The following content is intended for readers who are 21 or older. This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its
advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #CrabfestSummer #Crabfest
#CollectiveBias
A few months back I shared a personal story of my own family traditions in relation to one very special (to me) seafood dining chain. While Red Lobster's Lobsterfest® is over, a new reason to stop in and celebrate has begun, this time all about crab. Whether you're an avid enthusiast of Snow, Kind, Dungeness, Alaska King, or Blue; or know so little about crab you think those could be
Game of Thrones characters, you're sure to find an excuse to stop by and explore this specially crafted seafood menu. For a limited time Red Lobster visitors will be treated to 5 all NEW Crab-centric entrees, the brand NEW Three-Cheese Crab Dip appetizer, and a special NEW Crabfest Cooler® (21+). All of these NEW menu features grace the Summer Crabfest® menu alongside tempting add-on options such as Shtimp-Topped Crab Cakes and delicious sea-to-table crab leg selections.
My father and I have a long running tradition of making time for monthly
(at least) meals at Red Lobster. It's a father/daughter tradition that
began in high school and is going strong some 15 years later. In fact, we have
been patronizing our local Red Lobster for over 15 years. It's gotten to the point that the general
manager knows our faces and names, and the servers light up (and maybe
even fight over the chance) to serve our table. It's kind of like enjoying a great family seafood meal at home, except I am terrible at preparing seafood and have no idea how to properly cook crab.
With
Red Lobster's Crabfest® calling us my father managed to pencil in a father/daughter meal despite a recent surge in workload and overtime at his job. We often cross paths here and there between these dinner dates, but these meals are particularly special because I get to enjoy one-on-one time really reconnecting over a topic we both hold so dear; food.
The Crabfest® menu is huge- we had such a hard time deciding on what to order for our entrees that our drinks and appetizer actually arrived before we'd finished ordering our meal. The fact that those fresh, warm, Cheddar Bay biscuits hit the table minutes after we'd sat down didn't help the issue either. I know I suddenly became ravenous and abandoned my mission of decision when our server sat that basket of heaven on the table between us.
What did we get to drink? As it turns out there's a brand new draft beer on the menu just in time for Crabfest®
and it pairs perfectly with sweet juicy crab offerings; Stella. Not
only is Stella one of my father's preferred beers but it was so new to
our location that they hadn't even gotten their glasses in yet. Now
that's a fresh draft! Even I was tempted to indulge a little and sipped
happily on the duo-toned, colorful, NEW Crabfest® Cooler. With strong
tropical vibes of Malibu, Sour Mix, Midori, Pineapple, and Blue Curacao I
was easily sailing away to a distant shore. I especially loved that the
flavors lent to an easy to drink adult beverage experience, along with a
Crabfest® commemorative glass to take home (while supplies last).
No sooner had we finished the last few pieces of crisp lettuce in our
dinner salad did our server bring by our chosen appetizer. Tradition
mandates that we typically order the Seafood Stuffed Mushrooms but the
NEW Three-Cheese Crab Dip was calling our name so we made an exception.
Paired with artisan bread the ooey-gooey blend of Cream Cheese,
Mozzarella, and Monterey Jack cheeses, paired with generous chunks of
real crab meat made a real treat for any crab or seafood (or heck,
cheese) lover.
Remember how I said the servers sometime fought over our table, since we've been visiting our local Red Lobster for 15 years? Well on our most recent visit, for Crabfest®, we had the pleasure of being served by one of the newest team members. It's always a true joy to be served by a new server because they bring such a wonderful enthusiasm to their table and service, Diana was no exception. It turns out she'd also head about us from the vets (all praise, of course) and even seen some of my previous social shares from that location. While she'd never met us before, and was newer to the chain, she was all smiles and truly got us excited about our entree choices. I'll admit, I wanted to ask her to sit and have a bite with us at one point!
Sadly Diana was in truth pretty busy, as it was heading into the dinner service, so we really had our hands (and mouths) full with quite the selection of amazing Crabfest® creations. My personal piece de resistance was the side of Dungeness Crab legs I'd added onto my meal. It's one of two (the other being Southern King) wild-caught crab varieties guests will find on the Crabfest® menu this year.
