It all started with a normal weekday where my husband and I went to King of Wings in Golden, Colorado, and saw a flyer for an upcoming oyster pop-up (Side note: I’d never considered myself a wing person until going to this place. Now, I’m in love with their wings!)
The bartender raved about Oyster Bae, saying how yummy and fun these pop-ups were, though she did warn us they get quite full, so we should arrive early.
If you know anything about me is that I love oysters, so this was a no-brainer.
We showed up as close to 5 p.m. as we could, not realizing there would already be a line and that a lot of seats would be taken. I was excited and thrilled…clearly, I hadn’t been the first, or anywhere close to first, to learn about Oyster Bae pop-ups, but to me, it felt like a best-kept secret, something you had to be "in the know" about.
Sometimes, with social media and ads everywhere, it’s hard, at least for me, to be surprised by finding something in a word-of-mouth kind of way.
It was finally my turn and I got a little bit of everything. So oysters, oysters, oysters and some snow crabs claws. I am raw oyster gal but her chargrilled oysters with the Crying Tiger Butter are a game changer. Enough spice and acidity to transport me to all the yummy places I dream about. Needless to say I was hooked.
I immediately followed Martha Boff (@oysterbaeofficial) on Instagram and successfully manage to be busy or unavailable during all her following pop-ups. I was bummed, but tried to live vicariously through social media and ordered oysters anywhere I could to keep up with my oyster obsession.
Then, to my surprise, she announced an upcoming pop-up at King of Wings, and I was delighted to see I would finally be available! So on Monday, February 18th, we showed up early and it was no shocker to see we weren’t the first ones there. An air of excitement and adrenaline could be felt. I was like we were all waiting to rush the field at a football game or how Monica from Friends probably felt when she was shopping for wedding dresses during that big sale.
We were all waiting for the clock to strike 5:00pm and for Martha to turn the lamp next to her desk, which would indicate to us that service was open. And then she did, and the show started.
We got a little bit of this and a little bit of that, and just like last time, I had a blast enjoying all the oysters and flavors brought by Oyster Bae and her team.
There’s a simplicity, mystery, and complexity that I find in oysters. What accoutrements will I get? How briny are the oysters? Are they dressed, and if so, with what? Are they baked, grilled, raw, or fried? But most importantly, who am I sharing them these oysters with?
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