'Louie' the 132-year-old lobster freed after spending 20 years in a restaurant

After spending 20 years in a small tank in a restaurant in New York, this crustacean has been freed back into the wild.

In honor of National Lobster Month, the town of Hempstead, New York on Long Island teamed up with restaurant Peter's Clam Bar to release a massive 22-pound lobster on Friday, believed to be 132 years old.

Town Supervisor Anthony J. Santino was present during the moment to help pardon Louie, who has reportedly been sitting in a tank at the restaurant for 20 years.

"Don't be shellfish. Help the Town of Hempstead protect our wildlife," Santino wrote on his Facebook page, along with a few photos which show a proclamation of pardon from the town.

According to the New York Post, the lobster has become somewhat of a pet for owner Butch Yamali, who purchased the restaurant (and Louie) four years ago. One patron apparently attempted to purchase Louie for $1,000 as a father's day gift this past week, but Yamali wasn't having it.

“He was trying to negotiate with me. He said, ‘I want to bring it home for a Father’s Day feast.’ I mean, that would’ve been some impressive feast. But I didn’t want to sell it. It’s like a pet now, I couldn’t sell it,” Yamali told the Post.

It's unclear if older, lobster taste better than younger, smaller lobsters. Regardless, finding a pot big enough to cook Louie would be its own challenge.

But will Louie survive after being in captivity?

Probably?

“He’ll be just fine. There aren’t many predators who want to eat a big old lobster like that,” said Bob Bayer executive director of the Lobster Institute in Maine told the Post. “Hopefully, he finds a mate — and lives happily ever after.”