FOUND's Oyster Week

Best done-up oyster dishes, Hog Island, Bar Crudo, Little Shucker, oyster-related gifts, Grassy Bar Oyster Co., MORE

Mar 25, 2026

∙ Paid

ABOUT FOUND • Oyster Week

There’s something indelibly, patently San Francisco about oysters. An obvious symbol of luxury — from their price point and de rigueur inclusion in “baller” menus, to the fact that they literally produce pearls — they’re also gritty, funky, and occasionally off-putting. If there’s a more on-the-nose metaphor for the high-low lifestyle so many Bay Area residents enjoy, I haven’t seen it.

And like so many of the things that make SF so SF, there are elements in local shellfish lore of disruption and crime. First, there’s the bustling Indigenous oyster economy, based around the Olympia oysters that packed the Bay. When the Gold Rush began, the region’s settlers upended the original residents’ sustainable practices. Those 49ers consumed and consumed, until few oysters — or their Indigenous caretakers — were left.

The commercial trade that rose up in the late 1800s ended most of the Bay’s naturally occurring beds, yet still produced a massive, lucrative industry. What was once a dish for SF’s poor and working classes was transformed into a meal for the elite, through clever marketing and fancy cheffery. The bivalves were so in-demand by the in-crowd that pirate ships roamed the Bay, knocking off beds as their farmers slept, then spiriting their bounty back to underground markets along the Barbary Coast.

SF’s local oyster trade stalled out at the turn of the century, as private ownership of land along the waterfront nixed farms, and regional pollution made Bay waters toxic. “By the 1920s the oyster industry was dying, and no one has sold or stolen a San Francisco Bay oyster since 1956,” Matthew Morse Booker wrote in a 2006 edition of the Pacific Historical Review, and commercial farming fled to outlying areas, like tech workers who decided they’re ready to have kids. As you see in this issue, part of FOUND’s first-ever Oyster Week, that’s where you’ll still find the best fresh oysters today.

Boom and bust and boom again, with a little larceny in between. That’s the story of both oysters and San Francisco on the whole. So the next time someone gripes at you about their imaginary idea of San Francisco’s golden era and how everything sucks now, take them out for oysters at one of the spots below. Let them complain for as long as they want, then look at them, maybe with a slice of lemon in your hand, as they guzzle down this symbol for all that’s great and terrifying about our city. Slowly and evenly, remind them that they’re wrong. –Eve Batey

RESTAURANTS • The Nines

Seafood platters

The Nines are FOUND’s distilled lists of the best in the Bay Area and surrounds. Paid subscribers have access to the complete Nines archive.

Beach Chalet (Richmond), chilled seafood plateau includes crab, oysters, prawns, seafood deviled eggs, $85 per, half-portion $60 per, reserve
Bar Crudo (Nopa, above), oysters, mussels, shrimp, uni, clams, $75 per (one of better platter deals in SF), reserve
Lil Shucker (Pacific Heights), the Big Shucker: oysters, mussels, prawns, crudo, scallop tartare, $98 per, reserve
Anchovy Bar (Fillmore), State Bird Provisions spinoff, mixed platter of oysters, cherrystone clams, salt springs mussels, poached shrimp, $60 per, reserve
Popi’s Oysterette (Marina), Popi platter: oysters, clams, shrimp, smoked trout dip, trout roe, $91 per, Big Popi adds ½ crab and 1 oz caviar for $180 per, walk-ins only
Bourbon Steak (Union Square), platter at Michael Mina’s Westin St. Francis spot serves up to 4, oysters, shrimp cocktail, lobster, sashimi, dungeness crab, scallop cocktail, $145 per, reserve
Waterbar (Embarcadero), chilled platter w/ dungeness crab, lobster, prawns, oysters, clams, ceviche, $185 per, waterfront location and expansive oyster selection, reserve
Foreign Cinema (Mission), plateaux de fruits de mer: selection of shellfish, crab, lobster, oysters royal, $95 per, imperial $195 per, reserve
Jou Jou (SoMa), French-style seafood spot from Lazy Bear team, The Frisco, oysters, prawns, crab legs, uni, $115 per, The Fancy adds half Maine lobster at $185 per, Jou Jou stacks on whole lobster and 1oz caviar at $325 per, reserve

INTEL • Oyster Week

What’s your go-to spot for oysters and seafood?

