What's on your locavore's barbecue this Labor Day weekend? A slab of beef tri-tip, our favorite regional cut, sliced and nestled up to a stack of red torpedo onions and dry-farmed Early Girl tomatoes sounds mighty tasty. If you prefer fish, try a side of grilled sockeye or king salmon topped with this easy corn relish. And to start, what captures the taste of our unique coastal landscape than a a platter of oysters plucked from the salt-sweet estuaries of Tomales Bay or Point Reyes?

You can shuck and serve them raw, with nothing more than a squirt of lemon and a shake of hot sauce, or get a little more fancy with a saucer of mignonette sauce. Mignonette may sound lah-di-dah, but it's nothing more than a tart dunk of minced shallot, black pepper, and champagne vinegar. At its popular restaurant and oyster bar in the Ferry Building, the Hog Island Oyster Company has California-ized this French classic into a "Hog Wash" of shallot, minced jalapeno, cilantro, and both seasoned and plain rice vinegar. Or you can raise a toast to a particularly local tradition and barbecue them right on the grill. No shucking required; just place oysters, flat side up, on a hot grill until the shells pop open. Off the heat, remove the top shell, loosen the oyster within with a quick swipe of an oyster knife, and top with your favorite barbecue sauce. You can return the oysters to the grill for a minute or two to heat the sauce through. Whatever you do, the oysters will be sexy and succulent, with a clean ocean taste like the first fresh slap of a wave against your face.

Once your appetite is whetted, you might want to know more about these intriguing little bivalves, so rich in history and lore. Oyster Culture by Gwendolyn Meyer and Doreen Schmid, is a great place to start. Illustrated with Meyer's beautiful, evocative black-and-white and color photographs as well as historical documents and pictures, the book, published by Petaluma's Cameron Press, delves into the history and ecology of the local oyster industry. How did the book happen? Via email, Meyer told us,

"The book evolved from a photo essay on how oysters are farmed on one farm into the bigger story of oyster farming out here in West Marin. I started shooting grainy black and white film images back in 2001 out on the water and the gritty grainy look captured the hard working farmers on the bay on its foggy overcast cold windy days. The Tomales Bay is a special and unique place, one of the few clean estuariane systems left in California. The water-based farms fascinated me, and being out on the bay was captivating. Getting to know some of the people involved with oysters here and the history of the east shore-- I realized that there was a story that hadn't been told.

Photos from Oyster Culture copyright Gwendolyn Meyer

People in California have been eating oysters for centuries. Archaeological digs at Coast Miwok campsites have revealed piles of oyster, mussel, and clam shells. The native oyster of California's indigenous peoples and first settlers was the small, coppery-tasting Olympia oyster, Ostreo lurida. It has since been replaced, first by Atlantic varieties shipped in from the East Coast, then, since the 1930s, by Japanese Pacific varieties like the Miyagi and the Kumamoto. At first, commercial oyster farming was concentrated in San Francisco Bay, but as silt and pollution threatened the beds, the oyster companies looked north, to the more pristine estuaries of Tomales Bay and the Point Reyes peninsula. Oysters thrive in flat tidal estuaries where the river meets the sea, as part of a very particular coastal ecology. Once railways were established, linking the once-remote hamlets of West Marin to San Francisco and the surrounding towns, local aquaculture took off. As Oyster Culture notes, "For a brief moment in the 1950s, Tomales Bay was the largest oyster producer in California. Today, it is the state's smallest production area, but home of its oldest oyster farm and last oyster-canning factory, at Drakes Bay Estero."

Using an attractive and inviting layout, Oyster Culture explores both the natural and cultural histories of oysters, oyster farming, and oyster-eating around the Bay Area. At an early age, left to its own devices, an oyster attaches itself permanently to whatever solid surface it can find. Raising oysters is more like farming, or raising livestock, than fishing, since the oysters stay where they're planted. Marin's oyster companies, including Hog Island, Tomales Bay Oyster Company, Point Reyes Oyster Company, Cove Mussel Company, the Marin Oyster Company, and Drakes Bay Oyster Company (formerly Johnson's Oyster Farm), have evolved their own systems for raising and growing their oysters, each producing slightly different results. Along with ranching and farming, the oyster industry makes up a significant part of Marin's agricultural history and current agricultural and aquaculture-based economy. As Meyer told us,

