Red Lobster’s latest menu items have divided fans with some labelling them ‘delicious’ and others ‘cold’ and ‘burnt.’
The popular seafood restaurant, which came out of bankruptcy in September, has launched new menu options such as a Mariner’s Boil and a Sailor’s Boil in honor of its yearly Crabfest event.
The Mariner’s Boil features ‘a Maine lobster tail, a dozen shrimp, snow crab legs, corn and red potatoes,’ the casual dining favorite said.
The Sailor’s Boil on the other hand includes a mix of shrimp with smoked sausage, corn and red potatoes.
Both boils have three options for garnish, roasted garlic butter, Cajun butter or Old Bay seasoning.
Prices vary by restaurant location and menu item but the new menu offerings sit between $24 and $45.
Even the more expensive Mariner’s Broil is significantly cheaper than most competitor’s broils that can cost as much as $75.
This year’s limited-time Crabfest menu also features newly added items like Crabby Stuffed Mushrooms, Crab-Topped Baked Potato, and Steak or Salmon Oscar topped with lump crab meat in a rich sauce.
The Mariner’s Boil features Maine lobster tail, shrimp, snow crab legs, corn and red potatoes
Fans will be thrilled to see the return of favorites like Crab Your Way, where guests can savor a pound of crab legs accompanied by crispy potatoes, and Crab Carbonara.
One Red Lobster fan who tried the new seafood broil deal said in a Reddit post that it was ‘really good & worth the price.’
‘I got the bag with crab and lobster for $45 with the AND I WAS SURPRISED,’ the happy customer wrote.
Adding that their dining partner ate three baskets worth of the chain’s legendary Cheddar Bay Biscuits.
However, others were less enthusiastic about their experience.
‘Who can afford to eat at Red Lobster anymore?’ one disgruntled consumer wrote.
‘Just had the Sailor’s Boil for $24 yesterday (the Mariner’s Boil is $44),’ another said.
‘My corn was cold, sausage burnt and the garlic butter was shrimp scampi sauce.’
Crabby Stuffed Mushrooms are also among the new offerings this Crabfest season
Red Lobster filed for bankruptcy in May last year
It emerged from the process in September with a new CEO, Damola Adamolekun (pictured)
‘A small side of the Cajun sauce that comes with the Mariner’s boil is $3.99. There’s some work that needs to be done for sure,’ a third agreed.
Red Lobster filed for bankruptcy in May last year — days after closing more than a hundred restaurants.
The casual dining favorite’s problems have been blamed on rising lease and labor costs in recent years and its infamous $20 all-you-can-eat shrimp deal that backfired.
The offer, launched in June 2023 as a permanent fixture on the menu, ended up costing it millions of dollars as customers took advantage.
One girl managed to eat 108 shrimp in four hours,
‘I set a new record at my local Red Lobster, this is my greatest achievement in life,’ the poster explained in her video.
By the time the plug was pulled after just seven weeks, Red Lobster had lost $3.3 million.
Thai Union CEO Thiraphong Chansiri, 58, even said out of frustration that he’ll never eat lobster again after the bankruptcy.
While in Chapter 11 protection, Red Lobster shuttered a further two dozen restaurants.
Red Lobster exited bankruptcy in September last year. It is now being run under the leadership of new CEO Damola Adamolekun.
In November, soon after he took over, he made it clear the restaurant chain will not bring back its endless shrimp deal again.
Adamolekun, 35, snarkily revealed the reason he won’t ever resurrect the ill-fated deal is that he ‘knows how to do math.’
