What’s the Catch?

Our summer beach barbecues just got a whole lot classier: Maine lobster prices per pound have recently plummeted to lower than bologna at some supermarkets. Before you theorize about some new, artisanal deli meat movement, the reason is actually a surplus. (And bologna remains, as ever, distinctly not artisanal.) Soft-shell lobsters (the ones that don’t require a claw-cracker and that true Mainers claim have the most flavorful meat) came early this year, in droves, tipping the scales to make supply far outweigh demand. Lobstermen hope for a balancing of the market after the July rush (or the annual New Englander migration to Maine), but for now, our summer menus welcome the upgrade. Lobster cheaper than bologna? True, thanks to surplus from The Christian Science Monitor