One of my bucket list items was to visit the Union Oyster House (link) in downtown Boston. While it's well known for it's New England seafood dishes, I was more interested in the history of the establishment. Tell you more? But, of course!
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Ye Olde Union Oyster House est. 1826
There is a lot of history in Boston. So much so that it would be near impossible to explore it all in the 6 short days that we were in town. To help save time and eliminate the hassle of parking in a city we chose to say at the Hilton Boston Downtown Faneuil Hall hotel (link). We chose this hotel because it was walking distance to most things we wanted to do, including the ye olde Union Oyster house.
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Let's start with the Union Oyster House's first claim to fame. This restaurant dates back to 1826 making it the United State's oldest continuously operating restaurant. Impressive? That's nothing! The building itself dates back to 1704. It was the home of the newspaper The Massachusetts Spy before being converted into a restaurant in 1826.
The Union Oyster House was frequently visited by the Kennedy family. In fact, their regular table still has a sign hung above it labeling the space as such. There is a dedication to JFK himself inside of the booth where it's claimed that this was his favorite table. A nearby sign and picture is hung on the wall dedicated to Rose Carey, the first female waitress in the restaurant and ALL of Boston. Finally, there is a dedication to the most surprising notable person of history to frequent the establishment. A sign and bust of Louis Philippe, the King of France from 1830-1848, is also proudly hung on the wall. The King was exiled from France and lived on the second floor of this restaurant for years where he made money teaching American women French. Ladies and gentlemen, THIS is why I wanted to go there.
The Union Oyster House looks like it used to be a home. There are ancient fireplaces, homey windows with curtains, and lots of dark wood furniture. Despite the homey vibes, the restaurant had terrible lighting. The dim lights weren't romantic. They were just dark. Where they lacked in light, they made up for with signs, pictures, and artifacts.
After we ordered our food which regrettably didn't include oysters because my husband wouldn't eat them, I left my family at the table to explore. I read every sign on the wall and studied every picture. A few minutes in, a waiter caught me snooping and offered to take me into the attic where they have a museum like set up. I pushed my stranger danger to the side, and went up. I'm so glad that I did because there was so much to see! There was historical paintings, an original piece of the Freedom Trail, collages of artifacts organized by century dating back to 1700, and a stuffed 44 pound lobster carcass!
You probably want to hear about the food now. Well, it was nothing special. Although, did I mention that we didn't get the oysters!? SMH.. The menu was full of regular New England dishes. I had a warm lobster roll with a side of Boston baked beans. It was OK, but not even close to the best I had in the city. My husband ordered some sort of smorgasbord of fried fish that he also said was average. But, the kids were all smiles as they ate their chicken fingers!
The service was great. Everyone was kind, especially the waiter that let me step into the past on a whim. The highlight of the night was the lovely, older couple that went out of their way to tell me how fabulously well behaved my children were. Their compliments to our parenting was the icing on the cake of an already great night!
- R&W
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