Oyster Bar - History of The Oyster Bar

History of The Oyster Bar

Human consumption of oysters goes back to the ancient Greeks and Chinese. Oyster consumption on Europe was confined to the wealthy until the mid-1600s, and by the 1700s even the poor were consuming them. In North America, Native Americans on both coasts ate oysters in large quantities, as did colonists from Europe. Oyster consumption in North America after colonization by Europeans was never confined to class, and oysters were commonly served in taverns. During the early 1800s, express wagons filled with oysters crossed the Allegheny Mountains to reach the American Midwest. By 1850, nearly every major town in North America had oyster bar, oyster cellar, oyster parlor, or oyster saloon—almost always located in the basement of the establishment (where keeping ice was easier). Oysters and bars often went hand-in-hand in the United States, because oysters were seen as a cheap food to serve alongside beer and liquor. By the late 1880s, an "oyster craze" had swept the United States, and oyster bars were prominent gathering places in Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Denver, Lousiville, New York City, and St. Louis.

Sources vary as to when the first oyster bar was created. One source claims that Sinclair's, a pub in Manchester, England, is the United Kingdom's oldest oyster bar. It opened in 1738. London's oldest restaurant, Rules, also began business as an oyster bar. It opened in 1798. The oldest oyster bar in the United States is Union Oyster House in Boston, which opened in 1826. It features oyster shucking in front of the customer, and patrons may make their own oyster sauces from condiments on the tables. It has served as a model for many oyster bars in the United States.