oyster selection
Pearl Dive Oyster Palace offers a variety of East and West Coast Oysters. Below is a sample of what you might see on the list, please call us for specific offerings on any given day.
Old Black Salt Oysters - Black Restaurant Group has joined forces with Travis and Ryan Croxton of Rappahannock River Oyster Company to bring you Old Black Salt Oysters. These signature oysters are grown exclusively in the Black Narrows, a small strip of waterway located in Chincoteague, VA. This location was hand selected by the BRG team and the Croxtons because of its rapid water flow and high salinity. Old Black Salts have an average salinity level of 33ppt, making them one of the saltiest oysters available on the market today. Old Black Salts offer a buttery mouth feel that is indicative to Virginia oysters to balance their high salinity. The oyster meat is plump and firm, with hints of minerality due to the limestone rich waters.
Chincoteague Oysters – These oysters come from the Chincoteague Bay in VA and have a salty punch and light finish. The oysters are located in an area that is not fed by any significant source of freshwater creating a good salinity for the oyster.
Hama Hama Oysters – Coming from Washington State, the name originates from the native word stinky, which was used to describe the smell of the river that the oysters were found in. The river would smell in the summer when spawning salmon would die on the banks. The oyster has a melon flavor with a slight brine and algal finish.
Rappahannock Oysters – Grown by the Croxton family off of the Rappahannock River in VA, these oysters have a salty start and a mild creamy finish. They raise their oysters suspended off of the floor, making for a clean tasting oyster.
Malpeque Oysters – Malpeques come from Prince Edward Island and pack a salty punch with a mineral finish. Wild and farmed they tend to be thin oysters that are elongated with green shells.
Wellfleet Oysters – These oysters rely on hatcheries nearby for re-seeding due to the fact that native Wellfleet stocks were exhausted in the late 1700’s. These oysters are just as salty as their northern neighbors the Malpeques, but do not have as strong mineral flavor.
Naked Roy Oysters – These oysters get their namesake from a nude sunbather who used to catch the rays in the buff. Naked Roys are grown in Samish Bay, Washington and their shells tend to be very wavy and fluted. The flavor from one of these gives the mouth a full serving of melon, rhubarb, spinach, and brine, making it a terrific oyster for the half shell.
Quilcene Oysters – Wild oysters grown in a small bay that is on the western shore of the larger Dabob Bay, WA. The area is known for growing thick shelled, clean oysters. Quilcenes are delicate in texture, slightly salty, and have a sweet, mineral finish. During the fall and winter months local residents are encouraged to harvest the wild oysters for their dinner.