Cantonese Lobster: Noodles, E-fu & Double Lobster

Cantonese lobster is a live lobster chopped and cooked within minutes of leaving the tank, wok-tossed with ginger and scallion, braised in superior broth or steamed with garlic, and very often served over noodles that drink up every drop of the sauce. At Neptune Palace you will find it with Chen Village rice noodles, on our deluxe set menus, and as the "double lobster" course at weddings.

Why do Cantonese kitchens love live lobster?

Cantonese cooking is built on freshness, and seafood restaurants in Guangdong and Hong Kong traditionally keep their fish and shellfish alive in tanks until they are ordered. The word for this is 游水 (yau seui), "swimming", and on a menu it signals that the creature was alive moments before it reached the wok.

Lobster rewards this approach. Its flesh is sweet and delicate and turns tough if overcooked, so Cantonese chefs chop it into pieces, cook it fast over very high heat, and get it to the table quickly. The shell stays on, which protects the meat and adds flavour to the sauce. Eating it is a hands-on, slightly messy pleasure, and nobody minds.

In Chinese, lobster is 龍蝦, the "dragon prawn", which gives it an auspicious edge on any celebration menu.

What are the classic Cantonese lobster styles?

A few preparations appear on almost every Cantonese seafood menu:

• Ginger and scallion (薑蔥). The most beloved. Chopped lobster is lightly dusted, flash-fried, then tossed in the wok with heaps of ginger and scallion and a light, savoury sauce.
• Superior broth (上湯). Lobster simmered briefly in a rich stock of chicken, pork and ham, gentle and deeply savoury, often thickened slightly at the end.
• Steamed with garlic (蒜蓉蒸). The lobster is split lengthwise, topped with golden fried and raw garlic, and steamed so the natural sweetness stays front and centre.
• Baked with cheese. A Hong Kong favourite with a creamy, golden top, showing how Cantonese cooks happily borrow from the West.

Why serve lobster over noodles?

When a lobster is cooked in sauce, a great deal of flavour ends up on the plate. Cantonese kitchens solve this the obvious way: put noodles underneath.

• E-fu noodles (伊麵). Springy wheat noodles that are fried before use, which gives them a light, porous texture that absorbs sauce well. Their name is popularly linked to Yi Bingshou, a Qing-dynasty official and scholar, though accounts of how the noodle was invented differ. Lobster with e-fu noodles is one of the signature dishes of Cantonese banquets.
• Chen Village rice noodles (陳村粉). Named after Chencun in Shunde, Guangdong, these are thin, wide, silky sheets of rice noodle, softer and more delicate than wheat noodles. Under lobster dressed in premium soy, they take on the sauce without masking the seafood.
• Vermicelli. Fine glass noodles that soak up a broth or garlic sauce, often used under steamed or braised lobster.

The noodles are often the part guests remember best, so leave room for them.

What does "double lobster" mean at a wedding?

On Cantonese wedding menus, you will often see 雙龍, "two dragons", meaning two lobsters served to the table in one course. Pairs are lucky at weddings, and the dragon stands for strength and vitality, so the dish works as both a feast and a blessing. On our Auspicious Blessings menu the course is named 龍精虎猛, a phrase for being full of vigour.

A table of ten sharing two lobsters also makes the course feel generous, which is exactly the point of a banquet.

Lobster at Neptune Palace

Lobster appears in several places on our menus:

• Vancouver menu: Lobster with Chen Village Rice Noodles in Premium Soy (頭抽龍蝦陳村粉, 1902), marked as a house favourite.
• Set for Four — Deluxe ($588): Steamed Live Lobster with Garlic. Both locations.
• Set for Six — Deluxe ($788): Chef's Special Lobster with Vermicelli (千絲萬縷龍蝦皇). Both locations.
• All four wedding menus: Two Lobsters Braised in Superior Broth (高湯游水雙龍), for a table of ten. Both locations.

Set prices are as printed in June 2026, before tax and gratuity; seafood prices change with the market, so please ask your server. To reserve, call Vancouver at (604) 423-3386 or Burnaby at (604) 566-0897.

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