It was lobster heaven. Everywhere you looked there was lobster.

Lobster claws resting on corn fritters, lobster and shrimp on buttery rounds of puff pastry drizzled with creamy sauces, lobster encased in Brie cheese and deep-fried, lobster sashimi, lobster in a little mascarpone cheesecake with a blueberry sauce, lobster in a martini glass.

On September 19, around 400 hungry people mingled and sampled the delectable bite-sized nuggets while sipping wine, all during a perfect evening on the coast of Maine. It was Claw Down 2013, hosted by the Boothbay Harbor Region Chamber of Commerce.

Eighteen chefs from local restaurants competed for best “lobster bite.” Judging by the displays that filled the big building at the Ocean Point Marina in East Boothbay, the competition was tough. (Click here for the winners)

Michele Ragussis, executive chef of The Pearl restaurant in Rockland, served as host celebrity chef. Ragussis was a finalist in the Food Network show “The Next Food Network Star.”

“Tomorrow I'll be shooting a 'sizzle reel' (a 15-minute audition pilot), for my own show,” Ragussis said during Claw Down.

Fiona Dunlap, chef of Newagen Seaside Inn and last year's people's choice winner, had her presentation table covered with rocks. “Lobsters live under rocks, and my dad used to lift them up and I would peek under and get all excited because I'd see baby lobsters.”

Her winning morsel last year was a petite corn cake with potato, corn puree, lobster and a butter sauce, topped with candied tarragon. This year she served up a savory herb crisp, topped with roasted corn butter, lobster, meyer lemon drizzle and sea salt foam.

Executive chef of the Boothbay Harbor Country Club, Geoff Cornell, brought his expertise for unexpected pairings of ingredients to Claw Down. His lobster bite was lobster sashimi (raw lobster) on crushed ice in an oyster shell, daikon radish, wasabi peas, pickled ginger, cucumber and wasabi infused olive oil.

Cornell won second runner-up in both the judges’ choice category and in the people's choice category. He also won the best decorated table award.

Brown's Wharf Inn executive chef Micah Jones was last year’s judges’ choice winner. He said he takes pride in creating one-of-a-kind dishes using fresh local ingredients. This year’s entry was fresh Maine lobster served on a roasted red pepper risotto cake, with lobster porcini mushroom sauce.

Boothbay Lobster Wharf owner and chef Todd Simmons  said he kept his lobster bite simple, so the full taste of the lobster would come through. He called it “Lobster on a Ritz.”

Owners Denise Demeter and Kim Martin from Eventide Specialties presented their lobster bite, lobster and Brie en petit choux with a fig balsamic glaze, prepared by executive chef Martin. Their creation took the first runner-up, judges' choice award.

Fisherman's Wharf Inn executive chef John Reed, who became a chef at 20 years old, presented his lobster bite in a martini glass: lobster ceviche with fresh mango and sweet potato chips.

Sam Kaler, owner and Chef of Kaler's Restaurant, with help from William Thompson and Justin Kramley, served their lobster bite using what Kaler describes as “some of the freshest seafood in town.”

Kaler’s bite was a herbed puff pastry cracker topped with crab, Maine lobster tail, shrimp and corn shoot, drizzled with the restaurant's own lobster sauce.

Part-owner and executive chef Ralph Smith, of McSeagull's Restaurant, has worked with chefs from around the country. He is self-taught and owns three restaurants in Boothbay Harbor. “I signed up all three restaurants for Claw Down, because it's an important event for us to participate and compete in,” he said. “It's all about community.”

His entry for McSeagull's was a lobster tamale, including a traditional steamed masa cornhusk-wrapped tamale with lobster and creamy pure sweet corn sauce.

Smith's other restaurants, The World is Mine Oyster and The Boathouse Bistro & Tapas Bar, featured sushi chef Harrison Maung's crunchy lobster sushi with sweetened rice vinegar-sushi rice, seaweed, iceberg lettuce, cucumber, mango, drizzled with Maung mayonnaise and crunchy shallots; executive chef Karin Guerin's submitted a Maine lobster mascarpone cheesecake with blueberry guilee for the Boathouse Bistro.

