The oyster that grows in these waters is the Eastern oyster, the one that has always lived here, and New Brunswick farms it along its eastern shore. Ours are Blue Pearls from Cocagne Cape, close enough that the trip from the water to the table is shorter than most commutes.
An oyster is the plainest thing on the menu and the hardest to fake. It tastes of the water it grew in: clean, briny, a little sweet at the finish. The kitchen’s job is mostly to stay out of the way.
Three ways to have them
- On the half-shell. Seven Blue Pearls with the house mignonette and lemon. The menu calls them The Seven Cried by the Walrus and the Carpenter. Readers will understand; everyone else may simply count.
- Rockefeller. Blue Pearls baked with spinach, garlic, panko, and Parmigiano Reggiano. For anyone who wants an oyster with its coat on.
- In a glass. The drinks list has a shooter called “Wait a bit,” the oyster cried: one raw oyster waiting at the bottom of a small Caesar. It waits, as advertised.
What to pour
The wine list pairs the oysters with a Chablis, Le Petit Dieux from J. Moreau et Fils: flinty, dry, and built for exactly this. If beer suits the table better, La Jabberwock, the house Czech pilsner brewed with Les Brasseux d’la Côte, is crisp enough to keep up.
For the first-timer
There’s no wrong way, only a few habits worth borrowing. Look for liquor in the shell; that’s the good stuff, so don’t pour it away. A drop of mignonette or a squeeze of lemon, no more. Tip it back, chew once or twice to taste it, and reach for the next one. Seven goes quickly.
Questions people ask
- What oysters do you serve?
- Blue Pearl oysters from Cocagne Cape, a few minutes up the shore from Shediac.
- Raw or cooked?
- Both. Seven raw on the half-shell with mignonette and lemon, or baked Rockefeller-style with spinach, garlic, panko, and Parmigiano.
- What wine goes with them?
- The list pairs them with Le Petit Dieux Chablis from J. Moreau et Fils. La Jabberwock, the house pilsner, is the beer answer.
- Do I need a reservation?
- It’s wise in summer and on weekends. Book online; walk-ins are seated when there’s room.
- Not a shellfish person?
- The Acadian meat pie, the chicken fricot, and the fresh pastas are waiting.