99 pLAtes: #14 – The Hungry Cat’s Lobster Roll

Me – “Why is it all fish at this place?”

Peter – It’s a seafood restaurant Michael…plus ya know, cat’s eat fish!”

For the record, the only cat I’ve ever seen eat a fish was Heathcliff on Saturday mornings during the 80’s. But minor details aside, Peter and I were thrilled to sit down and enjoy a meal at The Hungry Cat in Hollywood this past Tuesday night. We sat side by side in a booth (yes, it was awkward) for ten minutes or so while we waited for our dining companions Adam (the old roommate) and Justin “Skippy” Walter (the old roommate who crashed on the couch). After a brief cameo during the Marathon post, Skippy begged for a full-blown featured blog entry.

Peter - “As long as he doesn’t wear a Survivor buff!”

Me – “Well he was wearing one at work today…”

Peter – “I mean…”

Things you need to know about Skippy include:

1. He is OBSESSED with reality TV and will literally get up and run around the house screaming whenever there is a blindside, merge, quitter, double elimination, hidden immunity idol or shocking twist in the game.

2. He lived on our couch for three months upon moving to LA and paid us with gift certificates, Ralph’s sherbet and a Christmas tree.

3. He bears an odd resemblance to Aladdin. See his Halloween FB pic to the left…that is still being used as a profile shot.

As soon as Adam and Skippy arrived, we quickly placed our drink orders. The Hungry Cat is known for its fresh fruit juice infused cocktails, so I went with the vodka-spiked Luke’s Lemonade (in honor of Ben Roy who flaked on dinner at the last minute).

We also placed an order for the famous Hungry Cat Lobster Roll, which also happens to be the pLAte for this restaurant. Peter warned that the roll is perfect for lunch, but not so filling for dinner so we ordered it as an appetizer for the group to split.

With ordering out of the way, it was time to get to some good ol’ gossip. All three of my dinner companions happen to be single and Adam had just returned from an eleven-day trip to NYC…there had to be some good stories to spill.

Adam – “Oh I’ll tell you but it all has to be OTB.”

Skippy – “Off Track Betting?!?”

Peter – “No, no. OTB – Off the Blog”

Here are a few snippets of information…you can fill in the rest of all the debauchery this group has experienced.

Adam – “This night ends…”

Peter – “Naked!”

Me – “My skinny white legs and boxer briefs...on KTLA!!!”

Peter – “Who responds to a birthday Facebook wall post?!?”

After being sworn to secrecy for the third time in 20 minutes, our Lobster Roll arrived on the table. Overflowing with chunks of tender pink lobster meat and accompanied by a plethora of fries, the roll almost looked too perfect to divvy up.

Justin – “How do you eat this, it’s so big!”

Peter – “That’s what she said.”

Me – “Aww…too soon!”

Bursting with buttery flavor, one bite into the lobster roll and I was brought right back to the coast of Kennebunkport, Maine during a warm summer night. (How Land’s End of me?)

Skippy – “I love, 10 points!”

Peter – “How did you find a way to make this into a scored competition?”

The Lobster Roll was good, but I’ll tell ya what was even better – the Chorizo with Clams and Beans in Broth. Peter had been singing the dish’s praises for weeks and after tasting just one spoonful I knew it was the winning dish of the night. Sure the dozen clams and heaping amount of chorizo are great, but the best part of the dish is dunking your crusty aioli covered bread into the savory sauce that coats the bottom of the bowl.

Skippy’s Pub Burger (the only non-fish dish on the menu) and Adam’s Halibut received thumbs up across the board. Seems like everything at the restaurant was a winner, including the Chocolate Bread Pudding we shared as a dessert.