This is my senior year at Emmanuel (wow, time flies), and Boston has yet to cease to amaze me. In a city with such personality and history, it’s easy to fall in love with a new piece of it each time you venture out of EC’s gates. This month, my family and I celebrated my brother’s nineteenth birthday. For his birthday meal he chose to dine at the Union Oyster House, right on Union Street about a block away from Faneuil Hall. While I expected a delicious meal, I didn’t anticipate to learn as much as I did!
For starters, the Union Oyster House is the oldest restaurant in America that is in continuous service. Here’s a little history lesson: Boston was declared the capital of the Massachusetts Bay Company colony by John Winthrop in 1630. In 1636, Union Street was laid out. While the exact date as to when the building the Union Oyster House now occupies was constructed is unknown, it is known that the building has existed on Union Street as a major landmark for more than 250 years.
The building also exchanged hands of quite a few occupants! It first began as “At the Sign of Cornfields” in 1742, which housed importer Hopestill Capen’s dress goods business. In 1771, Isaiah Thomas published his political newspaper “The Massachusetts Spy”, in the upper floor of the building. The building graduated in 1775 to becoming the headquarters for Ebenezer Hancock, the first paymaster of the Continental Army, where he paid Federal troops their war wages. Not too long later in 1796, future king of France, Louis Phillippe lived on the second floor while he was exiled and made his living by teaching French to Boston’s upscale young ladies. The 1800s brought along a craze for oysters, and that’s when Capen’s Dry Goods Store ended and Atwood & Bacon Oyster House officially opened in 1826. Since then, the restaurant has been serving hungry customers, some of whom are quite famous. Take a look at this “Legends of the Union Oyster House” mural to see if you can spot some familiar famous faces!
It is said that Daniel Webster, seasoned politician, enjoyed a brandy with each half-dozen oysters he ate at the Oyster Bar. The Kennedy family also frequented the Union Oyster House so much, in fact, that John F. Kennedy’s favored booth in the upstairs dining area has been dedicated as “The Kennedy Booth” in his memory.
Here’s a fun fact: the Union Oyster House was the first establishment in America to use toothpicks! Enterpriser Charles Forster imported them from South America and hired some Harvard boys to ask for toothpicks while dining at the Union Oyster House.
It is apparent that the restaurant takes great pride in its historic relevance and its gained fame. Throughout the restaurant, there are plaques similar to the one below with clippings from various forms of media that showcase its famous oysters, credit its success, or feature some of its celebrity customers.
The Union Oyster House was officially designated (a double designation, in fact) as a National Historic Landmark in 2003. It is the oldest continually operating restaurant in the United States, as well as the earliest standing brick building in Boston’s Georgian architecture.
If the history hasn’t sparked your intrigue, perhaps my review on my meal will. I’m a huge fan of seafood, and it only seemed fitting to order fish at a restaurant famed for its quality of seafood. I ordered the Seafood Newburg, featured below. It consisted of lobster meat, shrimp, and scallops in a rich creamy sauce with a pastry and served with rice. I’m someone who usually always takes leftovers home, but I finished every bite of this delicious dish!
While I’m not the biggest fan of oysters, my dad and brother enjoy them and they split a half-dozen. They didn’t choose to do it Daniel Webster style and skipped out on the tall tumbler of brandy to wash down the oysters, but they were impressed with them nonetheless. My brother also ordered the clam chowder, a true New England staple. I stole a few bites and was wishing I had ordered my own!
For the big finale, the Union Oyster House staff sang “Happy Birthday” and presented a piece of Boston cream pie (another Boston classic!) for my brother. He was kind enough to share it with me, and while we were stuffed from our delicious meals, it was worth every bite.
This restaurant is right on the Freedom Trail and close to Faneuil Hall, so it’s incredibly easy to get to if you, like most college students living in Boston, navigate the city via the MBTA. If you’re ever out exploring in the area, I highly recommend stopping in for even just a cup of chowdah – it’s wicked good.
Happy exploring, Boston! HCXO