On Wednesday I got a call from my BF at 10:30a. He - having just finished a round of golf in Westchester - wanted to meet for an oyster lunch when his train arrived at Grand Central. Me - having only woken up about 30 seconds prior to receiving the call - was happy to join him at the Oyster Bar at Grand Central but was a little peeved to think that I could be covering some place new for a post instead of revisiting a familiar locale. Oh well.
I decided to skip oysters so I could branch out and try something else on the menu. Once I saw lobster gazpacho on the menu I knew I had to have it, a perfectly cool relief from the warm weather outside. But then, sitting in front of a huge menu of oysters I realized I was kidding myself if I didn't have at least one oyster off my BF's plate...But since oysters are like Pringles, I went ahead and ordered half a dozen of my own because just one wasn't gonna cut it. Normally I mix up my orders with something from the east coast as well as the west. This time, I picked two west coast options both of which were from Washington - Dabob and Olympic Miyagi.
Back to the food. First, the gazpacho. Served in a large soup bowl it had about 2 ounces of lobster meat but, since the menu price was $7.95, I expected as much. The soup was sufficiently spicy but other than tasting like spicy tomato soup it really didn't have much flavor and was undersalted. No depth. I definitely think they could do much more to make this dish really pop. How about so fresh diced cilantro and a squirt of lemon juice on top just before it's served? Maybe add carmelized onions to contrast with the heat of the broth? Just some thoughts.
Next up, my oysters (and a taste of my BF's oysters). I tasted my BF's oysters much to his dismay - all in the interest of this blog, of course - one each of his selection of Mystic River and Blue Diamond (from Rhode Island). Both were more creamy tasting than usual for east coast oysters but they still had a touch of the taste of the sea. Both of the Washington varieties I had ordered were actually very very salty tasting, much more so than any other oyster I've tasted from the west coast. When I say that the Miyagis embody the literal taste and smell of the Pacific, I'm not kidding. The first one I swallowed triggered a flood of flashbacks for me, remembering growing up swimming in the Pacific Ocean. I used to swim out past the surfers to avoid getting swept up in the swells, and I could almost see surfers when I swallowed the next oyster. When I tried the Dabob's they were similar in taste (either that or my palate isn't sophisticated enough to tell the minute differences).
I have to say that for the first time in eating oysters I actually liked the east coast selection served to our table much more so than the west coast. I tend to gravitate towards the more creamy tasting options of the west coast than the more salty tasting east coast varieties so I guess this is exactly why - despite the lovely childhood swimming memories - I think I preferred the Mystic River and Blue Diamond varieties this time around.
Grand Central Oyster Bar & Restaurant
Grand Central Terminal
89 East 42nd Street
(212) 490-6650
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