Legendary | Worth driving from anywhere
Red’s Eats
Review by: Michael Stern
Red’s Eats in Wiscasset, ME | What to expect
Red’s Eats is a shack about the size of a small house trailer with a single window where you both place your order and then get it when it’s ready. Opened in Boothbay in 1938, it moved to the north end of Wiscasset in 1954, and it has since become a summertime legend.
What to eat at Red’s Eats:
Many people believe that here is the best lobster roll anywhere: Heaps of meat from a whole one-pound lobster is extracted in great hunks and piled into a toasted split-top bun that is accompanied by a cup of drawn butter or, if you wish, mayonnaise. It is lobster-eater’s nirvana.
“Look how beautiful!” says the waitress when she presents ours through the window on its picnic tray. Her enthusiasm is that of someone who has never seen one of these amazing sandwiches ever before. In fact, she is dishing out dozens, probably hundreds on this pleasant summer day. Crowds of people line up for lobster rolls at Red’s so that the wait just to get to the window can be up to an hour.
Once you receive your food – the large menu also contains fried seafood of all kinds, burgers, onion rings, French fries, and Round Top ice cream – you carry it to one of the plastic tables in back of the restaurant and dine in the sun alongside Route One. (As of late Spring, 2020, pandemic precautions make Red’s strictly take-out.)
Lobster roll prices vary according to the market.
Directions & Hours
Information
| Price | $$ |
| Seasons | Summer |
| Meals Served | Lunch, Dinner |
| Credit Cards Accepted | No |
| Alcohol Served | No |
| Outdoor Seating | Yes |
What To Eat
Red’s Eats Recipes
Discuss
What do you think of Red’s Eats?
9 Responses to “Red’s Eats”
Robert Clark
March 11th, 2024
Every time we travel the Maine Coast we time our travels to get to Red’s around lunch time. Yes the wait is long, even when we travel which is not high summer. Some say it is just an overhyped, tourist trap but to each his own. In my opinion they live up to the hype. The lobster meat is excellent, tail and claws. So fresh and tender. Served on a grilled split top NE style roll unadorned. Mayo or butter on the side. Remember cash only.
First and last visit
October 9th, 2023
Arrived at 3pm on Sunday afternoon and had to wait 3.5hrs! There is no place to sit while you are waiting! We thought about leaving a couple of times but figured we had invested so much time we would stick it out because of the place’s notoriety. Do not do this! The food was good but not worth this wait! At 5pm they close the serving window and the entire process gets very inefficient. Everyone who works there was very nice. They did bring a cup of water around once during our wait but no samples and no opportunity to order appetizers like some people have mentioned.
Kenneth D. Bragg
July 31st, 2023
My wife makes 10times the” Lobstah” roll. For less than half the price. Never was an “EAT-IN” place look at it. Overpriced and overrated.
Marie King
April 15th, 2023
Love your lobster roll. Missed going the pass few years. But this year your on the calendar.
Raymond Belanger
April 5th, 2023
Went the date you are going to open for the season thanks Ray
Denise Kulp
May 19th, 2022
I love Red’s so much that I moved to Wiscasset! It’s not the only reason we moved here, we found a great house nearby, but Red’s is the best Lobster Roll I’ve ever had, and it’s great to be able to go all summer long. Instead of just a lot over a one-week vacation. I also love the Lobster Pie at the Maine Diner, but they seem to have gotten smaller over the years, while Red’s Lobster Roll is as enormous as ever! I first visited in 1990, after reading about it in an earlier version of Road Food!
Karen
September 6th, 2013
I travel by wheelchair and when my husband and I saw the long line we almost turned around. But, having heard what wonderful food was served, we decided to park and get in line. It was a hot day and others in line said it looked to be about a 45 minute wait. A few minutes passed and a staff person approached us and said he would take our order because there was a step at the front of the line that I probably wouldn’t be able to do. So, we ordered our lobster rolls, got out of line, found a picnic table on the grass (not too difficult for the wheelchair) and our meal was brought to us. I can’t thank Red’s enough for that kind gesture!
Tammie Petty
August 10th, 2011
My husband and I (and now two children) have been coming to Maine for 18 years. For many years we would drive past this little shack on the side of the road and wonder who would eat there. We noticed when we passed at certain times of the day, the line was fairly long. During one particular visit we read an article about the best lobster rolls in Maine and again noticed the little shack. This got us curious, and so we stopped one day. We have been going back faithfully ever since.
Red’s has the best lobster rolls around. We also love the fried clams. They also have basic kid fare (my son is a strict grilled cheese kind of guy) and other menu items. It especially great when traveling in the fall, because there are no lines. Now with kids, we travel in the summer and have waited over an hour, but it is well worth it.
It is a no fuss kind of place and the wait is sometimes just as interesting. The staff is always pleasant, and they’ve been great and engaging with our kids. We recommend the trip, at least once. I am sure you will get hooked too.
Robert Beale
December 27th, 2007
I worked in Damariscotta, ME in June and ate at Red’s three times. Walking by just as they were closing one evening, I was repeatedly asked if I wanted something; Red’s was shut and the owners were about to leave. They insisted and prepared an inexpensive large grilled cheese sandwich. I went back one later evening for their great clam roll; hot fried clams piled up on the roll and falling all over plate.
My wife flew up to join me for a week vacation and we were back at Red’s for their renowned lobster roll (gobs of tender lobster meat heaped on a toasted bun and eaten, in our case, with just clear drawn butter). Boy did it meet and exceed expectations. Even if you are not hungry, if you drive through Wiscasset, you absolutely must stop at Red’s and order a lobster roll to go.