HAMPTON BEACH – Great food, a friendly waitstaff, a nautical atmosphere, and Hampton's own version of the "Green Monster" are waiting for you at the Lobster's Den Restaurant and Pub, located at 139 Ocean Boulevard just below the Colonial Inn.

Owner Don Owen and family welcome their customers to the beachfront restaurant, which they opened two years ago, as well as to the Lobster Den's bright and breezy take-out stand, in operation since 1990 and located a little further south at 99 Ocean Boulevard.

Besides offering "the best lobster rolls and fried clams on the beach," says Don, the Lobster's Den Restaurant and Pub now features a newly updated pub area.

"We changed the bar into a sports pub, with sports memorabilia on the walls," explains Don. Plus, he says, "we added smoke-free dining upstairs" in a 28-seat dining area at street level, allowing for plenty of good old-fashioned "people-watching" while dining. Also adding to the pub's sporting theme is a huge, colorful mural of Fenway Park's "Green Monster." The mural is currently serving as a fundraising tool, encouraging patrons and local businesses to make donations for a worthy cause (see sidebar at end of this article).

Lobster's Den pub customers will also find pool tables and darts to enjoy, as well as live entertainment seven nights a week now through mid-August. Wednesday night is Ladies' Night, and Karaoke with Chris Michaels is featured every Monday and Wednesday evening.

And then there's the Lobster's Den Restaurant and Pub's excellent full menu.

"What really brings the people in," says Don, "is the food." He's right. The list of tasty appetizers includes fried coconut shrimp, jalapeno poppers, crab cakes, and "Buffalo Wings of Fire." A tantalizing assortment of soups and salads (try Al's Famous Lobster Bisque or their award-winning clam chowder alongside a Caesar salad) complement main dishes featuring fresh seafood, sizzling steaks, and tender chicken.

The mouthwatering seafood selections for lunch and dinner include tasty fried clams, shrimp scampi and lemon butter dill salmon. Fresh shrimp, scallops, and haddock are available fried, broiled or stuffed in luncheon rolls. Then there's the 1-1/2 pound lobster dinner, or the New England Clambake complete with lobster, steamers, melted butter and garden salad.

Landlubbers will enjoy their choice of delicious chicken dishes, such as Chicken Marsala, Chicken Alfredo, and three types of grilled chicken (barbecue, teriyaki, or lemon pepper). Tasty sirloin tips, a 12-oz New York sirloin steak and 10-oz filet mignon are on the menu as well. For those who can't decide between land or sea, there's the ever-popular Surf and Turf, as well as plenty of "sides."

Daily lobster specials and plenty of great seafood selections are also available at the Lobster's Den take-out location. Bring a box (three sizes to choose from) of fried clams, scallops, fish, chicken and "extras" like French fries or onion rings back to the beach blanket, or enjoy a clam or scallop roll on the outdoor patio. Or, order up from their dinner menu what has been called "the biggest fisherman's platter on the beach."

Whether you eat-in or take-out, select a spot at the sports bar or pick a place on the patio, the Lobster's Den is where to go when you want some of the best food to be found at Hampton Beach. Stop by, say "hi" to Don and the crew, and get ready to enjoy what they have to offer.

For more information and hours of operation, call the Lobster's Den Restaurant and Pub at 929-4141, or their take-out location at 929-1111.

HAMPTON BEACH – On one wall of the Lobster's Den Restaurant and Pub on Ocean Boulevard, there is a colorful painted mural of Boston's Fenway Park, with the famed "Green Monster" rising above the outfield and a crowd of "spectators" filling the stands.

This mural is intended to be an audience participation sort of venture, where customers can "buy a seat to the Green Monster" for a very worthy cause: To send Brian (a 13-year-old suffering from a life-threatening blood disorder called Wiscott-Aldrich Syndrome) and his family to Disney World.

For a $10 donation ($15 for couples), patrons and the public can have a digital photo taken at the restaurant and have their smiling countenance fastened to one of the "spectator's" on the Green Monster mural.

Additionally, local businesses and corporations may also make monetary donations for "advertising space" on an assortment of Green Monster "billboards" in different sizes.

Those who would like to help send Brian on an unforgettable trip to Disney World may get in touch with Sonia Maksou by calling 929-4141 or by coming into the Lobster's Den at 139 Ocean Boulevard – with a smile and a much-appreciated donation.