By Scott Cronick
Sometimes, life takes you in a certain path based on the people you meet.
In Robert Hulmes’ case, that was Renee and Philip Tretola.
The Tretolas owned the Buck Tavern, a one-time legendary Cape May County watering hole and restaurant where Hulmes worked as a cook, pizza maker and eventually general manager.
When the Buck Tavern closed, Hulmes went on to work in other places, including various Randazzo’s Pizzeria locations in Cape May County and Scotto Pizza in Berlin in a journeyman role many in the food and beverage industry are familiar with.
But in his heart, Hulmes wanted to have his own restaurant, something that would make him the captain of his own journey.
Enter the Tretolas, who started Mystic Lobster Roll Company in 2020, a brand that started as one small shop in Ship Bottom and has quickly blown up to a national franchise with seven locations in Florida, one in Las Vegas, Texas and Tennessee, and 10 in its home state, with other close locations in Brigantine and Wildwood. And there are many others in the planning stages.
Philip Tretola and Hulmes became friends over the years, and Tretola kept urging Hulmes to control his own destiny and invest in his own Mystic Lobster Roll Co. franchise.
“Phil has been at me for 8 years to come on board,” Hulmes said. “I liked my job at Scotto, and I was loyal to them. When I am working for a family and they treat me well, I get comfortable.”
Hulmes finally embraced the idea, and he pulled the trigger on his own business and future, opening Mystic Lobster Roll Co. earlier this spring in the English Creek Shopping Center in Egg Harbor Township.
“So, being that I get comfortable working for someone, this was a very uncomfortable position opening my own place,” said Hulmes, who opened the restaurant with his wife Diane. “I came out of my comfort zone. I was turning 54 in May and I brought it up to my wife, and she was on board, so I met with Phil and Renee at Mike’s Pasta House in Northfield, we shook hands and signed a deal. A few months later I signed a lease for here. It was time to do it. I have goals, and they weren’t going to be met working for someone else.”
Mystic Lobster Roll’s Beginnings
Tretola’s path to opening the first Mystic Lobster Roll Co. began almost 30 years ago when Tretola – then a 21-year-old minor league baseball player – began working in restaurants to supplement his paltry baseball income. When his Major League Baseball dream faded, Tretola found himself attracted to the food and beverage industry, converting his passion from swinging at 95-mile-hour fastballs to char-broiling 500-degree steaks.
In 1993, Tretola fell in love with lobster rolls when he traveled the Northeast from Connecticut to Maine. The aspiring entrepreneur, who at that point worked in some amazing restaurants including with a Michelin Star chef, spent the next 25 years working in more high-profile restaurants and owning a few, as well. Along the way, he developed his own lobster roll recipe and put it on many of those menus.
Then in February 2020, the Tretolas banked on that passion and recipe to open the first Mystic Lobster Roll Co. in Ship Bottom.
And they have never looked back. The lobster rolls, along with the entire seafood-centric menu, resonated quickly, lighting the entrepreneurial lightbulb in their heads to expand and even franchise.
“Overnight we found instant popularity in our rolls and have grown to four locations and grew fast in a very short time,” the Tretolas said on their website. “Our goal is for everyone to experience what a true Maine lobster roll taste like. We thrive on perfection only using the best and freshest in Maine cold water lobster meat.”
Lobster … and more
If you are a seafood nut, Mystic Lobster is for you.
So, anyone who knows lobster rolls knows there are two main types: the Maine-style, which features a mix of lobster meat rolled in mayonnaise and served like a cold lobster salad; and the New England-style, which is basically lobster meat served warm with melted butter.
The Mystic Lobster Roll Co. has you covered with both … and more. Ranging in price from $23.99 to $42.99 for double the meat on a longer roll, the restaurant also features the New England with mixed greens and lemon; the LBI with avocado, mayo and tomato; the Deep South with chipotle mayo, jalapeno aioli and candied jalapenos; the BLT with lettuce tomato and bacon with bacon aioli; and the Florida Roll with citrus mayo and pineapple.
