December 2018 | view this story as a .pdf
Lucky Shucks – A new restaurant, The Maine Oyster Company, sparkles with the gems of Maine’s waters.
By Diane Hudson
Oysters, especially served raw on the half shell, have a concupiscent effect on voracious Mainers. And who can blame us? The preferred aphrodisiac of legendary lover Casanova, oysters are found up and down our coast year-round. (It’s a wonder the state population isn’t booming.) As our lust for the bivalve continues to rise, the quest for the best is a boon for oyster farmers, particularly in Maine with its favorably cold waters.
These growers are well-served by The Maine Oyster Company, a restaurant recently opened in West Bayside. Touting itself as “Farm-to-Slurp Certified,” the eatery specializes in serving only Maine-farmed oysters and is “an event space and distributor with the vision of building an oyster community through experience and story.”
A blackboard lists libations, from which we order Prosecco ($9) and East Bayside’s Blue Lobster Chardonnay ($12), both good complements throughout.
Print-outs are provided for us to write in our oyster selections. Tonight, we’ll choose from five different mouthwatering mollusks, fished from Scarborough to Casco Bay and Damariscotta. Craving them all, we ask for 10 rather than a dozen ($29), with plans to follow up on the oyster each of us likes most. Adding those two to another half dozen ($15) gives us four more each. We can’t decide on “the best,” so why not keep indulging?
Styled on a tray of ice, the oysters are easy to identify, served clockwise in the order they appear on the menu. Accompanying mignonettes are subtle enough not to mask the nuances of this delicacy. Reading flavor descriptions of oysters posted at the bar is helpful, especially if you’re only looking to try one or two. We can testify that The Wolfe’s Neck, for example, is “briny, with a smooth, milky finish,” though we didn’t notice the “sugar or watermelon” in the Chebeague Island. We did encounter a saltier kiss from the sea than the more subdued Birch Island, however, which boasts a firm texture. If we had to pick a favorite, it might be the toothsome Blackstone Point from Damariscotta or the Nonesuch Pearl from Scarborough, with its superb balance of brine and sweetness.
The shucker here is top notch. There are no bits of debris, and each shell contains a full portion of the treasured liquor, allowing for a downright satisfying slurp.
Continuing, we savor the acclaimed Kamasouptra clam chowder ($6). Rich and creamy without being cloying, it’s generous with clam meat and flavor.
We can’t resist the lobster roll ($17), sourced from a lobsterman who shares Maine Oyster Company owner John Herrigel’s dock in Phippsburg. Served with potato chips, the succulent and lightly dressed meat billows out of bread toasted to a gorgeous gold.
If you don’t crave a plate loaded with oysters (or even if you do), a good way to experience it all is to order the “Boom Shuck-a-Lucka”: six oysters, lobster roll, and soup ($33). ‘Cause you can always add another dozen, right?
On leaving, Herrigel tells us about the photographs gracing the walls. “These are some of the farmers,” he says. He names each and tells his or her stories. It’s like leaving a friend’s home–we’ve shared in our mutual bounty and will do so again. We’re grateful, satiated, and maybe just a little bit giddy! n
Maine Oyster Company, 38 Portland Street, Portland. Thurs. 4-10 p.m., Fri. 3-10 p.m., Sat. 4-10 p.m. 650-5383, themaineoystercompany.com.
So why would someone pick here over The Shop? Sounds like the same stuff, just more expensive.