North Carolina Seafood and Shellfish

Eat fresh, local seafood and oysters from North Carolina!

NC Oysters | Find Oysters Near You | Get to Know Your Oyster Farmer | Recipes and Restaurants | Resources

NC Oysters

North Carolina has earned national prominence for its exceptional oysters. Our oysters carry distinct flavors, reflecting our diverse waters — saltier oysters are harvested near ocean inlets, and less salty ones are harvested closer to rivers.

Like wine, oysters can have complex flavor profiles. They might first taste salty, then sweet, and end with a floral or fruity finish. That makes oysters excellent for eating steamed, broiled, char-grilled, fried, baked, in stews or on the half-shell.

Rowan Jacobson, author of A Geography of Oysters and The Essential Oyster, even describes our waters as the Napa Valley of Oysters.

Thanks to a thriving shellfish aquaculture community, North Carolina oysters can be found in markets year-round.

But, in coastal fishing communities, they are especially celebrated during winter holidays.

Oyster Recipes

Check-in with North Carolina Sea Grant for more information on this increasingly sustainable seafood tradition.

Find Oysters Near You

The North Carolina Oyster Trail includes growers, markets, restaurants, and processors, along with community businesses and organizations that celebrate oysters. You can view the map to the right as well as a map created by the council.

By buying local, you are supporting North Carolina oyster growers and boosting local economies.

Ask for them at your local seafood market or visit:

Got to be NC website

Visit NC Farms website

#Thankful4Oysters

At the North Carolina Local Food Council, we are #thankful4oysters and all the seafood producers on the coast who cultivate and harvest North Carolina’s finest seafood every day!

Get to Know Your

Oyster Farmer

Chris Matteo of Chadwick Creek Oysters and Siren’s Cove Shellfish

Recipes

Main Dishes

Yummy and filling oyster-based entrees to serve over the holidays:

Sides

In need of some dressing on your dinner table? Whether or not you have a holiday bird, serve these dressings that you bake separately on the side with a nice warm stew too!