“We have the variations, but it’s really a simple thing,” Hulmes said. “We are not trying to reinvent the lobster roll. But it’s about using great ingredients and the lobster roll being our main event. We specialize in it. You can get lobster rolls in a lot of places, but this is what we do best.”
Hulmes isn’t kidding when he says making a lobster roll is pretty simple. He said when you use the finest cold-water Maine lobster as the main ingredient, you don’t even have to season it.
“It’s really about the quality lobster and the toasted, buttered Martin’s potato roll,” Hulmes said. “You have to have that toasted, buttered bun. That said, I think the BLT one is just fantastic. The combination of the Maplewood bacon and lobster is just fantastic. They go well together.’
One of the more interesting offerings is the lobster waffle roll ($19.99) served warm with butter and honey; but we highly recommend the amazing bacon Maine lobster bites ($16.99), five pieces of lobster wrapped in bacon served with dipping sauce.
Not a lobster fan? Don’t fret.
There’s the jumbo New England shrimp roll ($16.99) with mayo, celery, dill and lemon; California shrimp roll ($18.99) with avocado, tomato and celery; a snow crab roll ($17.99) with mayo or butter; and a Devil’s Crab Roll ($19.99) with chipotle mayo, candied jalapenos topped with jalapeno aioli and sriracha. And there’s a tasty Maryland crab cake ($18.99) platter served with fries.
“The crab cakes are made in house and are fresh made using jumbo crab and Ritz cracker as a binder,” Hulmes said. “They are excellent.”
And what would a seafood restaurant be without some quality and Maine lobster bisque ($10) or New England clam chowder ($10)?
But I don’t like seafood …
If the delicacies of the sea won’t do it for you, then maybe chicken will. Although not their selling point, if someone in your party doesn’t eat seafood, Mystic Lobster Co. offers a slew of fried chicken offerings ($13.99 for four pieces to $39.99 for 12 pieces), wings and tenders ($6.99 to $10.99) and popcorn chicken ($9.99 to $18.99).
There are four chicken sandwiches ($10.99 to $12.99) including barbecue and buffalo styles.
And sides include various french fry offerings ($5.99 to $16.99) including Old Bay-style and loaded cheese crab fries, as well as coleslaw, potato salad, macaroni salad, baked beans, mac and cheese and more.
If you have a finicky kid, they have you covered there, too, with a kids menu offering a hot dog ($8.99) or chicken fingers ($9.99) both served with fries.
More lobster roll, please?
If you are hoping a Mystic Lobster Roll Co. opens near you, it probably will. Hulmes has committed to opening two more locations in South Jersey – possibly Somers Point and downbeach – and he believes the brand is exploding.
“I think by this time next year, you will see 10 more of these around the country,” Hulmes said. “We just trained people here who are opening a location in Texas. We are moving and grooving.”
Now that Hulmes is his own restaurant owner, there’s no looking back.
“Although I was slow to come around to the idea, after training and now seeing people eat here, I get it,” Hulmes said. “They absolutely love it. We bring them something different yet familiar. They look at me and say, ‘This is really, really good!’ I love that I did this. I feel great about it and want to keep serving the community and expand.”
Mystic Lobster Roll Company is located at 3003 English Creek Ave, Egg Harbor Township in the English Creek Shopping Center. Call 609-377-8850 or go to MysticLobsterRolls.com
Scott Cronick is an award-winning journalist who has written about entertainment, food, news and more in South Jersey for nearly three decades. He hosts a daily radio show – “Off The Press with Scott Cronick” – 4 to 6 p.m. weekdays on Newstalk WOND 1400-AM, 92.3-FM, and WONDRadio.com, and he also co-owns Tennessee Avenue Beer Hall in Atlantic City, while working on various projects, including charitable efforts, throughout the area. He can be reached at scronick@comcast.net.
