How Much is an Oyster Worth?

Being from New England where clams on the half shell are the default choice for slurping mollusks, I was always reluctant to try raw oysters. I think we’d all heard horror stories up there about salmonella and other oyster-related health issues.

So when we first came to Austin I was still reluctant to try oysters raw on the half shell, even in my initial forays into reviewing restaurants. I’d limit my choices to Oysters Rockefeller or fried oysters.

That was until I had drinks one night at Eddie V’s with the late UT baseball coach Augie Garrido. Someone near us ordered a dozen oysters and I mentioned that I was uncomfortable trying them.

Augie, who happened to be a serious food and wine lover with a broad range of knowledge, enlightened me about the many types of oysters and how safe and delicious they were. He said that if they were served ice cold then they were likely to be safe. If not, however, it was best to stay away.

So Augie ordered a dozen ice-cold Blue Points. I was amazed at their taste and texture. Then another dozen Malpeques arrived and soon I was slurping like a veteran.

I also learned that Gulf oysters were great as well (except those harvested during a red tide).

And so thanks to Augie I became a fan.

Since then I’ve tasted oysters from all over the U.S. and Canada and I’ve come to have my favorites. I’ve also had a chance to evaluate the prices that restaurants charge for them. Now you supposedly can buy oysters right off the boat for a buck apiece, but I’ve never met anyone who’s actually done that. Restaurants typically buy them wholesale from their preferred purveyors, keep them ice cold, shuck them to order, and then it’s off to the races.

As to pricing oysters, a lot depends on the allure and ambiance of the restaurant and the cachet of the oysters served. In Austin, it’s pretty common to see higher-end restaurants charging $36-$54 a dozen and more. Are the oysters worth that?

Well, it’s actually in the eye of the beholder. If the customer is willing to pay top dollar for a dozen freshly shucked Malpeques, then to him or her it’s worth it.

Is there a substantial mark up there? Sure there is. Like anything else that restaurants serve, there’s a mark up. And that’s particularly true in this COVID-19 era of supply chain and availability issues.

There’s also no guarantee that they can use all the oysters they buy at wholesale. Some have cracked shells and have to be discarded. Others just don’t measure up to standard, so that cost has to be passed along.

That being said, some Austin restaurants like the popular Shore Raw Bar in Oak Hill,  Eddie V’s downtown, and other high-end spots are approaching a $60 per dozen price point for Blue Points, Malpeques, Kumamotos, Hog Islands, Maine Belons, and even more for some scarcely available varieties. So we’re beginning to see different pricing strategies for many of these restaurants.

To take the sting out of a per dozen price jolt, we’ve seen the advent of per oyster pricing: the idea being that a premium oyster priced at $4.95 is less painful than a $65 or more price tag. And of course, most have happy hours.

Whether the individually priced oyster strategy works remains to be seen, but there’s most definitely a market for these gourmet oysters here in Austin. Where’s the price ceiling? Hard to say. But upcoming menu prices will certainly reflect it. Conversely, there are now many Austin oyster fans who won’t go near those prices.

Luckily not all area restaurants are caught up in the pricing escalation. Pacific Star Restaurant & Oyster Bar, one of my favorite Cajun-styled seafood places, has uber-fresh plump Gulf Oysters served ice cold at $18 per dozen. While PSOB may not have cushy leather booths and recessed lighting they don’t have to individually price their oysters either. They have locations in Austin on Research Boulevard and in Round Rock on West Palm Valley Boulevard.

The trendy Deckhand Oyster Bar also has $18 per dozen oysters. I like the place. The problem is there’s quite frequently a line out the door and I don’t much like getting into a queue these days. Even the no-frills but always reliable Quality Seafood is still at $24 per dozen for Gulf Oysters.

So sure, you’ll see me now and then losing my religion and depleting my expense account in search of the perfect oyster at Shore or Eddie V’s. But in terms of value, Pacific Star is my go-to guilty pleasure for enjoying an ice-cold Gulf oyster in an affordable, low key environment.