‘Friends of Our Fish’: Downtown restaurant uses influence to highlight local seafood industry

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – A popular Charleston restaurant and one of its oyster suppliers partnered recently to educate visitors on the Lowcountry’s oyster ecosystem and how they make it to the plate.

Fleet Landing, situated on Concord Street with views of Charleston Harbor, has launched a new pop-up series called ‘Friends of our Fish.’ In this series, Fleet Landing highlights a partner purveyor by bringing them in to teach patrons about their product.

The first purveyor featured in the series was wild oyster harvester Andrew Jones, who founded Bird Island Oyster Co. in October 2023.

News 2 sat down with Jones and Fleet Landing Raw Bar Manager Lucas Hanagriff to discuss the series and all things oysters.

Hanagriff explained that the pop-up was a dream that the restaurant was able to bring to life.

“We really want the people that are at our tables to get the chance to meet where their food is coming from,” Hanagriff said. “We get a chance to talk to them, but we are kind of the middle man, so it was a dream to bridge that gap where people could get to meet and talk to and ask their own questions.”

Jones is one of two wild harvesters Fleet Landing works with, in addition to oyster farmers. His family-run company provides Fleet Landing with roughly 1,600 to 2,000 Bird Island oysters weekly.

“So, kind of our whole business model was to get fresh oysters within 24 hours to downtown Charleston and be a familiar face. I harvest them, I come down and deliver them. I show my face at these restaurants. We eat all the time, we do events, and we say no to nothing. It’s very important to bring the community in,” Jones said.

During the event, Jones and Hanagriff talked to customers about harvesting, served special deals, and dispelled a popular myth about oysters.

“The wise tale is that you can only eat oysters in the months that end with r, and that is a good rule of thumb because the bacteria is certainly higher in the summer because it’s much warmer,” Jones said.

Even though this is the case, Jones explained that oysters are also relatively safe in the summer, which is why you can eat caged oysters during that time.

According to Jones, the reason wild harvesting stops during the summer season is not to avoid illness but to allow for a reproduction period.

There are a few differences between wild oysters and farmed oysters, like wild oyster shapes being less uniform, farmed oysters being raised from spat in a controlled environment, and farmed oysters not reproducing.

“The main difference is that caged oyster doesn’t produce gonad. They are not reproducing their triploids, so they are only focused on eating and growing,” Jones said. “Wild oysters they spend all summer reproducing, so that oysters fills up with gonads and the oyster gets very creamy and the muscle gets very watery and translucent because the oyster stops eating.”

When it comes to taste, Jones thinks there is a difference as well.  “They spend three or four years growing, getting legal-sized and market-ready, and that’s three or four years in the pluff mud soaking up all that sweetgrass water and algae.”

The oyster’s growth period in the mud accounts for the marshy finish of a wild Bird’s Island oyster.

As for why it’s important to eat locally, both Jones and Hanagriff said there are different reasons why Lowcountry oysters are special.

Jones explained that by the time out-of-state oysters are delivered and served, they have been out of the water for several days, compared to local ones that are freshly harvested.

“You can’t beat the freshness of knowing what you’re eating was swimming twelve hours ago,” Jones said.

“One of the cool parts of our local wild oysters is they’re very thin-shelled, so you don’t see them shipped outside of this area very often,” Hanagriff added. “So, it is an oyster that you kind of have to come to the Lowcountry to enjoy.”

When it comes to enjoying oysters, there are traditional ways like raw, broiled, or baked, but have you ever tried a dessert oyster? Well, at Fleet Landing, you can.

It all started when Hanagriff was left alone next to a box of Girl Scout cookies.

“I was left unattended and in reach of some certain chocolate and mint cookies, which led to ‘well, let’s play with one of these cookies on a dessert oyster,” Hanagriff explained. “Down the road, I started thinking about s’mores and an oyster because, to me, I thought s’mores but salty.”

From there, the S’moyster was born. It consists of shaved milk chocolate, graham crackers, and homemade fluff with honey.

To take it a step further, Hanagriff brulees the marshmallow in front of guests, which creates an appealing scent and unique visual.

“We torch this all right in front of the guests, which produces a smell that just brings them back to their favorite fireside snack,” Hanagriff said. “It is different…but it works really well.”

The team at Fleet Landing expects to hold the pop-up series quarterly, with the next one happening later in the summer.

“We will be working with other local fishermen, oystermen, and watermen to bring them into the restaurant so that the people enjoying their food can meet where their food is coming from,” Hanagriff said.