"What was striking to me was how involved and familiar with every aspect of oysters everyone who works with them is, from the oyster bar shuckers to the farmers. There is a wealth of information about the oyster, and people who work with oysters know so much. Everyone in the industry has a particular philosophy about how they grow. Their understanding of the bay and the water and the environment they work in is impressive. I think a memorable story comes from Jorge out at Drakes Bay. Jorge has worked on the water for 30-plus years at Drakes Bay, for the Lunny family and the Johnsons before them. One early morning, he and Kevin Lunny got disoriented in the fog out on the estero. The fog blanketed out any recognizable features and they got didn’t know which way was home. They mistook the light on shore for that of a boat and headed away from it towards the ocean, which could have been disastrous. Fortunately, they managed to figure it out and didn’t head out to sea.

The story reminded me how even experienced [oyster] farmers with years of working on the same body of water are at the mercy of changing conditions. It may look calm and protected out there on the bay and estero, but it’s a landscape very much affected by many influences, both natural and man-made. I think the environment keeps farmers constantly on their toes.

Eat a local oyster, and you're supporting local jobs, something that makes putting oysters on the menu particularly appropriate for Labor Day. It's cold, wet work, tending to the rough-shelled babies out in the Bay, scrubbing and shucking, but it's an industry with deep roots, one that both provides jobs and presents a model for how for-profit agricultural businesses can work within protected parklands. "Because Tomales Bay is part of the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary, the farm [Hog Island], like all those within this sanctuary, works with over twenty agencies that manage land use and water quality in and around the Bay," the authors write. Says Hog Island co-owner Terry Sawyer, "None of this would be here without the Point Reyes National Seashore--we all owe a huge debt to its creation."

Now that she's an oyster expert, what oyster does Meyer prefer?

"Lately I’m particularly fond of the Tomales Bay Oyster Company's golden nuggets. They are beautiful oysters that are tumbled, not grown on the bottom, and because of this their shells are really pretty. The oyster itself is a deep-cupped, plump, rich tasting and perfect-looking oyster -- really a delicacy. I believe TBOC is the only farm doing tumbled bags on the bays. I prefer them freshly shucked, on the half shell with a squeeze of lemon. I like their briny taste of the ocean and want the full flavor of that, especially as we come into the winter months when they are at their prime.

Recipe: Oysters with Chorizo Sauce

Summary: This recipe, adapted from the book Oyster Culture by Gwendolyn Marks and Doreen Schmid, comes from the kitchen of The Marshall Store, a popular seafood restaurant on the eastern side of Tomales Bay.

From the Marshall Store

Oysters with Chorizo Sauce. Photo copyright Gwendolyn Meyer

Prep time: 10 minutes, plus 1 hour's chilling time
Cook time: 5 minutes
Total time: 15 minutes, plus 1 hour's chilling time
Yield: 24 oysters, serves 6

Ingredients

1/4 lb fresh Mexican-style chorizo sausage, removed from casing
1 cup (8 oz) unsalted butter, softened
2 tbsp finely chopped parsley
24 oysters

Instructions

1. Soften butter at room temperature. Saute chorizo until thoroughly cooked, then crumble. Place in refrigerator to cool.

2. Place butter in a small bowl and break up with a wooden spoon. Add cooled chorizo and mix thoroughly. Add parsley. Place the mixture in the middle of a sheet of waxed paper. Roll into a 2-inch wide log, twist ends shut, and chill in the refrigerator until firm.

3. Prepare a gas or charcoal grill. While grill is heating, shuck oysters and leave in shells. When grill is hot, top each opened oyster with a thin slice of butter cut from roll. Cover and cook just until the butter starts to bubble.

Note: If you don't have an outdoor grill, these oysters can also be cooked under the broiler. To broil, cover an ovenproof plate or platter with a layer of slightly moistened rock salt about 1 inch deep. Set oysters, in shells, on the rock salt, making sure they are level. Top each oyster with a thin slice of chorizo butter. Broil just until the butter starts to bubble.

