On a Roll: Quincy’s Lobster Empire is Riding a Wave of Success
Imagine you’re biting into tender, sweet lobster claw and knuckle meat, and as the luscious warm butter drips over the hot toasted bun, you could almost swear you’re in the state of Maine savoring a scrumptious lobster roll. But in reality, you’re in South Jersey at one of the popular locations of Quincy’s Original Lobster Rolls.
So, whether you’re in downtown Sea Isle City, or on Dune Drive in Avalon, Quincy’s gives you that authentic taste, for a fair price, and an experience that can’t be beat. Be sure to try the Classic Roll, Quincy’s most popular, with delicious lobster meat, warm butter seasoning, and a hint of mayo on a toasted bun, or try the Lobster Salad Roll, among other choices.
While the shore has multiple Quincy’s locations, the company actually began in Pennsylvania.
“When we started the company in 2013, Berwyn, Pa., was the first store that we opened,” says Quincy’s president Jeremy McCann. “We just pooled a bit of money together, and outfitted that store. And it was funny because we tried to make that store look like it was on the shore, on a boardwalk. That’s what the architect did for that store. And then we since realized it was just better to have a store that really was on the boardwalk, or on the shore. And that’s how we made the move to open in Cape May. And from there we started to really see some success.”
McCann is one of four co-founders, and the owner who handles the day-to-day management and running of the company.
Quincy’s launched its Cape May store on Beach Avenue in 2017. Next came Sea Isle City on Landis Avenue in 2018, and in 2019 another location opened on Ocean City’s boardwalk in front of the water park. In 2020, two more stores were added: Quincy’s in the Washington Street Mall in Cape May, and another location in Wildwood. More expansion came with a location on Long Beach Island in 2021. And this summer, Quincy’s opened in Avalon, in the same building as Louella, the women’s clothing store.
“We want to be viewed as one of those places that when people are on vacation down the shore, Quincy’s is on their itinerary,” McCann says. “So, people might get their saltwater taffy, they’ll get their Fudge Kitchen, their Johnson’s Popcorn, Manco Pizza, Kohr Brothers, and Uncle Bill’s Pancake House. It’s been very cool to see we’re turning into a place like that. It’s rewarding for us, to have started the business in Berwyn, moving down the shore and becoming part of that community.”
That’s not by chance, but by design. As McCann explains, Quincy’s is now primarily focused on the shore market. It also has franchised two of the locations, one in LBI and the other in Ocean City.
Meanwhile there’s also a new Quincy’s in Paoli, the company’s first foray back into a year-round store. In that location, Quincy’s will be sharing the space with Grumpy Guys Sliders & Fries.
“The idea is to have multiple concepts in one store,” says McCann. “We think the viability of that store as a year-round business will sustain a lobster roll place in a year-round, non-shore location.”
Most of all, whether down the shore or in Pennsylvania, McCann wants to satisfy that lobster roll experience for all of Quincy’s customers.
And that begins with the product. Quincy’s starts by purchasing the best quality claw and knuckle meat that’s available, and a mix of Canadian and Maine lobster.
“We deal with our big distributors. They’ll have us come in and say, this is what the catch looks like,” says McCann. “They’ll bring out the claw knuckle meat. And we’ll see the color, how big the claws are, we’ll go to the tastings of the different distributors. That’s how we make up our minds about what we’ll be buying.”
That passion for quality and love for lobster shines through.
“I don’t want to come across as hokey, here, but to me, it’s really about giving good value to the lobster rolls that we love,” says McCann. “And if we can turn it into something bigger and better, we will. But it’s not the primary idea behind starting the company.”
So, how did the company start? First there was friendship, some travel, and good food. And then came hard work, and success.
“Essentially a group of people went up to Maine, came back, and everyone loved the lobster roll,” McCann explains. “We all vacationed at the Jersey Shore, and we didn’t know of any lobster roll stores at that time, at least that we knew of. There have been a few companies since then. So, it’s kind of the early wave of lobster stores opening.”
McCann, who at the time of Quincy’s founding was involved in a mutual fund company along with some of the other co-founders, has been involved in many ventures over the span of some 20-odd years.
“We thought, hey, we’re kind of entrepreneurial businesspeople, everyone that’s involved in this,” he says. “And so we thought maybe we could turn this into something. But it wasn’t the primary reason that we did it. We actually put the first one by our office so we could oversee it and go to lunch, and have our friends go there and stuff.
“But by this time, we opened our first one in Cape May and saw that it was really resonating with people down there. Then we thought, you know, let’s see if we can expand this up and down the Jersey Shore. And if that goes well, who knows?”
So, how did they come up with the name? Actually, the friends had the idea for the restaurant but just couldn’t decide on what to call it.
“We just wanted it to resonate as something that kind of had a New England sound to it,” says McCann. “So, we bounced around quite a few names, and liked Quincy’s. It sounded cool, so that’s why we went with it.”
And with that catchy name, Quincy’s, it seems the brand is destined to become iconic with the Jersey Shore and anywhere and everywhere it pops up on the map.