Eating lobster

[sue11]

I had lobster last night only for the second time in my life so am a bit uneducated as to what to expect. We ate in a seafood restaurant running a lobster and strawberries festival week, as they specialise in fish, my expectations were quite high.
I was choose lobster thermidor and part way through eating the lobster I discovered a black gunge in the bottom of the shell, which covered part of the meat. It really put me off as I have heard that this is the body waste of the lobster which should be removed.
I have tried to look on recipe websites to see if it was supposed to be left in, but most sites do not explain this point, although I did find one which stated the 'tomella' which is the liver and turns a greenish yellow after cooking is one part of the lobster that you should not eat, but some lobster eaters claim this is the best part.
I guess this was what was in the shell although it was black and not greenish yellow.
So I am still a little confused regarding as if I should complain to the restaurant or not. It is a well regarded restaurant in our area and I would have thought they would know what they are doing.
Also I would have thought that perhaps they should have offered customers the choice regarding if to leave this part in the shell or not.
Are there any regular lobster eaters out there that can advise me?
By the way I will not be eating lobster again! Overpriced for what you get and I do have a conscience about how much pain the poor things go through during the cooking process.
Thanks
Sue

[heathfield]

Black on the tail-meat of lobster is a sure sign that the lobster has spent some considerable time in the freezer. But don't confuse that with the black 'vein' that runs down the middle of the back of prawn and lobster - that's what it craps through, and should be removed by the cook if he/she is doing their job properly.

[RATTER15]

Black Stuff:
An uncooked or undercooked female lobster may be harboring eggs, also known as roe or lobster caviar. These eggs prior to cooking appear thick, shiny and black, and found throughout the tail. If you have cooked your lobster and you still see the black stuff, cook them longer and the black stuff will turn into red.


from here: http://www.alharbiseafood.com/Cockit.html

[sue11]

Many thanks for both answers, not sure when the tail turns into the body! It was kind of in the middle part of the lobster but that may have been the upper end of the tail.
Whatever this was, I am surprised that they left this in, as with the recipes for lobster thermidor that I have seen you remove all the meat and then mix it into the thermidor dressing before putting it back into the shell.
Thank you I will probably contact the restaurant to let them know of what I found.
Sue

[bednobs]

i would have thought that whether it should have been there or not, the time to tell the restaurant was at the time, when they could have done something about it! I'm not sure what telling them your lobster may or may not have had a bit in it shouldn't last night will actually achieve. I can't imagine being on the end of that phone call "oh! err .... thanks. Goodbye"

[bednobs]

ps don't they just die instantly? can lobsters even feel pain? I suppose it's akin to the amount of pain a lamb feels as it's being slaughtered, or a cow, or a pig, or a fish when it's being caught. That way lies madness for a carnivore!

[sue11]

Hi bedknobs thanks for the replies, yes ideally I should have pointed it out at the time but as we were with a couple of friends I did not want to make a fuss, it was obvious that it was a natural product in the shell rather than a foreign body but it did not look very nice.
I did contact the restaurant, I think it is always worth while as it does give them information and tells them if staff are following procedures or not. I got a response informing me that it was the roe and in future they would always be happy to remove if I asked them prior to serving the dish. I would have preferred them to have a policy of asking before service, but I guess this would not be an easy question to ask every diner!
Overall I was happy with their response.
Regarding the pain animals feel on slaughter is a subject that I do not really want to dwell too much on! As you say, too much thought and knowledge on this subject would lead me to seriously consider becoming a vegetarian! I do not consume many vegetables and love my meat, so I think I would probably starve!
Thanks for all the answers!
Sue