Saying Goodbye to the East Village

A note from our founders, Luke and Ben

It's hard to believe it's been over 10 years since we first walked into the space formerly known as "Sousa's Closet," a recently closed consignment shop at 93 E 7th Street. It wasn't exactly what we would have envisioned for a lobster shack--just 225 square feet in one little room, with a tiny bathroom in the back corner that also served as an office. The walls and ceiling were painted an inexplicable combination of dark brown and light blue. The space was cooled by an old window AC unit, and there was about enough electricity to power that and the overhead lights, and that's about it. But with the shoestring budget we had, this little shoebox was the biggest and best space we could find to launch Luke's Lobster.

In just 30 days, we and our friends and family did the best we could to turn that closet into an approximation of a lobster shack. We painted the walls a (slightly) better yellow, decorated with Luke's actual lobster buoys and traps from his time on the water, and added the basic mechanics: a dish sink, some electrical power, fridges, and a toaster. On day one we were slammed, and the seed for a growing business was planted.

We did the best we could in the space we had, but what powered our business was not the four walls around us. It was the quality of our lobster, sourced directly from lobstermen we know and trust and handled by family throughout the supply chain. And it was the extraordinary team that joined us day one and grew with us as we built the Luke's family from a half dozen kids in that tiny space to 600 teammates across the country and more abroad, spanning every step in the supply chain from ocean to shack.

It's been amazing and humbling to celebrate our 10th Anniversary this month. But there is one accompanying bit of sad news that we have yet to share, and that is the closing of our original location at 93 E 7th Street at the end of this month.

Our 10 year lease is up, and we have had to think carefully about the space's future. As we've grown in New York, we've focused on building unique shacks that truly evoke the feeling of Maine, and with each one we've made changes that make our guests happier, including more space to sit and enjoy your meal. And over time, our guests have increasingly chosen those other Luke's locations to share their everyday celebrations with family and friends.

It would have been easy to just sign a lease renewal and keep our pocket of nostalgia going on 7th Street. But our responsibility to provide the best possible experience for all our guests and make the right decision on behalf of those 600 teammates and lobstermen partners outweighs that nostalgia (rest assured the whole 7th Street team has jobs at our other locations).

We hope that all our friends in the neighborhood will continue to visit us just a short walk away at our Union Square location after we close on October 31. We'll never lose the memories that our 7th Street location afforded us over the last ten years, but we're lucky to still have the core of that day one team working with us toward the same mission today, and to have lasting friendships with those who have moved on. It's time for 93 E 7th Street to help launch someone else's dream, and we can't wait to visit and support it.