Counterpoint.
What he got from the seafood distributor was a gargantuan lobster and an outpouring of sentiment from customers who felt sorry for the 15-pound animal crammed into a tank alongside an assortment of its two- and three-pound cousins.
After Grolig spent days kibitzing over the ethics of his trade, the oversized crustacean, estimated to be between 35 and 40 years old, yesterday began a 400-mile journey back to its home waters off the coast of Massachusetts. One of the lobster's admirers purchased it for $150 -- about $30 more than Grolig paid the wholesaler -- and he agreed to coordinate the animal's liberation with help from his friends.
"I've never had a lobster that big at this store before, and I won't have one that big again," said Grolig, owner of River Falls Seafood Co. and a 21-year veteran of the seafood trade. "About 30 percent of the people who saw him in the tank expressed concern. A few customers were really unhappy. . . . I'm really torn about the whole idea of these big lobsters. Does it really make sense to sell them?"
Cheers,
Scott.