When my father and I visit Red Lobster we always 1.) order large amounts of food, especially with limited time items such as the Crabfest® menu in front of us, and 2.) spend hours talking while slowly enjoying every last bite. Sharing dishes is as mandatory as gushing and arguing over who's plate is better. One of the things that makes our Red Lobster location so special to us is the staff's consistent patience with our slow eating, and extended reminiscing, and the commitment to make sure we have everything we desire so long as we are seated in their restaurant at a table. That's especially important because you really should feel free to take your time and enjoy amazing seafood such as this.
So what did we finally decide on ordering from the plethora of Crabfest® entree options? Well my dad chose to enjoy the NEW Crab Cakes and Crab-Oscar Salmon, which just happens to have his favorite seafood, shrimp smothered in a white wine butter sauce. I would have gone this route, too, but I was thrilled to see the
NEW Shrimp-Topped Crab Cakes appeared in several Crabfest® entrees, as well as the option to add-on to any meal. I won't lie, though, I was awfully jealous of that crab-hollandaise topped salmon after sneaking a bite- it was so buttery, tender, and flaky I almost forgot we were there celebrating crab!
Because I am a sucker for a good surf n' turf, I ultimately chose to order the NEW Crabfest® Ultimate Surf And Turf entree. Honestly, it was only intended to be an encore to the true star, my Dungeness Crab legs but I was blown away by the rich flavors and generous portion of steak. Once again the crab hollandaise topping made a special appearance and offered a true surf n' turf dining experience that needed no steak sauce. Of course my meal wouldn't be 'ultimate' without 2 large Crab Cakes topped with Shrimp covered in a white wine butter sauce. With just the essence of crab, having been baked atop the juicy crab cakes, those shrimp were sweet and tender and possibly a new menu favorite.
My father comes from several generations of New Englanders- I was raised around fresh caught seafood, and I'll admit I was never a fan as a child. Any proper New England seafood lover will tell you you have to be willing to put on a bib and get a little messy to enjoy some of the ocean's best treats- Well, Red Lobster, the nest time Crabfest® rolls around I'm going to need a bib. I'm not afraid to admit, though I enjoy seafood and crab, this was my first time doing the handy work of actually shelling my own legs! I dare-say my father had a chuckle as I desperately googled how to properly tackle the task at hand.
Thankfully this was one of those cases where my grumbling, and maybe even shrieking at a few points, paid off big. There's no substitution for fresh crab legs- not only is the meat wonderfully tender by the flavor needs no enhancing outside of a daub of melted butter. I daresay I might even prefer crab legs to lobster tales after having enjoyed my Dungeness crab- and I'll definitely be making a return trip to Crabfest® (which is only around for a limited time) to try one of the other amazing crab varieties on the menu.
While there is, sadly, no official Crabfest® dessert this time around, it's also tradition to complete our meal with something sweet. Our server, Diana, spoke highly of the Chocolate Wave cake but it, and my favorite Brownie Overboard, had sold out just tables before ours. Must've been all that time chatting over delicious crab, haha! So, instead, we tried something new to us, the Warm Chocolate Chip Lava Cookie, as we chatted just a little more with our server about her passion for her job, and our previous Red Lobster exploits. In what I think is a first, we actually had cleaned all our plates and had no Crabfest® leftovers to take home- but we were sent home with some of the famous Cheddar Bay biscuits none-the-less.
We've been dining at Red Lobster since I was in a booster seat, it's family tradition. Now Red Lobster wants to share some of their traditions with guests such as you and I. To learn more about the fascinating sea-to-table journey of Red Lobster's Alsaka Crab with
Discovery Channel's Deadliest Catch's Wild Bill, crabbing expert,
click here. Hurry into Red Lobster for
Crabfest® now, it won't be around for long, and join the
Fresh Catch Club for a FREE appetizer or dessert, as well as a heads up on special deals!
