HAMPSTEAD — The reason Dawn Berard and David McLean of Hampstead opened their new food truck was simple.
“There was not enough good lobster down here,” co-owner Dawn Berard said.
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When Berard moved to the Wilmington area from Massachusetts in 2003, one thing she missed the most was eating fresh Maine lobster, a family tradition. She spent summers visiting Old Orchard Beach in Maine picking up whole lobsters from steamer pots on the side of the road, and some of her relatives had worked on lobster boats.
McLean’s family came from Chesapeake Bay, and growing up in Raleigh they’d eat Maryland blue crab, oysters, clams, and shrimp.
“What we found down here is that other than going to the restaurants, there’s really not a way of getting premium shellfish, especially in the Hampstead area where we both live,” McLean said. “We wanted something that knocked the cover off the ball.”
After talking with family and friends in the Hampstead area, the two found there was a demand for higher priced premium lobster rolls. Last summer they met with lobster fishermen and wholesalers in Maine to finalize their lobster supply, and in September they opened business.
Although their main focus is lobster — whole steamed lobster, cold and hot lobster rolls, lobster bisque, and lobster mac and cheese — they also serve shrimp skewers, crab dip and will roll out other shellfish products in the coming months.
Berard said they’re getting ready to introduce she-crab soup and crab claws, a reflection of McLean’s Chesapeake Bay heritage, and they’re finalizing a lunch menu that will include Lobster Nachos and a Lazy Man’s Lobster — all the meat removed from the shell and served on a skewer.
This spring they’ll look to set up outside local businesses and government buildings to provide high-quality lunch options for employees who don’t have the time to go to a restaurant (they’re serving Burgaw County employees twice in January).
“We’ve been overwhelmed by how well it’s been received,” Berard said. “We were booked every day except for Christmas and New Year’s in December, and most of November. And January is almost completely full except for a few mid-week afternoons.”
Although other types of shellfish will be rolled out soon, fresh lobster will continue to be their primary focus.
“We have them overnighted to us live,” Berard said. “They were in the water the day before they were in our truck. And we sell them whole-steamed. Whole-steamed lobster is not something that anybody else around here is selling.”
“This is not a low-calorie, low-butter product,” McLean added. “We do this for the taste … We’re going after the premium customer who is buying the premium craft beer, people who don’t mind paying a little bit more for something premium and fresh.”
For now they’ll focus on serving New Hanover, Brunswick, Pender, Onslow, and Carteret counties while expanding their presence in the Wilmington market. They’ve already served at a handful of Wilmington breweries, including Waterline, Flying Machine, Edward Teach, Broomtail, Mad Mole and Wilmington Brewing Company.
Visit their Facebook page and website to view their weekly schedules and menu. You can also read Port City Daily’s Food Truck Tracker every Monday to see where they will be serving the week ahead.
Next week they’ll set up at Sour Barn in Wilmington on Wednesday, Salty Turtle in Surf City on Thursday, Fermental Beer & Wine in Wilmington on Friday, Salty Turtle again on Saturday, and Edward Teach in downtown Wilmington on Sunday.
They also serve private events like wedding receptions and rehearsal dinners.
Mark Darrough can be reached at Mark@Localvoicemedia.com or (970) 413-3815
