We might be biased, but our oysters are better than yours.
The Eyre Peninsula has some of the cleanest, most pristine waters in the world – check out the photos if you haven’t seen it for yourself. And we have some of the best seafood: prawns, abalone, tuna, King George whiting, snapper, mussels, octopus, squid and more.
But one thing we are particularly known for (as well as tuna, of course) is oysters.
Pacific Oysters, to be exact. Coffin Bay, Smoky Bay, Cowell, Streaky Bay, Denial Bay… we have a lot of choice, and they’re all delicious.
And sometimes you need to lose something to realise how good it was – absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that. As a teenager I didn’t rate oysters at all, though the rest of my family loved them.
I finally started eating them in my early twenties (my first one was straight from the water on an oyster boat in Smoky Bay), and discovered that hey, they’re not so bad!
Then I promptly went overseas to Canada, and while I enjoyed their product nothing beats what we grow right here in our own backyard.
You’ll find Eyre Peninsula oysters in restaurants further afield than our little corner of the world, of course, and particularly the Coffin Bay oysters. But nothing beats a fresh oyster straight from the ocean.
And there are plenty of options to taste them, and our delicious seafood, when you’re visiting.
You could take your own oyster-themed roadtrip, beginning in Cowell and heading up the west coast to Ceduna – calling in on all the stops along the way, obviously.
There’s plenty of fishing along the road, and if you’re visiting from Adelaide you can head home via the Eyre Highway (inland) and see some spectacular outback landscapes in the Gawler Ranges.
Or if time isn’t on your side, you can stop in at Coffin Bay and take an oyster tour instead. You might have seen these experiences on social media before!
Pure Coffin Bay Oysters offer farm and shed tours – and you can do one or the other, or both. Enjoy fresh oysters on the boat as you cruise the waters of Coffin Bay, or visit the adorably named ‘Shellar Door’ to learn more about the industry. You can buy fresh oysters at the end of the tour too.
For those of you not so keen on the boat, you can walk out into the water and enjoy a glass of wine and an oyster tasting with Oyster Farm Tours. With plenty of options depending on what you want to do, you can enjoy a plate of fresh local seafood along with your oysters and wine or simply take the standard tour. It’s up to you!
However you want to do it, visiting the Eyre Peninsula and tasting our local produce is a must-do for those oyster lovers out there. And there’s so much to do besides, you’ll find something for everyone.