Comfort food, gluten-free recipes and vampire prevention appeared to be peak areas of interest for BAB readers in 2010.

Here are the top thirteen stories and recipes most visited on Bay Area Bites during the year:

#1 Creamy Chicken and Rice Casserole by Denise Santoro Lincoln

"The casserole is undergoing a resurgence in popularity. After years of being maligned as a tasteless and gloppy suburban dish made with Campbell's cream of mushroom soup, it is finally coming into its own. Blame it on the economy and the rising cost of food, but high-end cuts of meat seared faultlessly and served with the perfect wine are passé in this environment: extravagant and unseemly amidst layoffs and foreclosures. Comfort foods are the new at-home gourmet chic, and there's nothing more heartening and reassuring than a chicken casserole."

#2 Giving Up Sunday Gravy: A Lost Food Tradition by Denise Santoro Lincoln

Have you ever given up a long-held family food tradition? I have. Years ago I gave up Italian Sunday Gravy, which is basically manna for Italian Americans. Although I stand by my decision, I often regret it as well.

#3 Hachiya Persimmons by Denise Santoro Lincoln

Hachiyas are the misunderstood fruit of winter: although they are sweet and wonderful when baked into cakes and puddings, many people are afraid to eat them because they are truly awful when immature. A firm Hachiya is extraordinarily astringent and inedible. I admit that taking a bite out of one is sort of like eating an unripe bitter walnut while suddenly having all the moisture sucked out of your cheeks and tongue. But there's a very simple way to avoid this: don't eat Hachiyas until they're ripe.

#4 Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Recipes by Stephanie Stiavetti

Slowly, as I learned to bake using a completely new set of rules, I discovered that gluten-free baked goods can rival their wheaty counterparts. I learned how to make a gluten-free version of Thanksgiving stuffing, a fantastic butternut squash pie, and everything else that a normal person would sit down to enjoy with their loved ones. Sure, at first my family balked at my "weird" cornbread, but once they came around, they discovered that what I was making tasted good. Actually, I'd venture to say that my from-scratch versions tasted better than a lot of the prefab, processed stuff that my family normally layed out on the table during the holidays.

#5 Caramel Cake, The Recipe. by Shuna Fish Lydon

Shuna's famous CARAMEL CAKE with Caramelized Butter Frosting

#6 Meyer Lemon Ricotta Pancakes by Kim Laidlaw

On Sunday mornings, especially when the weather is rainy and cold and grey, I love to make a decadent breakfast, like brown butter waffles, a full English, or, one of my all-time favorites: delicate, soufflé-like ricotta pancakes. The first time I ate them was at the much beloved neighborhood restaurant, Rockridge Café, located on College Avenue in Oakland. I was hooked immediately.

So, with a bowlful of Meyer lemons, I decided to make some extra-lemony fluffy ricotta pancakes. You can make these for breakfast but they're also perfect for dessert.

#7 Froyo: How to Make Homemade Frozen Yogurt by Denise Santoro Lincoln

Frozen yogurt is going through a bit of a makeover. Soft serve that tastes like ice cream is out while creamy swirls that burst with the flavor of real yogurt are in. Shops serving cups of froyo that burst with yogurt's innate natural tartness are opening everywhere. Forget my favorite college flavor of orange, which tasted more like creamy ice cream that had been melded with baby aspirin. Today's frozen yogurt highlights sweet fruit flavors and is enticingly tangy.

#8 Vampire Pantry Preventatives by Stephanie Lucianovic

If you want to keep vampires at bay, you should stock your kitchen with the following vampire-fighting ingredients...

#9 Dacquoise & Meringue. A Detailed Instruction by Shuna Fish Lydon

Traditionally, dacquoise is defined as nut meringue. These edible architectural details can usually be found demurely hiding in between layers of buttercream as they start out crunchy but softly melt into a layer of sweet nutty unctuousness.

Easy on paper, the meringue (French, Swiss or Italian) is a component which can frustrate even the most seasoned baker. When recipes rely on egg whites or meringue as their main leavener, the workings and instructions of the recipe are very important. Few cookbooks can afford to take the time to explain thoroughly what I am about to here.

