To those who don't know Oyster Seed Holdings, Inc (OSH for short) well, let's get started with some background to show how we got here:
We have been operating an oyster hatchery on Gwynn’s Island for 15 years and during that time have produced billions (yes, billions) of oysters that were born here in Mathews at our hatchery and grown up on oyster farms all over the Atlantic coast.
In fact, between OSH and the Gloucester-based Ward Oyster Co. hatchery in Bohannon, we estimate Mathews County produces about 1/5 of the hatchery reared oysters on the east coast of the US! That is a big impact from a small county and something we think is worth celebrating.
Enter “The Hatchery” - a food truck powered waterside oyster eatery.
Follow us on Instagram @thehatcheryculture and Facebook: The Hatchery Culture
So, how did a wholesale hatchery end up with a food truck eatery you ask? Well, last year OSH embarked on an effort to spread the word about shellfish aquaculture by opening up our hatchery to tours every other Friday through the summer. Our intent was to introduce the community to what we do, and eat some damn good oysters while doing it…. We continue to do that and invite you to check them out: www.oshoyster.com/tours
The tours help us to highlight many of the great things about shellfish aquaculture including the fact that oysters clean the water by reducing sediment and nutrient levels, provide habitat for other species in the bay including some commercially important ones (like blue crabs and striper), sequester carbon, stabilize shoreline, the list goes on.
Not to mention, shellfish are one of the few farm-raised proteins that have a net-positive impact (meaning more good than harm) on their environment! We have taken it upon ourselves to spread the word about these great attributes, be advocates for our customers and our industry, and build community around shellfish aquaculture.
The Hatchery Food Truck
Hatchery tours will still be happening every other Friday, but we are upping our oyster serving game with our food trailer to serve an eclectic menu of oyster centric dishes and some of the freshest raw and roasted oysters you will find.
The oysters we serve were all born right here on Gwynn’s Island, shipped out to farms for grow-out, then brought back to serve on our menu at The Hatchery. Every two weeks we will feature oysters from a different farm.
The Hatchery food truck will be open Friday 5pm-9pm and Sat & Sunday 4-8, June - Fall. We currently have limited tables and parking so seating will be first come first serve. You can find all the details on what to expect at our website: www.thehatcheryculture.com
Thanks for reading and we look forward to sharing some waterside oysters with you!