When we went to the cabin a little over two weeks ago, we took a picnic lunch to Hog Island Oyster Co. It is a little place in Tomales Bay on Route 1 where you can buy raw oysters and have yourself a time! When we showed up, one of the guys asked us if we had reservations and we totally didn’t. But I think this is one of the times that we should thank our lucky stars that we are all cute females because he managed to get us a picnic table outside.

We paid a reduced entrance fee (maybe because we showed up kind of late in the afternoon and the guy didn’t think it was fair to charge us the normal $8/person fee, or maybe we are really so cute as a foursome that the men at Hog Island were spellbound into treating us well - I guess it is an oyster company… and you know that oysters are an aphrodesiac… hmmmm). Regardless, we ended up getting 2 dozen oysters for the 4 of us to share; 12 small oysters and 12 atlantic oysters (as a suggestion of the guy who said they ran out of kumomoto and extra small ones) and a bunch of lemons).

We packed up a bottle of wine from the cabin, all of our cheeses, a loaf of bread, and all of the fixins’ for a minuet sauce. We settled in at the only free picnic table and started shucking our little hearts out. A couple of the atlantic oysters were creamy inside. So I went an asked one of the oyster guys if they were safe to eat. He proceeded to tell me that it was their reproductive juice and that it was completely safe to eat. Needless to say, I stuck to the non-creamy ones from that point out, but I didn’t tell the rest of the girls, for fear that it would deter them. The oyster guy came over to our table and told them that it was fine to eat and said that he preferred them creamy. Then he ate one of our oysters.

Really, this place only provided the oysters, a picnic table, and there were some BBQs around if you didn’t want your oysters raw. They recommend making reservations at least two weeks in advance (but apparently if you are cute and female, there is a small chance of getting around that rule). You are allowed dogs on leashes, although I think everyone who had a dog let it off-leash. The picnic tables sit along the banks of the bay and it is a beautiful view. There was no shade, but it wasn’t a particularly hot day. I don’t remember getting sunburn.

They also have retail locations and a restaurant at the pier in SF. But I had a great time at the farm! Something tells me the employees there know first hand about oyster farming and shucking and everything else.

Here is the contact info and some information from the website:

To enjoy our facility, please keep the following in mind:

One week advance reservation only
Call 415-663-9218 ext. 208
Leave the folling information clearly: first/last name, phone number, date, total people
Reservations confirmed by return phone call, Advance reservations are $8 per person, Walk-ins are welcome if we have space at $10 per person, No walk-ins after 4pm, We close promptly at 5pm, No groups larger than 20 people, BBQ pits provided, but bring your own charcoal, No personal cooking devices, No portable music devices. We have a great selection of music, Bring your own beverages and containers, Dress warmly as the afternoon wind and fog can be a little chilly, Please car pool as parking is very limited

Travel time from San Francisco is 1.5 hours.

Our physical location is 20215 Coast Hwy One, Marshall, CA 94940

We are located 10.2 miles north of Pt. Reyes Station on Hwy One. Look for us on the left-hand side.

HAVE FUN AND EAT LOTS OF OYSTERS!

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