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Health & Fitness

The Raw Truth about Oysters

Chef Brendan at the Madison Beach Hotel discusses shellfish.

A very popular portion of our menu here at Madison Beach Hotel is fresh raw bar. Our clams on the half shell are sourced from the shores of southern New England and our shrimp are wild caught Panamanian Shrimp. My personal favorite on the raw bar selection are the oysters, which are sourced not only locally and from the northeast, but also from the west coast for the finest selection possible. We have already offered quite a variety of oysters this season, and as the season progresses and more oyster beds become available for harvesting, our variety will increase. 

A few of the amazing oysters we have seen this summer are; Gigamoto from Vancouver, Chef’s Creek from Vancouver, Little Shemogue from New Brunswick, Malpeque from Prince Edward Island, Connecticut Blue Point, Little Islands from Maine, and my personal favorites - Sun Hollow Oysters from Puget Sound, Washington. Sun Hollows are beach raised oysters in inter tidal zones with sandy or rocky bottoms. These oysters are small yet plump and very sweet with cucumber flavor at the start, and a buttery-garlic finish. On the complete other end of the spectrum are Little Shemogue oysters from New Brunswick.  These oysters are raised in the pristine cold waters of Shemogue Bay. Unlike the sweetness of Sun Hollow oysters, Little Shemogues have a quite high salinity and rich mineral flavor.  It’s quite amazing how each type of oyster has its own unique shape and flavor depending on the water and location it grows in. If the weather stays dry it will allow for more local oyster beds to open for harvesting and we will be offering oysters such as, Duxbury, Whale Rock, Cape Cod Bay, Wellfleets, Plymouth Rock, and Wiannos. Keep a look out, and join us soon for all of our fresh raw bar offerings!


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