#10 Wheat Berries by Denise Santoro Lincoln

If you've never heard of wheat berries, you're not alone. When I mentioned to a few people that I wanted to write about them, I received some quizzical looks. So, for anyone not familiar with this whole grain, let me end the suspense: wheat berries are simply individual kernels of wheat. They are what King Arthur and other grain companies mill to produce baking flours, from whole wheat to cake and all-purpose. And, just as there are many different types of wheat, there are just as many types of wheat berries, with their color ranging from light tan to a reddish brown. But the most important thing about wheat berries, at least as far as this post is concerned, is that they are scrumptious.

#11 Pulled Pork Sandwiches by Denise Santoro Lincoln

Tangy barbecue sauce dripping over slow-cooked pork on a bun. Yum. I freely admit that I am a fan of all things pork. I love pork chops, bacon, and roast loin, not to mention all those sausages. But there's something astonishing about taking one of the least expensive cuts of pork you can buy and turning it into one of the tenderest and juiciest sandwiches you can eat. Ah -- the miracle of pork.

#12 Recipe: Apricot Jam by Stephanie Rosenbaum

Apricots, while more accessible, still have a certain forgotten-fruit quality to them. Just as quince gets described as apple's tough, weird older sister, so apricots are often just a placeholder for peach-lovers, something sweet and orange with a pit that will do until the real goodies come along.

But apricots are good for cooking in a way that peaches aren't, their flavor intensifying into an ineffable tangy sweetness that leans just right against a crumbly, buttery short crust or a piece of whole-grain toast, especially one spread with mild fresh chevre.

#13 Rich as Rockefeller by Michael Procopio

Today, I wanted something rich. Something that would make me feel like that big shot I will more than likely never become.

So I up and made myself a dish named for America's first billionaire-- Oysters Rockefeller.

I'm broke. Of course, so is nearly everyone else these days. The belts, they are a-tightening. Practical choices, which seemed almost unheard of a couple of years ago thanks to easily-obtained credit, have to be made.

Do I want to meet friends for dinner at the newest hipster restaurant? Sure I do, but I also need new towels and underwear, so I'm going to have to pass, thank you very much. Maybe I'll meet you after dinner.

It's a state of fiscal being that I'm quite familiar with-- I've never had a lot of money to begin with, so everything is a matter of either/or.

Once, while staying with a very wealthy friend of mine when at University, he performed a little fashion show for me, displaying his back-to-school shopping finds. Now for most of us, back-to-school shopping means a trip to The Gap or something equally affordable. To my friend, this meant a couple of weeks in Paris and Milan. So when he popped out of his bedroom door asking in his posh little English accent, "Do you like my belt? It's Valentinoooo..." I asked the following question:

"Alex, exactly how much did that belt cost you?"

"Oh, Michael, you're not supposed to ask that. It was only seven fifty."

"Seven hundred and fifty or $7.50?"

"Don't be insulting. I shouldn't have told you. Do you like it or not?"

"Oh, it's great and all, but your belt costs as much as my rent. It's a question of belt-or-rent for me, and I'd have to say that I love my apartment more than your belt."

"Well, Michael, I can't help it if you're poor."

He paid for that last, unfortunate statement not with his life, but with dinner.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining (loudly). There are billions of people on earth who are worse off than I am. But sometimes I want to feel like the big shot I've never, ever been. So, rather than buy an obscenely expensive car or suit or summer home or any home, for that matter, I allow myself the small luxury of luxurious food and drink. I do my best to have a gorgeous hunk of cheese wrapped up in the fridge as well as a bottle of good champagne , which I keep on hand in case of emergencies. Whenever I am feeling blue or poor or totally hopeless, I open the refrigerator door and look at the champagne. Just knowing it's there lifts my spirits. It tells me I haven't yet fallen through the cracks.

And then I think of the pair of shoes I could have bought with the money I spent on that damned bottle of bubbly.

Today, I wanted something rich. Something that would make me feel like that big shot I will more than likely never become.

So I up and made myself a dish named for America's first billionaire-- Oysters Rockefeller.

