# Raw Oysters 101

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/raw-oysters-101/340856>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [January 20, 2006, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/raw-oysters-101/340856 "2006-01-20T18:28:12Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![flight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbce88/32.png) [@flight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flight)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/raw-oysters-101/340856/41 "2006-01-23T15:41:05Z")

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> [@John Mace](#):
>
> Come to think of it, maybe I do take one bite and then let it slide. But you don’t chew it to pulp-- it’s like a shot of good booze. You pretty much want to do it all at once.

That’s how I would drink bad booze, not good. Good rests in the mouth for a moment and is taken in small amounts while band goes down in a quick shot. Of course, I still agree with you on how to eat an oyster.

> [@AskNott](#):
>
> I was a kid when I tried oysters for the first and last time. To my young mouth, the texture was all wrong, like a garden slug or something. Then, when I chewed, the sound it made was like I was killing it, right there in my mouth.

You probably were.

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**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/raw-oysters-101/340856/42 "2006-01-23T16:31:06Z")

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Umm… you don’t put lemon on oyster. Unless you like the taste, of course. The lemon slice is there for you to test if the oyster is still alive and therefore good to eat. You touch the lemon slice to the oyster and if the oyster shrinks back then it’s alive and good to eat.

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**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/raw-oysters-101/340856/43 "2006-01-23T18:41:09Z")

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> [@Quartz](#):
>
> Umm… you don’t put lemon on oyster. Unless you like the taste, of course. The lemon slice is there for you to test if the oyster is still alive and therefore good to eat. You touch the lemon slice to the oyster and if the oyster shrinks back then it’s alive and good to eat.

I have to ask about this, too.  
Except for **Bertie Wooster** , whose location is the same as mine, I’m wondering where most of you live - I see lots of West Coast locations.

I rarely see lemon served with oysters, and we get them a lot. I even question the ‘touching it’ bit, because if the shell is clamped shut when you get it, and it has to be pryed open, then it’s fresh - the oyster is still alive.  
As a matter of fact, we’re going to a Bull & Oyster Roast this Friday, and I bet I won’t see any lemon anywhere, other than the iced tea.  
We’ll go outside where the shuckers are, and we’ll stand in line for a bit. When we get to the front, the guy is there shucking them on the spot. You get about 4 or 5 on your plate, and can spoon up some horseradish or cocktail sauce if you want. That’s it. No lemons.

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