One place that I love, love, love in Fitchburg, MA is this seafood place called SS Lobster Ltd. My grandparents would take me here when I visited from Boston. Memere (my grandmother) would always get the fried scallops while I usually wanted the fried clams. This place has good memories for me and my Mom wanted us to go here for dinner on a first night in Massachusetts. Like my Dad and I were going to say no to this place!
This is the outside. It’s not a fancy place at all. They expanded in the back to provide more tables for seating and there’s a little bit of fishing decor here and there but that’s about it.
You order at the counter. This is the main menu. They have plates (that come with fries and coleslaw), rolls (lobster, clams, haddock, etc.), lobster dinners and other SS Lobster favorites (the rest of the things from the sea).
The Specials board. I don’t remember them having this back when I was college, but maybe I just never noticed.
And also the tiny Appetizers menu. Ain’t no salads on this menu!
To the right of the counter/kitchen is a market where you can buy fresh seafood to take home and cook yourself. They also do wholesale seafood and provides seafood to a lot of local restaurants so the seafood here is fresh and priced much lower than other places.
This was our order, shared between mom, dad and myself. Mmm, fried sea goodness!
[fried scallops – large / $18.50]
My dad’s favorite item here is the fried scallops and honestly I hadn’t had a fried scallop in forever that I forgot what it was like. The scallops are incredibly fresh, sweet, and moist.
Here you can see that the outer coating is very thin – it’s a “barely there” coating. It’s just enough to coat the scallop and that’s it. The light batter helps to keep the focus on the scallop. The batter locks in the moisture and flavor – these are sweet, tender and so delicious. There’s a very slight chew but the texture is spot on perfect – much in the same way when you have a perfect sear.
[fried whole belly clams / $17.99]
Mmmm, whole belly clams! Whole belly is what really makes the difference here – none of these lame little “clam strips” you so often see on menus around here in San Diego. The clam strip barely tastes like anything!
Here’s a close up of one clam. The bottom there is the “strip” and the top where it’s dark is the belly of the clam – now that is where all of the flavor is! These are briny and also somehow sweet. The whole belly has so much intense flavor – it’s a little chewy but tender and the crispness from the batter makes for a wonderful bit of texture. It’s like eating a tiny bit of the sea but the sweetness of it is what catapults it into extreme deliciousness for me. It’s hard to find whole belly clams here, but if you’re willing to pony up the money for it, try getting an order from Studio Diner in Kearny Mesa.
[onion rings – large / $3.99]
I asked Dad to get something else that wasn’t seafood just to break it up and he got an order of onion rings. These had the same light batter as the seafood – nice, crisp and light. Very good and sweet from the thick cut onions.
It got to be a littttttle too much fried stuff for me after awhile so I copped out earlier then I thought I would, afraid that my stomach would revolt later. Luckily it did not but we took a few leftovers back to the hotel that my Mom enjoyed a bit later.
If for some reason you’re ever in Fitchburg, please do yourself a favor and go here. The seafood is incredibly fresh, it’s priced decently and you’ll leave with a happy belly full of seafood goodness.
SS Lobster Ltd.
691 River Street
Fitchburg, MA 01420
978-342-6135
Those huge scallops and fried clams (yes, the belly makes a difference) look so mouthwateringly good! You and your parents had a nice little fried food fest there! Eating seafood seems so much better on the East Coast.
Hi CC – Yes, seafood feast! The seafood does tend to taste fresher/better on the East Coast. The scallops were so big – there’s no way you could get that much for that price here. The belly makes a huge difference! Clam strips don’t taste like very much, but the belly is so delicious.
You did a great job describing SS Lobster and the food, it is our favorite seafood restaurant and it’s less than a mile from our house. The pictures you posted made my mouth water. My dad and I usually share a Captain’s Platter which includes clams, scallops, shrimp, haddock and lobster chunks along with french fries, it is so big we usually have some left to take home. When my brother Jim visits from San Antonio, TX he always wants to eat at SS at least once while he is here.
Hi Carol – Thank you so much! Wow, the Captain’s Platter sounds huge! But it’s nice that you can get a little bit of everything in one plate – yummy! I think SS is a “must have” when visiting Fitchburg 🙂 You are lucky you can get it whenever you want to!
Caroll,
Doesn’t your brother Gary alway go to SS Lobster when visiting from Virginia?