Oliver's at Cozy Harbor Wharf executive chef Stacy McLellan told the Boothbay Region Chamber of Commerce, “One afternoon, one of my customers came up to me and said I should compete in the Claw Down with my Lobstertini ... so here I am.” Her lobstertini included citrus marinated lobster, avocado and house made pico de gallo.

Executive chef Fabrizio Ventricini, of Ports of Italy, recently named one of the top 50 dining spots in Maine, presented one of the more colorful “bites” of the evening: lobster mini caprese with Maine lobster, organic grape tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, in an endive bed with basil-infused extra virgin olive oil.

Robinson's Wharf & Tugs Pub won the grand prize, people's choice award for executive chef Jason Chamness' deep-fried golden lobster beignet: a savory blend of local lobster, mascarpone cheese and a traditional New Orleans house-made remoulade drizzle. Chamnes became a foodie at the age of 13, working at his grandmother's catering company.

Lobster Dock owner and executive chef Mitch Weiss, who was featured on “Throwdown with Bobby Flay,” presented lobstador, a brandied lobster with fire-roasted peppers, crimini mushroom in a petite filo shell with crispy arugula and shaved Parmesan.

Head Chef Joe Pinkham of the Rocktide Inn & Restaurant got much of his culinary experience working for Cabbage Island Clambakes on a private island in Linekin Bay. His “lobster shooter” featured house made vodka, infused lobster bisque in a mussel shell, on a ricotta-lemon polenta cake, popcorn shoots and a magenta edible orchid.

The Thistle Inn's executive chef, Tony Bickford, said baking artisanal bread at the Thistle is one of the highlights of his day. For Claw Down, he crafted a Maine lobster corn fritter with honey-sriracha crème fraiche.

Patrick Jones, Chef at Windows on the Harbor, said that food is his pride and joy. He brought his Caribbean influence to Claw Down with his own lobster bite: Caribbean jerk lobster with micro greens and mango vinaigrette.

The biggest star of the show was Mike Ham, executive chef of the Tugboat Inn. Ham received the grand prize, judges’ choice award. With over 36 years of experience in various restaurants, he has worked for the Lafayette Group, owner of Tugboat Inn, for 15 years.

He said the only other food-related award he has received was for a chowder several years ago. His creation for Claw Down was an herbed, cream-cheese-stuffed lobster cannoli with blueberry crème Anglaise.

“Everyone has done something with lobster (usually savory) and I thought, why not a dessert,” Ham said.

He checked around and found some mini cannolis and started experimenting with ingredients. Once he decided on the final recipe, he was afraid it was going to be too sweet. According to the judges, it wasn't.

Ham said his original idea was to tie three of the cannolis together with a chord of chive to resemble a “piling,” often seen in groups of three for supporting docks and wharves. He did put together one of these and had it as a display on his table, but was afraid people “wouldn't get it” so didn't bother making any more.

Then Ragussis looked at it and said, “They look like pilings.” Oh well.

There were 18 states represented at this year's event, and even someone from Australia. Mark and Angela Feldser came from Pennsylvania. “My buddy told me to go to Bar Harbor,” he said. “We Googled Bar Harbor and eventually other places on the Maine Coast.

“We saw that Boothbay Harbor had everything we wanted, whale watches, kayaking, an enticing event called “Claw Down,” and it was three hours closer than Bar Harbor,” Feldser said. “This event was the trigger.”

Kira Pridham from Portland called her husband, Mike, who was in Connecticut for work, because she had seen something online about Claw Down and wanted to attend. “I drove up and got here just in time to make it to this,” he said.

With last year's event limited to 200 attendees, and this year's at 400, rumors are circulating that the Boothbay Harbor Region Chamber of Commerce may be thinking of expanding the event to allow 600 people next year.

“We will talk to the chefs and businesses before we make that decision,” Executive Director Catherine Wygant Fossett said. “This is a lot of work for them.”

Judging by the enthusiasm of the crowd Thursday night, if the decision is made to allow 600 people, there won't be any problem selling tickets.