Thursday night, I met Liz, Laura and Rachel at The Standard Grill in The Standard Hotel for dinner. Tragically, I had been force-fed at a meeting just prior, but I did manage to polish off a few oysters nevertheless. I plan to return soon to try out the charcuterie sampler, which looked unbelievable, and the burger, which I’ve heard is fantastic. 

I only started eating oysters fairly recently, and although I absolutely love them, I’m still squeamish enough that I always request the smallest ones available (in this case, the Fanny Bays were recommended). To me, size is more important than taste, because I have yet to find an oyster that I didn’t like the taste of, but I can’t really handle the concept of chewing on enormous, slithery ones.

You may have heard that oysters are considered an aphrodisiac: this idea stems from Greek mythology, as Aphrodite (=aphrodisiac), the goddess of Love, sprang from the ocean in an oyster shell. You also may have heard that you should only eat oysters in months that end with an “r”. This is not true - the rule dates back to a time when refrigeration techniques were less advanced, so it was best to eat oysters during the colder months. 

In my opinion, oysters are best served on crushed ice, with just a little fresh-squeezed lemon juice and a touch of shallot-vinegar sauce (called mignonette sauce). Oysters are also lovely fried: 44 1/2 has a fried oyster appetizer that I order frequently.