Big and fresh lobsters with large claws are mouth-watering, not to mention the ones you get from the cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean, the finest dish that you'll get from the state of Maine. It goes well with wine gift baskets with a refreshing Chardonnay; the combination is so perfect that you would love it. Your visit to this exotic place will be incomplete if you don't have the meal of the yummy freshly boiled lobster and butter. The very idea of breaking the claws of the hard shelled lobster to devour the soft buttered meat will leave you licking your lips.

I have my own rules about eating lobster that I never vary from. It always should be eaten outdoors. There is nothing worse than sitting in an upscale restaurant with a lobster bib tied around your neck. I have also been known to get a little carried away at times, trying to reach that delectable lobster meat with the lobster crackers, resulting in the whole lobster claw flying across the room.

A lobster dinner also must be preceded with fresh clam chowder, chock full with Maine clams in a creamy broth. A specialized gift basket complete with lobster bib would make a thoughtful gift. Clam chowder has been the staple on many a Mainer's table for many years. It is a delicious concoction of milk or cream, butter and plenty of Maine clams with their briny liquid. A sprinkling of oyster crackers and that is a making of a complete meal

We have the location and first course of our dinner arranged so its time to consider what the lobsters should be like. For a fantastic dinner pick a lobster between a pound and a half and two pounds. Larger lobsters have their uses (casseroles, stuffing, lobster stew) but they aren't as tasty eaten plain. Any lobster over two pounds will be too much for one person to eat, because lobster is both rich and satisfying. Sometimes you can find a "single-claw lobster" which is a lobster sold with just one claw. A great housewarming gift might include a gift basket with lobster eating paraphernalia and a cooked lobster.

Maine abounds with great choices as for where to get your lobster. Lobster pounds will often cook your lobster. You can eat it there (some have tables) or eat it outside. Having a gift basket with you will make transporting the cooked lobster easier, and you can place other goodies in the basket to round out the meal. Also in Maine are places called lobster in the rough dining. Simple, casual places to enjoy your fresh cooked lobster.

The rough dining restaurants are mostly spotted near the ocean on a dockside. It contains a lot of small tables placed in the open air from where you could eat your yummy boiled lobster. A bottle of wine goes well with the rough dining. It is more comfortable to enjoy your lobster outdoor without being conscious of spilling and enjoying the beauty of the ocean.

Picture the scene. Rustic picnic tables are overlooking the sun-dappled harbor, covered in the napkins for the messy task at hand. Customers wearing the authentic lobsters bibs these places always provide. You can taste the saltiness of the Atlantic Ocean, as the ocean breeze flows over you, better than any air-conditioning.

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