Lobsters have shiny, greenish-black shells with orange trim. On the front of their heads, they have a pair of antennae and two eyes on the ends of stalks. They have 5 pair of legs, the front two often have big claws.
Now that you have had the anatomy lesson, here is the good stuff!
Before it is cooked, a lobster shell has a very dark color, it gets its deep red brick color only when it's cooked. They are available all year round.. so make sure yours is a good color when buying.
To save time you can purchase a halved, freshly cooked lobster that is ready to eat - the only thing you might need to do is to crack open the claws (if they haven't been cracked already) using a hammer or a pair of lobster crackers, in order to access the claw meat. Or you can cook your own fresh.
No matter which way you cook your lobster, it is the main event on your plate, therefore your side dishes should be simple not complicated.
Consider boiling new potatoes and basting them with some melted butter and seasonings, and a very basic green salad.. this makes a great colorful combination that looks gourmet and elegant.
If you are serving your lobster cold, then have cold side dishes, such as cucumber salad, which can be as simple as sliced or cubed cucumbers mixed with sliced tomatoes and drizzled in some oil and vinegar dressing and a crusty roll.
Another great side dish is corn on the cob, break the cobs in half and boil them and serve them in half sizes, as the lobster is likely to be taking up much of the plate and is the main event, and a crusty roll.
If you have spent all your time on the main event! and have very little time for side dishes, the traditional baked potato works great, make sure you have butter and seasonings. You can even buy pre-cooked baked potatoes already wrapped in foil.
Here is a great baked potato recipe:
Scrub a good size potato and then slice into it without going right through it, put at least 6 slices into the potato. Spread the potato open gently, and place sliced onions and thinly sliced cheddar cheese, in between the slices. Sprinkle the whole potato with salt and pepper and a bit of garlic salt, a dab of butter, and wrap it in tin foil. Bake as per usual, then open and remove from the foil when serving. Tastes great!.. Are you hungry yet?