Oysters Rockefeller*

Having never been a fan of big business (or big business guys, for that matter), it struck me as odd that I should want to make something that pays homage to the grandfather of corporate culture and American oil-dependence. Of course, Rockefeller also donated vast sums of money for education (he was instrumental in the founding of both the University of Chicago and Spelman College, for example) and was dedicated to the eradication of both hookworm and yellow fever.

So there you have it.

Oysters Rockefeller got their start--and their name-- at the world famous Antoine's Restaurant in New Orleans. In 1899, chef Jules Alciatore substituted Gulf Oysters (which were plentiful and local) for the French snails (which were scarce and, well, from France) in a dish the restaurant had traditionally served.

It was a terrific success. The dish of oysters (which were typically eaten only raw until this time) covered in rich, green sauce and subsequently baked was as novel as it was rich. In an apocryphal story, one Antoine's customer was so astonished by the heft of these baked oysters that he decried (people, incidentally, decried much more often in the 19th Century than they do in the 21st), "Why, this is as rich as Rockefeller!"

And so the name stuck. Of course, it also helps that the sauce is green in color, which is coincidentally the color of American money, of which Mr. Rockefeller had more of than anyone else.

There has been some debate as to the original, correct recipe for Oysters Rockefeller. Jules Alciatore swore that he would take the secret of the recipe to his grave.

He was a man of his word.

Some people insist that spinach was not part of the original recipe, and that the green of the sauce came from parsley and slow-cooked celery. Others, like Emeril Legasse suggest the option of green food coloring. Seriously. Parmesan or no parmesan? Herbsaint, Pernod, or Absinthe? Frankly, I don't care. I say make it whichever way you like, as long as you make it rich. That is, after all, the point of the dish, isn't it?

This is my own, particular version.

Makes enough sauce for 18 oysters, or 6 servings in my book.

Ingredients:

12 to 18 medium-sized oysters. Fresh, please.

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

6 tablespoons spinach, finely chopped

4 tablespoons shallot, finely chopped

3 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, even more finely chopped

1 tablespoon chervil (if you can find it), finely, finely chopped

5 tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs, toasted, plus 3 tablespoons for garnishing

1 tablespoon absinthe (or Pernod)

1/2 teaspoon salt

A few dashes of Tabasco sauce

A few turns of freshly-ground pepper

2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

Rock salt

Lemon wedges for garnish

Preparation:

1. Using a small oyster knife (from experience, I can suggest you do not use a flat head screwdriver), pry open the poor, defenseless oysters. Pour off any liquor and reserve. If any oysters have opened themselves up to you without your asking them to do so, they are to be avoided, much in the same way one would avoid a human who does the same thing upon first meeting. Loosen the meat and leave on the half shell.

2. In a medium-sized saucepan, melt butter. Add spinach, shallot, parsley, chervil, bread crumbs, Tabasco, absinthe, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, for about 10 to 12 minutes. Set aside, add reserved oyster liquor, and let cool.

3. Combine the 3 tablespoons of bread crumbs with the parmesan. Set aside.

4. Preheat oven broiler to 400. Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil and a layer of rock salt. Or, make as many rock salt mounds as you have oysters to save salt. The purpose of the salt is to stabilize the oyster shells and keep them level when broiling. Lay oysters over the salt, place a spoonful of the spinach mixture, and set under the broiler for about 5 minutes. Watch them carefully. I tend to lie on the kitchen floor, if it is sufficiently clean, and watch. That way, I can get a little bit of rest as I wait for the oysters to brown properly.

5. Once the oysters are sufficiently browned, remove them carefully (they are very hot, after all) to a serving platter lined with more rock salt. Add a few drops of Absinthe to the top of each oyster. Serve hot with lemon wedges and Tabasco sauce on the side. Eat enough hot oysters until you feel as rich as you need to feel**

*My apologies to anyone who may keep oysters as pets. You may not want to read this recipe. I seemed to have upset a lot of people last week, so I'm being extra careful this time around.

** Just a note-- John D. Rockefeller died of arteriosclerosis. He was nearly 98, but it was the arteriosclerosis that finally got him. You have been warned.

Team Sauce's strategy: an array of accoutrement to ease down the sucking process

155 oysters, 10 minutes, 1 stomach of steel...that's what it takes to be the reigning champ of McCormick & Kuleto's 16th Annual Shuck & Swallow Oyster Challenge.

