If you're ordering surf'n'turf, it may just about work out even for you. The fortunes of two of America's most popular menu picks are heading in opposite directions, with a sharp fall in the price of lobster to be offset by a jump in cost of dining on steak.
But as patrons ponder their mixed culinary blessings, lobster and steak producers are being left out of pocket as environmental factors conspire to knock the delicate supply-and-demand equation off balance.
For Maine's army of lobstermen, the early abundance of soft-shell lobster has seen an over-supply, and a resulting slump in the amount they can charge. It has seen the fishermen return to shore with boatloads of lobster – but diminishing returns.
