The 10 best lobster rolls in Boston
This list covers ten places to eat a lobster roll inside the city limits of Boston, from a takeout stand on Castle Island to oyster bars in the Back Bay and the North End. It is written for visitors who want one good roll on a short trip and for residents deciding where to take out-of-town guests.
The picks lean toward independent, locally run restaurants and seafood markets with a long record in local press. Several menus let diners choose between warm lobster with butter and cold lobster with mayonnaise, and each entry says so only where the menu does. Prices run from $22 for a small roll in Fenway to $58 at a Fort Point oyster bar, and some menus list the roll at market price.
How we chose
The list is alphabetical, not ranked. Each place is inside the City of Boston, was confirmed open in November 2026 through the business’s own website, and has a lobster roll on the current menu. Selection weighed coverage in Boston magazine, Time Out, The Infatuation and Boston.com, named and dated awards, and years in business. Local operators were favored over national chains. One entry is seasonal and is marked that way.
Hours and prices below come from each business and change without notice. Call ahead if you are making a special trip.
The Barking Crab
Open since 1994 on the Fort Point Channel, The Barking Crab started as a seasonal outdoor seafood stand and now runs year-round, according to the restaurant. The current menu has two rolls on a toasted bun. The traditional roll, at $42, is chilled lobster tossed with mayonnaise, celery and lemon. The naked roll, at $43, is warm butter-poached lobster with nothing else. A third option, called The One and Done, puts a pound of lobster meat on a toasted roll for $150 and can be ordered either way. New England clam chowder with bacon is $11 for anyone who wants a starter.
Hours: Sunday through Wednesday, noon to 9 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, noon to 10 p.m.
Address: 88 Sleeper St, Boston, MA 02210
Why they made the list
- The Barking Crab has been in business on the channel for more than 30 years.
- The menu states plainly which roll is cold with mayonnaise and which is warm with butter.
- Roll prices are printed on the menu instead of being left at market price.
See the full directory listing
Eventide Fenway
Eventide Fenway is the Boylston Street outpost of Eventide Oyster Co. of Portland, Maine. The order here is the Eventide Brown Butter Lobster Roll, listed at $22 on the restaurant’s website. Boston magazine describes it as warm lobster in brown butter on a soft, bao-style steamed bun, which makes it a different sandwich from the griddled hot dog roll found elsewhere on this list. The Food Lens notes that the Boston version is larger than the small-plate roll served in Maine. A gluten-free bun is available. Weekday service starts at 5 p.m., so plan a lunch visit for Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
Hours: Monday through Thursday, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Address: 1321 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02215
Why they made the list
- At $22, this is the lowest-priced roll on the list.
- Time Out, The Infatuation and Boston magazine all include Eventide in their Boston lobster roll guides.
- Weekend brunch runs Saturday and Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
James Hook & Co.
James Hook & Co. is a lobster wholesaler and retail market on the downtown waterfront with a counter-service restaurant attached. The company dates to 1925, when James Hook and his three sons began trucking lobster from Maine and Canada to Boston’s fish piers, by the company’s account. The dine-in menu lists a regular roll at $35.99 and a large at $42.99, each made with mayonnaise or with butter, before tax. Boston magazine named the shop Best Lobster Roll, Casual in the 2025 Best of Boston awards. Lobster bisque and three chowders are $10.99 for 12 ounces. The counter closes by 5 p.m., so this is a lunch stop.
Hours: Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Address: 440 Atlantic Avenue, Boston, MA 02110
Why they made the list
- Four siblings from the third generation of the Hook family run the business, according to the company.
- Chef Michael Lombardi of Si Cara named the shop as a lobster roll pick in a June 2025 Boston.com roundup.
- Both roll sizes carry printed prices instead of market price.
- The same building has a retail showroom selling live lobster and seafood.
Little Whale Oyster Bar
Chef Michael Serpa of Serpa Hospitality runs Little Whale Oyster Bar on Newbury Street, a New England seafood restaurant open daily for lunch and dinner with the full menu available all day. Boston magazine and The Infatuation both report that the lobster roll comes cold with mayonnaise or hot with butter, on brioche from Iggy’s Bread, and Boston magazine adds that fries come alongside. The restaurant’s website shows the menu only as images, so the roll’s price could not be confirmed for this list. Reservations are taken through OpenTable, and the kitchen stays open an hour later on Friday and Saturday.
Hours: Sunday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
Address: 314 Newbury Street, Boston, MA 02115
Why they made the list
- The Infatuation’s Boston lobster roll guide, updated August 21, 2026, includes Little Whale.
- Diners can order the roll in either style, according to two independent guides.
- The restaurant serves continuously from 11:30 a.m. with no break between lunch and dinner.
Neptune Oyster
Neptune Oyster is a small oyster bar on Salem Street in the North End that takes no reservations and seats walk-ins only. The Maine lobster roll is priced at market and, per the menu, is available hot with butter or cold with mayonnaise, on a toasted brioche roll from Iggy’s with sea salt fries. Caviar can be added. Chef Oscar Simoza singled out the warm version in a June 2025 Boston.com roundup and acknowledged that the line can be long. Doors open at 11 a.m. every day, and arriving near opening on a weekday is the usual way to shorten the wait. Wellfleet clam chowder is $15.
