Oysters In London's Thames River

One of the challenges of restoring oysters to Massachusetts estuaries is that in many cases they have been gone so long that people's baseline memories don't include oysters, so they do not notice they are missing.  this situation is not just the case here, but in other cities as well.

London, England once had oysters in the Thames River.  When you see the crowded, narrowed channel today, this seems incredible, but they were once there. The Romans used to eat them when they ruled the region.



Remnants of Crofton Roman Villa

Here is a link to a story about an archaeological dig at Crofton Roman Villa near London's Orpington Station. The 20 room villa was occupied from the years 140 to 400. It was quite sophisticated with a form of central heating. Among the objects they have found are extensive amounts of oyster shell.

Oyster Restoration Tour Wellfleet Tuesday June 18th 1:00 pm

Come join Mass Oyster as we get a tour of a zone loaded with millions of oysters in Wellfleet Harbor. This zone has been created to investigate the potential of oysters if they are fostered and allowed to grow. A practically barren area has been covered with tons of shell. To that shell over the ensuing two years millions of naturally occurring oyster spat have settled upon it and grown at a healthy pace.

Mass Oyster has supported this effort financially, with recycled shell, and this year by funding a student intern working on the project. 

Curt Felix will provide an overview and then we will have an opportunity to walk through the site. He will talk about the history of the project as well as its impact on water quality and biodiversity. The bulk of the talk will be on the Pier. But if you want to get a closer look, be prepared with shoes that can stand up to walking through 3-4 inches of mud.



Curt Felix loading oyster shells onto a barge.



We will meet at the project sign across from the Harbormaster's Office at the town pier at 1:00. All are welcome- let us know you are going by emailing here...

June 12th Wine/Oyster event at the Langham Hotel

This upcoming Wednesday, the Boston Langham Hotel will be hosting an Oyster and rose wine tasting from 6:00-8:00. The event will be held in the newly renovated Reserve room.



Event invitation $25 is the cost.

The hotel is located in the heart of the financial district at 250 Franklin Street. This event could be a great way to end the day.

Fun Clifornia Inn with Oyster Theme Nick's Cove Oyster Bar and Cottages

 

 

We came across this destination in Food Arts, a restaurant professionals magazine. It made us want to hit the road.

 

Enjoy Your Oysters and Your Stay

Beverly Stephen / June 2013

  
Marshall, California—How can you not fall in love with a hotel that greets you with a tray of local barbecued oysters the minute the valet whisks your car away?

That’s the welcoming amenity at Nick’s Cove Oyster Bar & Cottages, overlooking Tomales Bay in Marin County. Tomales Bay is at the heart of the California coastal waters rich with oyster beds with Hog Island Oyster Farm, also in the historic village of Marshall, being the most well known. So no wonder that oysters are the leading men at Nick’s.

There’s a raw bar with half a dozen different rotating locally harvested specimens, and in addition to the barbecued oysters, there are grilled oysters “Nick-erfeller” and baked oysters Mornay. Dungeness crab also plays a starring role in crab Louis, crab cakes, and an unctuous crab mac and cheese.

Austin Perkins, who came onboard in 2008 fresh from Cyrus in Healdsburg and was promoted to executive chef in 2011, embraces the land, too, with inventive salads and hearty mains, such as a wood-fired pork chop with rainbow chard and rosemary polenta.
On an inventive list, a standout cocktail is the Marshall Manhattan (see recipe below), made with Breaking and Entering Bourbon, and Anderson Valley Oatmeal Stout Syrup—often described as a beer lover’s drink.

It could be tricky to negotiate the hairpin curves on Highway 1 if one explored much of the cocktail and/or wine list, but fortunately it’s possible to bed down right there in one of the 12 funky but luxuriously appointed waterfront cottages.