→ JOHN LINDSEY, owner The Rusty Ladle + Great Highway Gallery: For oysters and seafood, my first pick is Hayes Street Grill.

→ MAXWELL SALVATI, bar manager The Snug: Alice (my wife) loves Little Shucker — she said it might be her favorite restaurant in the city — and it’s our go-to 100%. Great oysters, great happy hour, best mignonette in the city, hands down. I think about stealing a bottle of their housemade green hot sauce every time I’m there. They get fresh oysters daily from both coasts, so they’re always seasonal, and I’m always getting introduced to new varieties. And the most important part: They’re always incredibly fresh. Also I LOVE their mussels and fries, and their rotating crudo.

→ KARLEY WEBB, fine dining forager: My favorite spot for oysters is, hands down, Hog Island Oyster General Store. The outdoor seating is perfect in a heat wave.

What’s the coolest oyster experience you’ve ever had?

→ JOHN LINDSEY: Getting bags of Hog Island oysters on the holidays — eating them raw and making Rockefeller while teaching the kids how to shuck without ending up at the hospital.

→ MAXWELL SALVATI: My friend hosted what we called an “oysterbang” one year, which has turned into an annual get-together. There were about a dozen of us, and we bought a huge variety of oysters from both coasts of the USA and Canada, hundreds of oysters total. There were a bunch of different mignonettes to try that all of us made, and I made savory oyster brine and nori martinis. Oysters + friends + good drinks is the best combo.

→ KARLEY WEBB: My coolest oyster experience was when I visited the Bahamas. It was my 14th birthday, and I was snorkeling and found one. I brought it back to shore and somehow opened it and there was a pearl inside! Best birthday ever. I still have that pearl in my keepsake box.

Tell us your go-to oyster spots and coolest oyster experiences. Drop them in the comments, hit reply, or email found@itsfoundsf.com.

GOODS & SERVICES • FOUND Object

Everything but the pearl

Having not grown up in an oyster-loving family, it was a great pleasure to marry into one. Not just for the chance to learn how they grow or to taste them fresh off a dock, but because an obsession with oysters opens up a world of easy gift-giving opportunities.

For example, we all spent one summer experimenting with oysters on the grill. It’s a great way to prepare them, because a) there’s no need to shuck the oysters, as they pop open over the hot flame, and b) you can melt butter as they lightly cook, creating a more novice-friendly texture than a raw slurp. The following Christmas, my in-laws were delighted to receive a cast iron oyster grill pan, which cuts down on the mess (and loss of precious oyster juice).

Now, I see oyster-themed gifts everywhere. Inside a French antiques store in Upstate New York, I discovered an array of antique silver oyster trays, which sent me down a rabbit hole. They’ve become an increasingly popular product in the last few years, especially amongst ceramicists. They’re a little kitsch and a fun addition to the slurpable treat. I’m particularly fond of Michelle Morton’s ocean-inspired rendition, and the freeform variety from Gloob Ceramics in Brooklyn. While the tray from Virginia Sin is simple, that also means it’s a safe gift for any home. I wish I had friends getting married on the beach this summer so I could get a custom oyster platter from Chell Fish (above), an acceptable off-registry gift.

The other day, I found out that JLD, a brilliant knife maker who makes pieces for restaurants and sells a select few during occasional online drops, makes a small, stainless steel oyster knife with a walnut handle. It’s a major upgrade from the plastic variety that comes with fish market oysters — and a thoughtful present for the oyster-lover in your life. –Sylvie Florman

WORK • Wednesday Routine

Hog wild

JOHN FINGER • co-founder & CEO • Hog Island Oyster Co.
Neighborhood you work in: North Bay (Petaluma, Marshall, Larkspur)
Neighborhood you live in: San Geronimo Valley

It’s Wednesday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
I start my day with a light workout and yoga at home and then check emails. Wednesday is usually light on meetings, so I have some flexibility about where I end up. Our main office is now in Petaluma, but we have restaurants throughout the Bay Area, and I’m not usually in the same place every day. I do spend a lot of days out at our oyster farm in Marshall, which is right on the shore of Tomales Bay and where our company started back in the ‘80s.