Hours: Opens daily at 11 a.m. Monday through Friday, kitchen until 9:30 p.m. and raw bar until 10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, kitchen until 10:30 p.m. and raw bar until 11 p.m.
Address: 63 Salem Street, Boston, MA 02113
Why they made the list
- The menu states both preparations, so the choice between butter and mayonnaise is up to the diner.
- Time Out, The Infatuation and Boston magazine each list Neptune in their Boston lobster roll guides.
- Fries are included with the roll instead of being charged as a side.
See the full directory listing
Pauli’s
Pauli’s is a counter-service sandwich shop next door to Neptune Oyster on Salem Street, opened in 2011 by Paul Barker, a fourth-generation baker, and his wife, Michelle, according to Boston Uncovered. Boston magazine describes the standard roll as New England style on a griddled hot dog bun. Rolls come in 7-ounce and 14-ounce sizes, and the 28-ounce U.S.S. Lobstitution is lobster and mayonnaise on a roll 28 inches long, priced at $110 when Boston Uncovered reported on it in March 2025. Current prices for the smaller rolls were not available from the shop’s website. Pauli’s opens at 8 a.m. on weekdays, the earliest start on this list.
Hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Address: 65 Salem Street, Boston, MA 02113
Why they made the list
- Three roll sizes let a solo diner and a group order from the same counter.
- The shop says the lobster rolls appeared on Food Network’s Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives and on Good Morning America.
- Lobster roll kits ship nationwide through Goldbelly.
See the full directory listing
Row 34
Row 34 is an oyster bar and beer hall on Congress Street in Fort Point, with sister locations in Kenmore Square, Cambridge and Burlington. Two rolls are on the menu, both made with Maine lobster in a brioche bun and finished with sea salt. The creamy roll mixes the lobster with mayonnaise, crème fraîche, pickles, celery and red onion. The warm buttered roll is lobster poached in butter. Each was listed at $58 with coleslaw and handmade chips on the restaurant’s online ordering menu in November 2026, the highest printed price on this list. Lunch starts at 11:30 a.m. daily, and the bar pours for an hour after the kitchen closes.
Hours: Monday through Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Address: 383 Congress Street, Boston, MA 02210
Why they made the list
- The cold and warm rolls are separate menu items with their own written descriptions.
- The Infatuation and Boston magazine both include Row 34 in their Boston lobster roll guides.
- Coleslaw and chips come with either roll.
See the full directory listing
Saltie Girl
Saltie Girl is a Back Bay seafood restaurant on Dartmouth Street with a second location in Los Angeles. The Boston menu lists a New England lobster roll served warm or cold at market price, with the restaurant’s own sea salt and vinegar potato chips. A second roll, made with Red Clay, is grilled and seasoned with bourbon honey, tamarind and scotch bonnet pepper, also at market price. The menu has a long list of tinned seafood served with bread, butter and salts. Reservations are strongly encouraged and cover indoor tables only; the patio is first come, first served. Chef Rachel Miller of Nightshade Noodle Bar called the roll consistently good in a June 2025 Boston.com roundup.
Hours: Monday through Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Address: 279 Dartmouth Street, Boston, MA 02116
Why they made the list
- Saltie Girl is the first entry in The Infatuation’s Boston lobster roll guide, updated August 21, 2026.
- Weekend brunch runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Walk-ins are seated when space allows, according to the restaurant.
Sullivan’s Castle Island
Dan Sullivan Sr. opened this takeout stand beside Fort Independence in South Boston in June 1951, and four generations of the family have worked there since, according to the company. The lobster roll is $24.95 on the Castle Island menu: lobster meat lightly dressed with mayonnaise on a toasted hot dog roll. A cup of clam chowder is $5.95. The James Beard Foundation gave Sullivan’s an America’s Classics award in 2025. The Castle Island stand is seasonal. The 75th season opened on February 28, 2026, and the closing date for the year was not posted on the website, so call (617) 268-5685 before a late-fall or winter visit.
Hours: Check current hours before you go.
Address: 2080 William J. Day Boulevard, South Boston, MA 02127
Why they made the list
- Sullivan’s has operated on Castle Island for 75 years.
- A printed price under $25 makes this one of the two least expensive rolls on the list.
- Time Out included the stand in a Boston lobster roll guide dated April 28, 2026.
Yankee Lobster Company
Family-owned since 1950 by the company’s account, Yankee Lobster Company is a seafood market and counter-service restaurant on Northern Avenue in the Seaport. The dine-in menu has three lobster rolls at market price. The traditional roll is cold lobster in herb mayonnaise on a toasted roll, the hot buttered roll is warm lobster in butter, and the fried roll is lobster fried with Old Bay with butter on the side. The Crobster Roll, half traditional lobster and half crabmeat, has a fixed price of $34.99. Lobster bisque starts at $12.99 for a small. Ask the price of the day at the counter before ordering.
Hours: Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Address: 300 Northern Avenue, Boston, MA 02210
Why they made the list
- Time Out listed Yankee Lobster first in a Boston lobster roll guide dated April 28, 2026.
- The menu describes hot, cold and fried versions in writing.
- Clam chowder starts at $7.99 for a small.
- The Infatuation and Boston magazine also include the restaurant in their lobster roll guides.
See a place we missed or a detail that has changed? Send us a correction.
Run a place readers should know about?
Get listed in the directory.