Reigning Champs 2 years in a row: Aaron Young and Ryan Seamus (Team Farallon)

That's right, Team Farallon took down 155 oysters with Ryan Seamus shucking at the speed of light, and Aaron Young showcasing his perfected method of swallowing and spitting.

Young divulged that his secret to success was in keeping a glass of Muscadet wine by his side to rinse out and refresh his palate over the course of downing an absurd number of oysters. He claimed that the acidity of the wine helped to wash out the taste and keep his eye on the prize.

I came home curious to learn more about Young's secret weapon. Wikipedia confirmed that Muscadets are indeed "fresh, crisp, and acidic, light-bodied, and almost always dry with very little, if any residual sugar. Left over carbon dioxide from the bottling process can leave the wines with a slight prickly sensation." Just the kind of sensation one may seek out when trying to cut the buttery flavor and texture of oysters I suspect.

As I read on, my suspicions were once again confirmed! Turns out, Jon Bonné, wine editor of the San Francisco Chronicle, had in fact called Muscadet -- the minerally white wine of France's Loire Valley -- "the perfect oyster wine" back in 2005. It was this bold statement that actually led to another bacchanalian oyster-centric event of SF past: The Great Oyster Smackdown of 2007, which pit fresh, fruit-driven West Coast wines against minerally, lean French wines. Check out that gem of an article if you're interested in finding out which wines won out as the best pairing for raw Pacific oysters.

Sorry for the digression. Back to the Shuck & Swallow of 2009.

Team Asia de Cuba's Strategy: cute t-shirts and pregame bloody mary shooters

Bay Area radio personality Sterling James returned for the 12th year in a row as the presiding Master of Ceremonies, and the Deadlies Band provided some surferdelic tunes for the dozen or so teams (one shucker, 1 swallower) from Bay Area restaurants.

Home Team McCormick & Kuleto's: Sarber and Roger, shucked and sucked 84 bad boys. I counted them myself.

Celebrity and media judges included Chef Ryan Scott, Liam Mayclem, host of CBS's Eye on the Bay, Lynne Char Bennett from SF Chronicle, Sarah Duxbury from SF Business Times, Kathleen Jay from SF Examiner, Matt McFetridge from Northside SF Publications, Erin Roth from WHERE Magazine, Icky from KLLC-FM, Jayn from Alice 97.3, Kimmie Taylor from 102.9 KBLX, among others (including yours truly).

There was Blood…

Yeah...ouch.

Sweat...

Actually, Roger from McCormick & Kuleto's was cool as a cucumber. Made it look downright easy.

...and Oyster Juice.

The Swallowing half of Team Anchor & Hope

Following the competition, a $30 per person oyster and wine tasting, benefiting The Marine Mammal Center was held. The Marine Mammal Center saves seals, rescues and provides veterinary care for injured marine mammals along 600 miles of California coast, and educates the public about ocean health.

6 different oysters and 12 different wines were featured. My favorites of each were the Sinku Oysters from Denman Island, British Columbia -- salty (due to the cold water where they grow), meaty, creamy and rich -- and the Morgan Sauvignon Blanc, Monterey, CA 2008 -- crisp and apricoty.

It may be a long long while until some of yesterday's contestants can even look at an oyster again, but I bet many of the spectators are hooked for life.

Dominic (9-years-old, Shuck & Swallow three-year veteran, oyster count for the evening: 47) and fellow oyster lover, Tu.

16th Annual Shuck & Swallow Oyster Challenge
Ghiradelli Square / McCormick & Kuleto's
October 6, 2009

Photo Credit: Ali LaRaia, A Date With Flavor

About 50 miles north of SF, nestled away in Marshall, CA, is a treasure trove full of riches from the sea. "X" marks the spot at the Hog Island Oyster Farm. The jewels you'll find are the sweetest, most succulent oysters harvested from the pristine waters of Tomales Bay.

Hog Island Oyster Co., X-Small Sweetwaters

There is nothing like feasting on fresh, raw oysters. The satisfaction of prying them open. The sensuous delight of slurping the plump morsel straight off the shell, salty juices running down your arms. And that smooth, rich, burst of ocean that floods your mouth.

