Paul Pierce couldn’t come back to Boston without visiting this famous eatery

After signing his final contract with the Celtics at their Waltham practice facility, Paul Pierce stopped by another familiar place in the city from his tenure in Boston.

President of Union Oyster House Joe Milano hadn’t seen Pierce in nearly five years, but the restaurant executive said he was “delighted” when the NBA veteran unexpectedly dropped by Monday night.

Milano recalled how Pierce would frequently stop by the historic North End seafood spot after home games, often with two or three of his teammates.

“It was always a favorite restaurant to him,” Milano told Boston.com. “He would come in, typically unannounced. I think it’s the humble ones that come that way.”

According to Milano, Pierce’s visit lasted about an hour in which he ordered two bowls of the classic clam chowder.

“He enjoyed the chowder,” Milano said. “Obviously he’s a big boy, so two bowls of chowder were certainly adequate, but I don’t think he came for the food. I think he was just so truly excited about what just occurred with his former team. That must have been very surreal. He was beaming in every picture, like he had just hit a 3-pointer.”

In addition to taking photos and signing autographs, Milano said Pierce had requested to see the 44-pound, 95-year-old lobster the restaurant has hanging on a piece of driftwood in a private dining room. While they weren’t able to show him the relic due to a scheduled event, the crew instead took out a live version of the crustacean for him to hold.

Pierce shared a picture with the 11-pound lobster on Instagram. He captioned it: “11 lb lobster only at the union bar Boston.”

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