A Fortuitous Happenstance

     Quite by chance I came to enjoy a meal that I hadn't expected.  Taking the ferry to Orcas Island  I was looking forward to lunch at Cafe Olga, highly recommended by several locals.  But I was greeted there by crime scene tape cordoning off the parking lot.  Apparently the place had been torched just a few days earlier.

     So I drove on to the Buck Bay Shellfish Farm hoping to learn about their family owned operation.  From all that I had researched I understood that they were a market only industry, selling oysters, clams and crabs to both commercial and individual customers.  But I was eager to learn about their business, so I stopped by and was warmly greeted by the person in charge.  She told me how they cultured their product and harvested them at low tide in the bay just on the other side of the road.

 

     Then quite unexpectedly she asked if I would like to sample some of their product.  I must admit that I am not a fan of raw oysters, but was willing to give it a try since they were only $1 a piece.  She agreed to shuck the first one for me to show me how and that I would be responsible to take on the rest by myself. 

 

     For the next hour I dined at a picnic table by their driveway with the lid of a plastic bucket as my serving tray and had a wonderful meal.  The Pacific oysters were cold and sweet and went down easily with a squeeze of lime.  After the first half dozen were gone I was offered more, to which I glady agreed.  It was the highlight of my day!