Oysters even in the soup... Literally!
Fried oysters, oyster cake, oysters hollandaise, oysters Pompadour, oysters a la Poulette, baked oysters on toast, raw, with cocktail sauce, with bacon, with milk, in vinegar... If we could take a look at the New York restaurant and food stall menus In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, we would have found oysters literally in our soup!
The research project carried out by the New York Public Library about the menus enjoyed in the Big Apple over the last centuries is good proof of New York's passion for the humble mollusk.
As surprising as it may sound, oysters were an essential piece of the New York diet , arguably his first fast food, long before pizza, hotdogs, or bagels arrived.
'Oyster Houses' (oyster houses), in Manhattan
When in 1609 Henry Hudson first sailed the river that would one day bear his name, the native Lenape Indians, who inhabited the area, had been happily consuming the gelatinous shellfish for years. Back then they were not only abundant, but much larger than the current ones. They could measure up to 30 centimeters!
“The story of oysters in New York is the story of the city itself - its abundance, its strength, its excitement, its greed, its way of thinking, its blindness and even its dirt”, is how the writer Mark Kurlansky describes the phenomenon.
in his book The Big Oyster recounts how, although it is estimated that At its peak, New York Bay contained nearly 200,000 acres of oyster reef. (accommodating more or less half of the world's oysters according to some biologists), its high consumption and pollution destroyed that ecosystem.
The fame of New York oysters became worldwide through the Dutch settlers , which came to name Ellis and Liberty Islands 'Little Oyster Island' and 'Great Oyster Island', respectively. In its day, both the pavement of Pearl Street and the foundations of Trinity Church and many other buildings in Manhattan were essentially made of oyster shells.
The oysters even had their own menus
The oysters were eaten by everyone, from the poorest to the richest, and they were found both in street stalls like in high-end restaurants.
Before the turn of the 20th century, when people thought of New York, they inevitably thought of oysters, says Kurlsnaky, who describes a city seen as the shellfish capital of the world.
travelers like Charles Dickens They tasted their oysters and realized this reality. In 1790, the Frenchman Moreau de St. Mery commented that "Americans are passionate about oysters and eat them at all hours, even on the street."
In addition to filtering ocean water, Oysters are very nutritious and are rich in protein, phosphorus, iodine, calcium, iron, and vitamins A, B, and C.
However, the same passion for oysters of New Yorkers and their unsustainable consumption, in addition to the pollution of the city in full swing, meant that with the arrival of the 20th century supply will end: New Yorkers had eaten every last oyster.
The reefs were dredged or covered with silt, and water quality was too poor for biological regeneration, both oysters and any other organism. The port became a toxic zone and lack of life for more than fifty years, until the Clean Water Act was passed, which prohibited the dumping of garbage and sewage.
New York and oysters, a love story
Although they continued to open oyster stands in the city, molluscs were no longer local. For nearly four decades, until 1972, oysters from the bay were not fit for consumption again, and to this day efforts continue to regenerate the natural population of oysters in the waters surrounding Manhattan.
One of these initiatives, The Billion Oyster Project, aims to restock the area with one billion live oysters by 2035 (26 million have been successfully implanted to date) . His effort, along with the taste New Yorkers have for their oysters at a dollar, have made that love of yesteryear is gaining strength again.
For seven years now the city has been celebrating ** New York Oyster Week ** (September), and establishments with Happy Hours abound where to sip some good oysters paired with local wine or beer.
THE BEST PLACES TO TASTE THEM?
** Zadie's Oyster Room ** _(413 E 12th St, New York) _
The essence of this restaurant is the memory of when the oyster was the queen of New York. They serve oysters in every possible way, accompanied by local wines and craft beers.
Thanks to its collaboration with The Billion Oyster Project, all the oyster shells they consume are recycled in New York Harbor for the creation of living breakwaters that filter water and clean and protect the coast.
$1 East Coast Oysters
The Mermaid Inn, East Village _(96 2nd Ave, New York) _
A picturesque and casual corner to meet your friends and taste bivalves, with $1 east coast oysters.
Grand Banks, Tribeca
This restaurant is on an authentic historic sailing ship, the Sherman Zwicker moored at Pier 35 in inspired by floating oyster barges that were on the shore of Manhattan in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The menu offers sustainably raised oysters and nautical cocktails , plus unbeatable views of Manhattan.
Mary's Fish Camp, West Village _(64, 2626, Charles St, New York) _
This tiny, authentic Charles Street restaurant does not take reservations. Their oysters come from Cape Cod (Massachusetts) and are served raw or fried with their distinctive tartar sauce.
Gray Lady, Lower East Side _(77 Delancey St, New York) _
Its name refers to the fog on Nantucket, where its owners come from. On weekends it fills up easily, so it's a good place to visit from Monday to Friday. Monday oysters are a dollar all night.
Oysters on board a sailboat