Hog Island Oyster Co. picnic view, Marshall, CA

The Goods at the Hog Shack

The best part of indulging in all of this at the farm? Other than getting them straight from the source, and enjoying the picturesque bay views, with prices ranging from $32-$52 for 50 oysters, you can truly indulge. Seriously, go nuts. Shuck and slurp to your heart's content.

Hog Island Farm Picnic

This trip up Route 1 has quickly topped my list of favorite day trips in the Bay Area. Tip for the motion-sick prone, bring your Dramamine -- this topsy turvy highway can be a doozy. But it is all worth it.

Tomales Bay Foods, Pt. Reyes Station

If you're driving up from SF, be sure to stop by the quaint town of Point Reyes Station. Stop for a cup of coffee, a stroll through town, and pick up the makings of a perfect picnic at Tomales Bay Foods, an old restored barn housing the original Cowgirl Creamery.

Cowgirls

Today we are making amazingness

We picked up some of Cowgirl's famous Red Hawk (a triple-cream cow's milk cheese, aged six weeks and washed with a brine solution that creates its signature sunset red-orange tinted rind), a big loaf of olive bread from Brickmaiden Breads, and a chilled bottle of sauvignon blanc to round out our stash of cherries, peaches, and spiced pecans in tow.

And then it was back on the oyster trail.

There are two Hog Island Oyster Co. picnic spots along Route 1 where you can shuck your own oysters, and either enjoy them in their naked gloriousness or grill them on one of the barbeques they have on site. The one further south is a bit larger and has more seating area, but had a fewer selection of oysters available. We drove on about another 5 minutes to the next location.

The Hog Shack

Shucking gloves on the line

As soon as we entered the premises we were hit with the intoxicating scent of salty sea air. Turned the corner and lo and behold, bushels and bushels of Kumas, Atlantics, Sweetwaters … good God, I was in heaven.

Fifty Atlantic Oysters

We learned from our shuck master the difference in flavor of each variety. The Kumamoto oysters, originally from the Kumamoto area of Kyushu, Japan, are the sweetest of the three varieties available. They have a mild, almost fruity flavor. The Atlantic oysters are a native East Coast species called the Blue Point oyster. They are the saltiest of the bunch and have a slightly more mineral taste. And then there are my personal favorite, the popular Sweetwater oysters, a native West Coast oyster whose flavor falls somewhere in between the Kuma and the Atlantic. They are slightly salty, with a rich smoky-sweet flavor.

Oyster orgy time

Shucking the oysters can be tricky at first. A shucking knife is long and pointed (like an envelope opener) with a dulled edge on both sides. The key to a successful shuck is in first getting the knife lodged into the point of the oyster where the two halves of the shell hinge, the apex if you will. As a beginner, I found it helpful to have a dish towel (remember to bring your own) under the oyster and my left hand (safely ensconced in a protective glove) holding it steady. With my right (dominant) hand, I went at the sweet spot at a slightly downward angle to get it in. You'll feel a give in pressure. Once it's in, rock your knife back and forth, making a motion with your wrist like you’re jiggling a doorknob. The shell should pop loose, allowing you to slide your knife around the edges to complete the process.

For a great visual demo from a pro, check out this video from SF Gate.

62 oysters later: happy and sated

We didn't have time this trip, but next time I'll take my oysters to go and picnic on the beach at the Point Reyes National Seashore, about 20 minutes south on Route 1.

If you can't make it out to Point Reyes anytime soon, take heart, you can still oyster orgy on the cheap in the city. Here is a list worth holding on to: SF Weekly's running list of $1 Oyster spots.

Happy oyster hunting!

Hog Island Oyster Company (farm)
20215, Highway 1
Marshall, CA 94940
(415) 663-9218, ext.255
Open 7 days a week, rain or shine! 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Tip: Picnic reservations tend to fill up on the weekends so call in advance ($8/person with reservation on weekend, or $10/person walk-in; $5 on weekdays). Fee includes picnic table, shucking tools, access to bbq, and fresh lemons.

