$50 lobster roll pops up at ADL Fashion Week

A high-end pop up from the east is raising eyebrows at the fashion festival — but it’s not to everyone’s taste for a few reasons.

Would you like truffle parmesan fries with that? That being a $50 lobster roll – which comes with a bucket of gourmet chips – on the food truck menu at ADL Fashion Week.

Lobster & Co, which operates its pop ups out of “beautiful vintage-style caravans”, has pulled up stops in Rundle Mall.

The eastern states business – which doesn’t have a headquarters, but has staff on the Gold Coast and in Sydney and Melbourne – is making its South Australian debut.

Its signature dish, the “Classic Roll” which is described as “Confit Australian lobster tail with fennel slaw and cumquat on a brioche bun with a side of truffle parmesan fries”, costs $50.

But it is not to everyone’s taste.

Harmony Allen, from Tasmania and Lucy Howard, from Seaton, sampling the $50 Lobster rolls. Picture: Tom Huntley

Local fashion industry insiders are questioning why an SA food business wasn’t invited to have the mall’s prime pop-up position – under the Gawler Place canopy – during the festival.

“Lobster & Co. has no relevance. (ADL Fashion Week) should be supporting local suppliers, not interstate ones,” one told The Advertiser. “A South Australian business could have created a special fashion-themed dessert.”

Others have also suggested shoppers should be encouraged to instead spend their money on garments or accessories by Adelaide’s emerging or established designers.

South Australia is known for its abundance of quality seafood, sourced from the Limestone Coast, Kangaroo Island and Port Lincoln.

Illustrating how costly the food truck fare is, local family-owned company Ferguson Australia has fresh and frozen whole cooked Southern Rock Lobster retailing on its website for $75 for 1kg.

Lobster & Co. social media and marketing manager Vashti Conway said each roll contained 100g of Australian lobster – mostly sourced from Western Australia – and South Australian produce in the form of its fruit and vegetables.

The bucket of the truffle parmesan fries alone sells for $10.

The pop up opened for business on Saturday and will be here until October 16, with its ADL Fashion Week offering sandwiched in between.

The four-day fashion festival starts Thursday, October 6. From Friday, October 7 to Sunday, October 9, anyone who treats themselves to a lobster roll and flute of champagne – $20 a pop for Pommery – will be presented with a $50 voucher to use at Camilla, providing their fashion purchase is $500 or more.

Harmony Allen, 23, Lucy Howard, 24, and Connor Williams, 26, taste tested the Classic Roll for The Advertiser.

Like nearby diners who described the lobster as “delicious”, Mr Williams, who is a teacher, was especially impressed.

“It’s pretty good,” he said, with Ms Allen agreeing: “It’s not bad”.

Adelaide Economic Development Agency (AEDA), which is a subsidiary of Adelaide City Council. and runs ADL Fashion Week, and Rundle Mall were both contacted for comment.