Slightly off the beaten track

     The tidewater town of Urbanna, Virginia has been described as being "slightly off the beaten track."  The 2010 census recorded only 476 residents within the half mile town limits.  That means there are more boats than folks there.  

     But for two days each year between 50-75,000 people congregate in "The City of Anne" to enjoy live music, arts & crafts, parades and of course to slurp up oysters and various other kinds of seafood at Virginia's official oyster festival.  For 57 years during the first weekend in November the town's main street is closed to vehicular traffic and local businesses and civic organizations host the Urbanna Oyster Festival.

 

     It's all about the bivalve: raw on the half shell, roasted, fried, in chowder and stew, in sandwiches and in fritters.  When I arrived Friday morning just before 10am there was already a crowd.  So I did my best to sample a little of everything and downed 22 oysters by mid-afternoon, not counting the ones swimming in the chowder.  But perhaps the most interesting representation of Virginia's culinary display was in something they call the H.O.B.  That's an acronym for 3 of their finest ingredients: Ham, Oysters, & Biscuits.  Salty, sweet and savory all at the same time.  It's something only a town slightly off the beaten track could create!