What’s on the agenda for today?
Today I’m at our Larkspur oyster bar in the Marin Country Mart, checking in with our management team and meeting with the Mart landlord to discuss some outdoor seating ideas. I also spent the morning with a group of colleagues (other CEOs) who I get together with quarterly.

Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
Tomorrow, we’re having dinner at Tony’s Seafood, one of our restaurants on Tomales Bay. Our new chef, Chris Loberg, is doing a special dinner as part of our ongoing series called Tony’s + Friends. Each month, we host a different themed dinner with a prix fixe menu and partner with our purveyors, guest chefs, and winemakers. The dinners have been a big hit with the West Marin community.

How about a little leisure or culture?
When I have the time and the conditions line up, I’m surfing in Point Reyes. Otherwise, I do a fair bit of mountain biking in West Marin. I also went to the Super Bowl a few weekends ago! Hog Island had a few different oyster bars throughout the stadium, both in the public food area and in a few private boxes, so I went with our team to shuck oysters and catch the game. It was a wild experience to see the production of it all, and I loved the halftime show.

Any weekend getaways?
Calistoga is always a quick trip and feels like you’re someplace different (especially when the coast is cold and foggy). We love Indian Springs. My wife Debra and I also like to go to Santa Cruz, which is where we met. We just spent a weekend there and stayed at the Dream Inn for the first time. It was a blast.

What was your last great vacation?
I’ve been going on wilderness river trips in Alaska with a group of friends for many years. We spend a few weeks up there and do everything ourselves — rowing, cooking, camp set up, and lots of fly fishing. Last year, we attempted to run a river called the Aniakchak. It wound up being unrunnable, but we camped two nights in the caldera of an extinct volcano. It’s so beautiful up there. I look forward to going every year.

What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
My Ibis Ripley mountain bike.

Photo: Remy Anthes

GETAWAYS • Morro Bay

Docking station

Once a Chumash settlement called (in translation) Place of the Dogs, the story of present-day Morro Bay began in 1870, when Franklin Riley established it as an export hub. By the 1940s, around the same time the Navy started training soldiers there for what’d become the D-Day invasion of Normandy, its shallow back bay became an aquaculture hot spot. Some of the Miyagi oysters served today at Grassy Bar Oyster Company are likely relatives of those WWII-era bivalves, per a historian I consulted for this issue. The descendant of a WWII Navy man myself — now married to a German-born descendant of, uh, the other side — this historic connection felt too good to pass up.

It’s about a four-hour drive down 101 to Grassy Bar, longer if you opt for the scenic route along PCH. Time it right and you’ll get to its Shucking Shed by its noon opening and watch boats spilling oysters onto the dock that are then shucked on the spot. Your options are limited, but that’s okay: oysters on the half-shell served on ice, with a host of seasonal toppings on offer. Don’t screw around with those, though — raw dog it, or go with the Grassy Splash, their signature mignonette of jalapeño and cilantro. It’ll put hair on your chest. Recently, owner George Trevelyan started offering Central Coast beer and wine as well, with a list that continues to evolve.

An afternoon on the dock with oysters aplenty was enough for my party, though my spouse’s mock questioning to the oysters got a little tiresome. (“Did you know Eve’s grandpa?” “Yeah, he kicked your grandpa’s Nazi ass, and don’t you forget it.”) High-achievers without such a comedic companion might be down to visit Grassy Bar’s farm, or learn to shuck fresh oysters from its staff. (Email gboysterco@gmail.com with your proposed visit date to arrange either or both of these experiences.) Those with shucking skills can also purchase Miyagis to go, or place a bulk order for delivery. Will they taste as good as they do on Grassy Bar’s dock? Only one way to find out. –Eve Batey

→ Grassy Bar Oyster Co. (Morro Bay) • 1215 Embarcadero Rd, Suite D • Thu-Sun 12-5p • Walk-ins only.