After a delicious lobster dinner, you might be wondering what else goes well with lobster. This guide has all the answers. It includes the best sides, dips, and other foods that will make your lobster feast epic.
Lobster is a luxurious, decadent seafood that deserves to be treated like culinary royalty. When cooking up these clawsome crustaceans at home you’ll want sides worthy of accompanying the lobster’s rich sweet meat. The goal is well-balanced dishes that complement rather than compete with the star of the show. Here, we’ll explore mouthwatering options for what to serve with lobster tails, claws, and whole lobsters.
Salads and Slaws
Fresh bright salads make ideal pairings to balance out the richness of lobster. The crips cooling crunch serves as the perfect counterpoint.
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Green salad – Mixed greens, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and vinaigrette pair nicely with buttery lobster. Go for a lighter lemon-based dressing.
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Wedge salad – Crisp iceberg lettuce wedges dripping with blue cheese deliver a nice salty, savory contrast.
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Caprese salad – Slices of fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and basil are a classic combo. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic.
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Fruit salad – Melons, berries, citrus, and mango liven things up. The sweetness complements the lobster.
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Coleslaw – Crunchy cabbage and carrots tossed in a creamy dressing is a popular fried seafood side. Works well with lobster rolls too.
Chowders and Bisques
Rich, velvety chowders and bisques make magic when paired with lobster. The smooth, creamy base allows the sweet lobster flavor to sing.
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Lobster bisque – This classic is made with lobster stock and chunks of lobster meat added in. Provides double the lobster flavor.
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Manhattan clam chowder – The tomato-based broth adds tangy contrast and the potatoes provide heartiness.
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New England clam chowder – The creamy base lets the briny clam and lobster flavors shine through. An iconic pairing.
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Corn and crab bisque – Sweet corn and crab complement lobster wonderfully. Garnish with lump crab meat.
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Seafood chowder – Chunks of fish, shrimp, scallops and potatoes in a creamy broth makes a surf and turf meal.
Pasta and Potatoes
Starchy sides help balance out the lean lobster meat. They also help stretch expensive lobster into more portions.
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Baked potato – A hot baked potato is comfort food at its best. Load it up with sour cream, bacon, and chives.
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Mashed potatoes – Creamy, buttery, smooth mashed potatoes are a classic for good reason. Use red potatoes or sweet potatoes for fun.
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Pasta salad – Chilled pasta tossed with vegetables, cheese, and vinaigrette makes a refreshing choice for summer.
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Mac and cheese – The ultimate comfort food. Make an easy boxed version or go all out with a bubbly baked version.
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Rice pilaf – Fluffy rice with herbs and seasonings absorbs all the lobster goodness.
Hot Butter and More
Don’t forget the hot butter! Lobster needs that drizzle of melted butter to bring everything together. Here are more tasty accompaniments:
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Melted lemon butter – For dipping lobster meat. Brightens up the richness. Infuse it with garlic for extra flavor.
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Drawn butter – Hot melted butter is classic. Clarifying it gives an even richer flavor.
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Garlic bread – Because you can never have enough butter and carbs. The crunch contrasts the lobster’s tender meat.
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Corn on the cob – In peak season, sweet corn is sublime with lobster. Slather it in even more butter, of course.
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Biscuits – Warm flaky biscuits beg for a big pat of butter to melt into all those nooks and crannies.
Elegant Appetizers
If you really want to impress guests, kick things off with fancy seafood appetizers before the main lobster event.
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Oysters on the half shell – Served chilled with lemon, they make an indulgent starter.
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Seared scallops – Buttery pan-seared scallops over creamy risotto or cauliflower puree.
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Crab cakes – Panko-breaded crab cakes with remoulade or aioli sauce.
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Shrimp cocktail – Chilled jumbo shrimp with lemon and cocktail sauce.
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Lobster bruschetta – Toasted baguette rounds topped with lobster chunks, tomatoes, and basil.
Simple Steamed Sides
Let the lobster shine by keeping things simple with steamed veggie sides.
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Broccoli – Florets tossed with lemon, garlic, and olive oil.
