Meet the King Caesar, the Biggest Oyster We’ve Ever Eaten

Rachel Tepper Paley
·Editor
Updated
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Photo credit: inahalfshellblog/Instagram

It’s not every day that a four-inch oyster appears on your plate, but that happened to us at last week’s Brooklyn Oyster Riot in New York City. Its name: King Caesar. Its producer: Duxbury Bay Shellfish. Its crazy factor: Market size is three inches and the popular Kumamoto oyster clocks in around two inches.

So King Caesars are knife-and-fork oysters, if you will. 

"The XLs are more for real oyster lovers," Duxbury Bay Shellfish founder Paul Hagan told us. Its flavor is more intense than that of a market-sized Duxbury Bay oyster, which is briny up front with a buttery and sweet finish. ”It’s more powerful [in flavor]. You’re getting more more brine, and that’s what it all boils back down to: It’s just more oyster.”

Though the moniker “King Caesar” refers to Duxbury Bay Shellfish oysters three inches long and up, Hagan said the XLs that are generating the most buzz. Of the 600 mollusks Hagan and his team shucked at the Oyster Riot, half were XLs—and they nearly couldn’t keep up with demand. “I couldn’t keep them on the ice at that event!”

Among the massive oyster’s new fans are chef Hugue Dufour of modern steakhouse M. Wells in New York City. ”He was like, ‘I need these and I need them yesterday,’” Hagan said.

But if you think four inches is impressive, consider the eight-inch monstrosities Hagan reserves for his friends. “We don’t really sell those, they’re more of a novelty,” he said. “It’s kind of hard to eat an eight-inch oyster on the half shell!” (Or a 14-inch one, we imagine.)

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Photo credit: duxburybayshellfish/Instagram

Duxbury Bay Shellfish’s focus on larger oysters is uncommon, especially at a time when petite varieties such as Kumamoto and Kusshi are growing in popularity.

"I feel like that market is kind of flooded," Hagan said, in part because smaller oysters require a shorter growing period before heading to market. Larger oysters require more tending and a tolerance, on the grower’s part, for delayed financial gratification. "No one is going to the other side of the spectrum, but we’re willing to make that sacrifice."

If you’re not scared off by the size, order some XLs on Duxbury Bay Shellfish’s website. That’s one way to prove you’re a real oyster lover.