One of the unfortunate casualties of the pandemic was the closure of Erizo, a multicourse chef’s menu restaurant in Portland offering sustainable seafood that was local to the Oregon Coast(sometimes caught by the chefs, usually purchased direct from the fishermen) and that included highlighting bycatch and invasive species. The space was small with only ~20 seats, and included close service in telling the stories of the sea. I did get to dine there one time before the restaurant that made the 2019 Eater The 16 Best New Restaurants in America closed. Good news though, as Jacob Harth and his team have taken up the mantle from Olympia Oyster Bar to pop up as a seafood shack at Nevør Shellfish Farm in Netarts in 2020 and continuing this year on Fridays-Sundays 12-5 pm with a “Parking Lot Soup” menu. During my super low-tide getaway, I made sure to stop at the Nevør Shellfish Farms Seafood Shack, and here’s a look!
The menu is everchanging based on what is available and fresh every weekend, though some themes – raw on the half shell, oysters bbq’d over fire, oyster skewers, seafood on thick bread varying from sardine to eel to if you’re lucky uni, soup, a crudo, a ceviche. Nothing except seafood, and currently no beverages so bring your own libations. They have a handful of picnic tables, as well as some benches and barrels for stand-up quick dining if you want to dine al fresco here in the air of Netarts Bay instead of the car. A port a potty is available, but no regular washroom or running water, so you might consider some wetnaps too. Some parking is available in their lot, or pull over alongside Netarts Bay road.
As a solo dining visitor here I opted to try multiple cooked dishes as I wasn’t confident I could eat a whole dozen half-shell and have other dishes on my own too. If you are more then one person, definitely order some oysters though because you can’t get much fresher then literally right here at the Nevør Shellfish Farms. It was a hot summer day, so I passed on the crawfish bisque and clam chowder, though I definitely had FOMO as I saw others dipping a side of bread into theirs. No barnacles, sea urchin, or whole crab on my visit, though if you see those, don’t hesitate. I started with the octopus skewer while it was still warm, tender but also firm like a steak. Grilled octopus is the best way to have octopus, and I found myself taking small bites to savor and appreciate it.
Next the sardine toast. This is a butterflied and deboned sardine, with highlight of citrusy yuzu and chili over homemade butter and Ken’s Artisan Bakery classic bread. Pairing this with a beer is your best bet as it does have a salty backbone. Your fingers are only going to get messier from here by the way – I ate some of the sardine without the bread, which I used to sop of some of the sauces of my other items…
The barbeque oysters trio during my visit were with nduja. Not ashamed that each shell was completely clean when done.
For the finger licking finale, the spot prawns… I mean, just look at this.
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