Lobster Mac & Cheese

Every summer, Nantucket. Same ferry, same salt air, same promise we make to each other on the boat ride over: we'll be good this trip.

We are never good on this trip.

Toppers, Straight Wharf, and Brant Point Grill are our heavy hitters — the three restaurants we hit every single summer on Nantucket. It's not a greatest-hits tour; it's the annual rotation. This year we walked into Brant Point Grill, tucked right alongside the White Elephant, and got ambushed by a side dish.

First, the bread question

The appetizers came out strong, so we had the debate every couple has: do we really need the bread?

Artisan ciabatta and lavash bread. Umami truffle butter. That butter isn't a condiment, it's a closing argument. Fresh, warm, and gone in about ninety seconds.

Verdict on the bread: worth the cheat. Don't pretend otherwise.

What we ordered

• Wagyu sirloin steak tartare — Harry's opener. Crispy, paper-thin toasted bread alongside it, perfectly done. A flawless accompaniment.
• Caesar salad — Jennifer's opener. Clean, crisp, exactly what it should be.
• Nantucket in a Bowl — Jennifer's entree and, honestly, the star of the show. Maine lobster, Nantucket Bay scallops, shrimp, littleneck clams, lemon and garlic butter, fried shallots, and campanelle pasta in a cream sauce. Fantastic. Not a wasted bite in the bowl.
• 16 oz bone-in Berkshire pork chop, 25-day wet aged — Harry's entree. Big, honest, done right.

Then the menu said "Lobster Mac and Cheese"

We stared at it. We did the math. Bread, tartare, salad, two entrees. Adding lobster mac at that point isn't dinner, it's a dare.

We took the dare. And it was absolutely exquisite.

Here's why it earns every fork:

• Loaded with Maine lobster — not confetti-sized flecks. Real clumps. You can see them in the photo, and you could see them in every spoonful.
• Rigatoni, not elbows — big tubes that trap the cheese and hold the gooeyness instead of letting it slide off.
• Vermont cheddar and American cheese — and here's the interesting part: zero sharpness. It's a creamy, cheesy bomb with balance instead of bite.
• Bread crumbs on top — the texture break that keeps a rich dish from going one-note.

Sweet lobster, no-sharp creamy cheese, crunch on top, pasta built to carry it. That's not a side dish. That's a headliner sitting in the wrong section of the menu.

Shout-out to Whitney, our server, who was fantastic and steered us through a few of the calls we were waffling on. She earned her keep.

The bottom line

Five forks. Lobster Mac and Cheese at Brant Point Grill is 100% Worth the Cheat.

If you're on the island and you see it on the menu, do the responsible thing: carve out room in advance. Order one less thing somewhere else. Skip the second cocktail. Whatever it takes. You do not want to meet this dish already full.

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Brant Point Grill — 50 Easton Street, Nantucket, MA · at the White Elephant · whiteelephantnantucket.com

Got a spot that's Worth The Cheat? Send it our way — we're always hunting for the next great bite.