Fairfield Eatery Moving; Reopening Planned For Fall

FAIRFIELD, CT — Hot, buttery lobster rolls are on the menu in Fairfield — and a few other Connecticut towns — as Fairfield County staple LobsterCraft expands both within and beyond state lines.

“The hot buttered lobster roll is the Connecticut state sandwich, and I am a Connecticut lobsterman,” said Capt. Mike Harden, a commercial lobsterman for more than 20 years who founded LobsterCraft about a decade ago.

Initially a food truck operation, LobsterCraft’s first permanent location opened four years ago in a 200-square-foot space at 1891 Post Road in Fairfield. Now, Harden is in the process of expanding the Fairfield eatery, which is expected to reopen in the fall at a new site across the street at 1814 Post Road, formerly home to Stephen’s Tailoring. The larger location will have counter space and outdoor seating.

“The Fairfield folks have been calling like crazy,” Harden said, adding that while construction is underway, a LobsterCraft trailer is serving up rolls in the parking lot.

Fairfield isn’t the only town seeing more of LobsterCraft this year. Harden opened a sit-down restaurant in Greenwich about six weeks ago and plans to begin serving customers at a permanent location in West Hartford later in the summer. A LobsterCraft eatery that opened over a year ago in the South Norwalk train station has been closed during the coronavirus pandemic, but Harden, a South Norwalk resident himself, hopes to see it reopen in the future. LobsterCraft also has two food trucks.

“We take pride in doing a very short menu very well,” Harden said, noting LobsterCraft was named Flavored Nation’s best Connecticut-style lobster roll two years in a row. “Our focus will always remain our lobster.”

Harden is in the process of expanding to Florida, taking the classic Connecticut roll down south, with locations planned in Fort Meyers and Sarasota. Talks are also underway to bring LobsterCraft to Asia.

In Fairfield, the new, larger eatery is highly anticipated.

“We’re very excited to see him expand and move into a bigger location right on the Post Road,” Community and Economic Development Director Mark Barnhart said. “It’s always great news when we see businesses continue to grow and expand.”

In the meantime, LobsterCraft’s pop-up trailer is open in Fairfield from 4 to 8 p.m. Wednesday and Sunday, and from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

For more information, visit www.lobstercraft.com.