Woodman’s of Essex is one of the most famous clam shacks in
the world. They claim to have invented the fried clam back in the 1920s and
people have been lining up ever since. We love making the trip to Essex. It’s a
beautiful drive up the coastal route of 127 through Beverly and
Manchester-by-the-Sea that ends in the adorable little clam and antiques town
of Essex.
While technically a clam shack, Woodman’s is quite large,
with seating indoors, outdoors and upstairs. There are also three lines to
contend with: the main food line, the outdoor line for boiled lobsters, and the
beverage line. The combination of crowds, chaos and crusty New Englanders makes
this an intimidating experience for rookies but it’s well worth it.
In addition to ordering clams every which way (steamed, fried,
chowdered) I also grabbed a lobster roll for $19.95, which puts it at the
higher end of the price spectrum. The roll was served with some potato chips
that had been ruffled (presumably at a factory).
Crustacean: the lobster
was fantastic. The meat was sweet and cooked perfectly. I’m not sure if they
were American or Canadian lobsters (the sea border is literally porous) but they
were pretty close to perfect. 49 points
Components:
Woodman’s featured the core 4: lobster, mayo, roll, butter. Unsurprisingly they
hewed to the traditional recipe and don’t truck with vegetables. 26 points
Construction: the
serving of lobster salad was generous but not overwhelming. The roll was
perfectly grilled and was not too bready. The only complaint that I could see
would be the heavy hand of mayo. I’m a big mayo fan so it didn’t bother me,
but I could imagine complaints from people who don’t bathe in mayo. 18 points
Total score: 93
Obviously I highly recommend that you visit Woodman’s of
Essex and take down a lobster roll. You won’t be sorry.
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