How the Lobster Escaped Prison and Joined Fine Dining

The lobster wasn't always the sought-after delicacy it is today

Photo by Katarzyna Pracuch on Unsplash

In 1622, William Bradford, the governor of the Plymouth colony in New England, was hosting newly arrived settlers from England. He was sorry that he couldn’t give his visitors anything other than lobster and a cup of water.

I’m not sure about you, but I’d love to be Bradford’s guest! I don’t remember any party where the host served me lobster and apologized for it.

Lobsters are a gourmet item on menus worldwide. We associate them with expensive taste and a luxurious lifestyle. But did you know they were once a daily staple for prisoners?

How did lobsters go from being seen as food for the poor to a status symbol? We may be tempted to think that the demand for lobsters exceeds the supply, hence the sky-high prices. That is not always the case.

Even when there is a surplus to meet demand, lobster rates never fall. The price of lobsters throughout history is a perfect example of how humans assign monetary value to food based on their perceptions. It isn’…