Cowgirl Creamery
80 4th Street (at Tomales Bay Foods)
Point Reyes Station, California 94956
(415) 663-9335
Open Wednesday thru Sunday
Tip: Every Friday at 11:30 a.m. there is a tour consisting of a 25-minute presentation and tasting of Cowgirl Creamery cheeses ($5)

Cupid's bow is strung, the candy hearts are out, and there's no shortage of $75-a-plate ways to dine with your sweetie this Valentine's Day. But do the two of you really want to spend next Saturday plodding through four or five overwrought, overgarnished courses, just one more pair of credit-card-toting giraffes shuffling in for feeding time at the Ark?

Especially when you could take that same chunk of change and spend it on a week or more of the best aphrodisiac Nature can provide. I'm talking, of course, of oysters, and better yet, of the $1 (or even free) oysters on the half-shell available all around town. Besides the pure taste appeal of their sea-kissed succulence, oysters are rich in minerals (especially iron, calcium and zinc) and B vitamins, and high in protein. Plus, raw oysters seem to go hand-in-hand (or hand-to-mouth) with a certain kind of adventurous sensuality. I wouldn't turn down a date with an oyster-hater, but I'd certainly put on my fancy panties for a second date with an oyster lover.

So, where to find them on the cheap? The key is getting there early; most restaurants and bars offer their oyster deals as part of happy hour, hoping to pique your appetite just enough so you'll pony up for some real grub, or at least run up a decent bar tab. Others use the deal to pull in customers on otherwise slow nights. Here, a few to jot down in your little black book:

Luka's Taproom, in uptown Oakland, offers good-quality oysters at $1 a pop every Monday night. Monday's also $1 oyster night in the Castro at the Woodhouse Fish Company. At Hog Island Oyster Company in San Francisco's Ferry Building, there's a very popular happy hour on Mondays and Thursdays from 5-7pm, with $1 oysters and $3.50 pints. The Asian-infused Eos in Cole Valley features $1 oysters (served by the half or full dozen) on the happy-hour menu from 5:30-7pm, Sunday through Thursday. In the northeast Mission, Circolo does $1 oysters from 5-7pm, Tuesday through Friday, in the bar and lounge.

At Berkeley's Sea Salt, there's a chef's choice of $1 oysters every day from 3-6pm. Also in Berkeley, the stylish Cafe Rouge does $1 oysters Tuesday through Thursday, from 5:30-9:30pm.

And if you really don't want to split your cash between beer and food, head over to the Mission's El Rio for free oysters every Friday, from 5:30pm til the oysters run out. Grab a beer and a plate of oysters, and head out to the backyard to sip and slurp under the lemon tree. Now that's real San Francisco romance.

As the weather warms up it's prime time for outdoor festivals. Head to Ghirardelli Square for sipping wine at the third annual Uncorked Wine Festival or to Golden Gate Park for shucking oysters at the ninth annual San Francisco Oyster Fest. Better yet, enjoy both!

Ghirardelli Square hosts Uncorked! in partnership with COPIA, the American Center for Wine, Food & Arts located in Napa. Uncorked provides an opportunity to taste, learn and experience wine and gourmet food from throughout Northern California. Highlights include a food and wine pairing seminar, sensory wine class and chef demonstration ($10 fee). Check out the schedule online.

What: Uncorked! Wine Festival
Cost: Tickets are $40 and include unlimited wine tastings from over 50 wineries and a souvenir glass
When: May 17th 1 - 6 pm
Where: Ghirardelli Square, 900 North Point St, San Francisco
How: Purchase tickets online

The San Francisco Oyster Fest celebrates that classic combination of oysters and stout and features a great selection of contemporary live music. A wide variety of other beverages will also be available, ranging from beers, wines to premium spirits and though oysters are the main focus of the festival many other culinary choices will be offered. Festival events including the Shuck and Suck Competition, Oyster History Exhibition and Oyster Cooking Demonstrations.

What: San Francisco Oyster Fest
Cost: Tickets are $20 for a 1 day pass or $35 for a 2 day pass
When: May 17th - 18th, 12 - 7, gates open at 11
Where: Great Meadow at Fort Mason, San Francisco
How: Purchase tickets online