • Seafood
  • Tanjong Pagar
Lobster roll, $48
Packed between a tall, spongey bun baked to Pince & Pints’ specs by an uncle in People’s Park Complex is a full lobster (pincers included) of crunchy meat. The incredibly fresh lobster chunks, coated in a light mayo and topped with chives pair beautifully with the butter-seared inners of its sweeter-than-usual roll. Yes, the price may be prickly, but consider that the lobsters are flown in twice weekly, and bussed daily to the restaurant from their warehouse resting place – a rare indulgence, perhaps, but unlikely to disappoint.
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Platypus Lobster Shack
  • Restaurants
  • Seafood
  • Chinatown
The Modern, $19
Platypus’ popular Gourmet2Go outlet at Nankin Row morphs into a lobster shack at night, and showcases rolls done nine ways (all $19). Besides the regular mayo mix, a creamier hollandaise is also offered alongside garlic, chilli and other unique addins, though the meat’s a little limp and mealy. Served with gut-busting, butter-dunked rectangular bun that gives the proceedings a light crunch.
The Cajun Kings
  • Restaurants
  • Australian
  • Serangoon
Lobster roll, $30
The Cajun King’s generous roll eschews the long bun for a burger-like brioche made by The Bread Table bakery. The half of lobster (approximately 180g of meat) is simply dressed with clarified butter and served cold with a slather of mayo on top to, as co-owner Melvin Chen puts it, ‘let the lobster sing’. Unfortunately, this heart-stopping roll isn’t a regular item on the restaurant’s menu; it’s a semi-weekly special with only ten to 15 up for grabs, so call ahead to check if it’s on – and push them to make it a permanent item!
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