Holidays

That's my leader of the pack image I used in a marketing campaign a few years ago. I always like it. Christmas was a huge success. Everyone wanted lobster meat this year. EVERYONE! I spent six hours picking lobster meat and couldn't keep up! I'm very happy to be in the food sector of retail. People are starting to become serious home cooks. We've seen a trend in special orders for exotic fish from people who were typically haddock buyers. Shellfish has become popular again after waning a bit during the fall. Our Maine littlenecks have become very popular as well as the Bang's Island mussels. I think the price point helps considerably.
My kids had a great holiday. Ashley was very happy to see her Hannah Montana guitar under the tree and Emily was into the bucket of legos so fast her eyes were spinning. Six year olds on Christmas morning, there is really nothing better. My mother made her Lobster newburg, the recipe for which you can find on yorklobster.com. It's my all time favorite. Christmas morning with Lobster Newburg on Ray's Bagels...if you haven't tried it, you don't know what you're missing.
New Year's eve is shaping up, I've had to stop typing three times already to field phone orders. One of them is for 4cnt 1.5 lobsters that must be split live when the customer arrives for bake stuffing. Another one is for 8 pounds of chopped clams for New Years Eve clam chowder.
I think the New Year will be better than expected. I believe consumer confidence will rebound sooner than expected when Obama takes office....That's all I'll say regarding the political change coming in our country....
Anyway, happy New Years Eve to everyone!

First Snow

We woke up to our first snow yesterday. I was eating breakfast with my kids when I got a text message from one of my employees who was "texting in sick". I dropped my french toast and kissed my kids goodbye and flew out the door. Although there was only a wisp of snow, there were cars off the road left and right. I counted 8 cars off the road. It was crazy. Folks in two wheel drive, compact cars screaming by me and my jeep. I felt like the little old man creeping along in the travel lane. I've taken to listening to the sports channel in the car now. I can't stand listening to the preachers of doom and gloom on the regular talk channels. They're incessant! There's one guy who does a 20 second break down of the "top" stories. It's always...this guy hit a telephone poll, that guy got arrested, the sky is falling over there...Sooooooo depressing. On a brighter note, the Pats won...Go Pats!

2008 Maine Oyster Festival

The 2008 Maine Oyster Fest preparations are in full swing. This year it's on October 12, at the Union Bluff's new Meeting House. This place is an undiscovered gem. You really have to see it. Right on York Beach with panoramic views of the ocean and all it's playful beach inhabitants. You'll see, in a few years , this will be the place to go. There is nothing like it in Maine. It's the Maine version of Miami Beach- walk from the surf a few feet and into an upscale hotel with four star dining! The festival is truly fortunate to have such a great relationship with these folks. They are all young and very progressive. We're starting something really cool that is new to the younger generation. Lot's of great live music, cool events like the Oyster Luge and people letting loose and having a great time. The website has been a process Maine Oyster Fest. I've been working on this for months. It's funny, sometimes I'll get an email saying " hey you spelled oyster wrong on the fifth page." I'm constantly updating and making changes. It's got lots of good pictures on it and will give you a fairly good idea of what the Festival is all about.