Jim was always your favorite………
Hi Gary – SS Lobster must be a family thing then 🙂
Is Memere French? It sounds French haha. And those scallops look perfectly fried, really thin crisp coating but so juicy inside!! Buttt ultimately I would go with the clam bellys too, they look like the little calamari tentacles that come mixed in with calamari rings. The tentacles are my favorite part 🙂
Hi J.S. –
Yes, it’s French Canadian for Grandma! I have read that in France it’s more of a derogatory phrase but in Canada it’s not (which surprised me when I was reading up about it in the past). I love both the scallops and the whole belly clams – so so good! I love the tentacles in calamari, too! The tentacles are crunchier, therefore more yummy. 🙂
mmm, all that fried seafood looks delicious!
Hi Kirbie –
It was all really, really good! There’s nothing quite like getting fresh seafood on the East Coast!
I can’t visit Fitchburg, MA, without eating at SS Lobster. Your review was right on! I recall taking your Dad to the Alamo Cafe for some Mexican food when he came to San Antonio but I must admit seafood is my favorite.
Hi Jim – Thanks! SS Lobster is definitely a must visit spot when we’re in Fitchburg! I hope to visit Texas soon – we’re hoping to hit up Austin next year! Maybe we will also get to check out the Alamo Cafe.
Oh my, that fried scallop looks perfect!! This makes me miss the East Coast so much… 🙂
Hi Jinxi – The scallops were delicious! Always have to fill up on seafood with an East Coast trip! Jake and I are hoping to visit Boston sometime, I can’t wait to take him to all these delicious places.
I’m pretty sure if I showed my mom that photo of the scallops, she’d want to fly out just to eat them. I almost want to fly out just to eat those scallops!
Hi Leanne – The scallops are pretty killer. I kind of want to fly back there to get some more!
Try the smelts next time. They are fabulous. I grew up in Fitchburg, but live in AZ now. We always hit the SS when we’re back home. And I have a memere and pepere too. It’s a French Canadian thing. We get strange looks out here in AZ when my kids use those names when referring to my parents.
Hi Donna – I have never had smelts! I imagine they are fried like just about everything else here, haha. I have always had to explain memere and pepere – I used to think it was a “French” thing but have come to find that nope – it’s definitely “French Canadian”!
Those were the freshest FRIED scallops I’ve ever seen. Hot dang man. I was going to ask same question as JS about memere. I’m pretty sure I’m not pronouncing it correctly right about now.
I’ve never had whole belly clams. Didn’t you do a post on Bite of Boston? I could have sworn you did? I passed by their Governor location the other day and wanted to try their fried clams so bad (but it was late and I didn’t want to spend the moo either). Pricey little buggers aren’t they 🙁
Hi Faye – I pronounce it like “Mem-aye” if you are still wondering how to say it out loud 🙂
I did do a post on Bite of Boston! But I had a lobster roll. I forgot they had whole belly clams, I haven’t tried them there (yet). I will have to remedy that. Too bad they don’t have clam rolls there, that might be a good “starter” but they do have a platter with fried fish, shrimp, scallops and clams! They are pricey, probably because they’re flown in from the East Coast! Hope you get to try it sometime. Maybe we should go in together and share one of those big platters!
Our family loves this place. We love in Florida, but have relatives in Leominster. Every visit to MA, we gorge ourselves here! My sister has even transported hundreds of lobsters to Florida several times from there! Can’t wait to go back!
Hi Lisa – SS Lobster seems to really be a favorite! Cheap, tasty, good seafood is a pure winner!
Great review! I am from Fitchburg, and I agree that SS Lobster is a must when in town!! I live in South Florida now, and while we have decent seafood, nothing beats the fresh, delicious New England seafood =)
Hi Sara – You’re certainly right – I always make sure to get my fill of seafood when I’m in New England! Thanks for the nice comments 🙂
We are truly lucky to live 3 miles from SS Lobster. My husband & I go often. My parent’s have a ritual of going there to get fresh Seafood for every family get together we have ( my mom loves to make deep fried Seafood from them, She even buys their amazing batter they sell) I can’t ever remember a time we have gone to a family get together at my parents & not seeing 2-3 lbs of fresh jumbo cooked & peeled shrimp from SS Lobster on the appetizer table. I highly recommend trying them if you Love shrimp! You truly did an amazing review explaining them with the pictures.
Thank you, Lisa! You guys are very lucky to live so close by to affordable, delicious seafood! I usually have the same items there when I visit since I don’t get to go that often but the shrimp sounds wonderful. Thanks for your comments!