Midnight picnic on an oyster bed

Jon Rowley wrote:A "picnic" on an oyster bed at low tide in the cold in the middle of the night sounds a little crazy, yes? Do you remember Lewis Carroll's "Walrus & Carpenter", a take about how the Walrus and Carpenter lured the unsuspecting oysters for "a lovely walk, a lovely talk upon the briny beach" and then proceeded to eat ever...y one. Eating oysters on a winter beach has a dimension of enjoyment that doesn't come across once the oyster gets to the oyster bar. That's why I and the Taylor family of Taylor Shellfish Farms felt compelled to share this unique and quintessential oyster moment with others interested in the ultimate oyster eating experience.

So we signed people up for a Walrus & Carpenter Picnic on Totten Inlet and convened the gluttonous group (gluttony is not a sin when it pertains to oysters) in the dark on a low minus tide on a recent cold night on the Taylor Shellfish Beds on Totten Inlet. The mission was to provide a benchmark oyster eating experience by which all subsequent oysters would be judged.

The Walruses and Carpenters put away many, many Olympias, Kumamotos, Pacifics and Totten Inlet Virginicas that night by lantern light, washing them back with dry, crisp, clean-finishing winners of the Pacific Coast Oyster Wine Competition. Nobody noticed the rain.

Xinh Dwelley of Xinh's Clam & Oyster House warmed everyone up with a bowl of Xinh's oyster stew before boarding the Oyster Bus back to town.