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Asparagus – Quickly blanched, then dressed with lemon zest.
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Green beans – Tossed in butter or olive oil with minced garlic and toasted almonds.
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Carrots – Steamed baby carrots glazed lightly in honey butter.
Don’t overthink it – just pair your lobster with fresh, seasonal sides that complement its sweetness. Keep the focus on the star of the show by letting the natural flavors shine through. With a butter bath and the right veggie pairings, lobster is sure to be the catch of the day!
Lobster Throughout the Day
Pop open the bubbly and say cheers to celebrating the luxurious flavor of lobster all day long. How you serve lobster tail can depend on the time of day. For example, a lobster omelet for breakfast can help you decide what to serve with a lobster roll for lunch.
Lobster Tails and Sides
Lobster tails undoubtedly the most popular part of the lobster to serve and enjoy. Adding a steak and baked potato to lobster tail can be a simple way to make it taste like you’re at a steakhouse.
- If you want to try something new with your lobster, try a green bean salad instead of coleslaw. The richness of the seafood will go well with it.
- A great root vegetable to serve with lobsters is baby carrots that have been glazed with a little brown sugar.
- Cherry tomatoes drenched in olive oil, salt, pepper, and maybe a handful of torn basil leaves go well with fresh green beans that have been blanched.
- String beans and broccoli topped with butter and freshly grated Parmesan cheese taste great. You can also mix green and white beans and top them with lemon juice and fresh herbs.
- Grilled or steamed asparagus is enjoyable with lobster. A simple dressing is made of lemon juice and olive oil. If you want to try something new, a sesame mayonnaise dip or sesame oil dressing will make your asparagus dish taste amazing.
- A simple tomato and cucumber salad is great with fresh seafood in the summer, especially when it’s hot outside.
- A light vinaigrette dressing goes well with penne pasta salad. It can be served on its own or with a traditional salad.
- A crisp Caesar salad with Romaine lettuce and Parmesan cheese is a better side dish, especially if you add lots of crunchy croutons on top.
Love Butter? Get ideas for butters for your lobster dinner.
There are a lot of different things that go well with lobster, from the classics like a baked potato topped with butter and sour cream to roasted potatoes. Want something a little different, how about creamy and sumptuous risotto? Here are a few ideas.
- Some people like to start or end a lobster dinner with baked potatoes topped with sour cream and butter. Boil some red bliss potatoes, cut them up, and add chopped chives and mayonnaise to make a simple potato salad. Instead, you could serve your lobster dish with baked little fingerling potatoes in olive oil.
- Macaroni and cheese is a family favorite with lobster. You can always mix them together and make Lobster Mac and Cheese.
- You can serve lobster with risotto, but rice pilaf is a better choice for a lighter meal. To make a rice pilaf that goes well with lobster, cook the rice in seafood broth (you can add a splash of dry white wine if you want) and season it with salt and pepper.
- Boston baked beans are a mainstay in New England and go well with a lobster bake in the backyard.
A simple choice is crusty bread, which is great for sopping up all those juices, especially from clams or mussels (see below).
Let’s celebrate lobster and all things seafood. Sometimes the best side dish with lobster is more seafood. For the ultimate lobster pair, what could be better than a seafood tower with steamed shrimp, shucked oysters, and lobster? A simple bowl of lobster bisque is all you need to serve lobster.
Of course, clam chowder is usually served with lobster. For a real taste of New England, make New England Clam Chowder with native clams, spices, and potatoes.
You could slowly cook steamer clams in water, dry white wine, bay leaf, and your favorite herbs for a lighter broth. You could also serve fresh dug steamer clams on the side. Their sweet flavor goes well with the lobster.
A classic seafood dish that is easy to make (only takes 5–6 minutes) is farm-raised mussels steamed with white wine, fresh garlic, and parsley. Serve steamed mussels as a starter or on a large platter with steamed lobsters.
Grilled or baked scallops make another ideal accompaniment to lobster. If you want to bake scallops, this recipe is simple. Cayenne pepper and Worcestershire sauce add a little heat to the seafood.