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[title]Since beginning his career at age 15 with an apprenticeship at North End restaurant Marcuccio’s, Chef Will Gilson has gone on to have a dazzling culinary career with consistently strong ties to Boston. Throughout his various ventures, he’s maintained a passionate commitment to fresh, local ingredients prepared with innovative approaches.
Building off of his success with opening the Herb Lyceum at his family farm and Puritan & Company in Cambridge, Gilson debuted the forward thinking seafood-focused Puritan Oyster Bar in February.
We recently spoke with the chef and partner of the new raw bar hotspot about the tradition of New England seafood, upending flavor expectations and the absolute best way to order oysters.
What differentiates Puritan Oyster Bar from your other restaurants?
I'd say that most of our other restaurants tend to be focused on produce as the locality and the seasonality of what we’re working with. But in this case, we're trying to focus on the locality and the seasonality of seafood, specifically. The only thing that is on the menu that does not feature seafood is one salad and a burger. Everything else on the menu for Puritan Oyster Bar is focused around seafood.
New England is so well known for its seafood. When you're putting together a restaurant like this, how do you set it apart?
We actually tried to have some of the menu be almost not-so-rooted in New England. We wanted it to also focus on some really beautiful presentations of raw seafood with some Asian and Middle Eastern flavors. We tried to find ways that we could touch other parts of the world with some of the flavors that we were putting forward.
Do you feel like you’re playing on people's expectations of a classic oyster bar with this concept?
Yeah, I mean, I think if you want a classic oyster bar, we've got plenty of them in Massachusetts and New England. We wanted ours to be a little different. We’ve tried to find ways where the flavors that guests get to try are unexpected but they still try them and go: "That makes sense, and now I get it."
Do you have a unique approach when it comes to wine and cocktail pairings at the oyster bar?
Our beverage pairing is classic in the sense that there are a lot of bright, crisp rosés and whites as far as the wines go. However, we really went in more of a cocktail-focused direction. We have a 50/50 martini that we keep in the freezer. It's 50-percent vermouth, 50-percent gin, and it's very cold. We serve the garnishes out of hand-painted découpage oyster shells that my aunt makes down on the cape. It's a fun way that's different from a classic martini service. We’ve also done cocktails where the flavor profiles match that of a mignonette that’s served with oysters. We’re thinking of ways that we can incorporate some of the nature of seafood and its characteristics, especially when it comes to oysters, into the cocktail program itself.
What are a few things everyone should keep in mind when ordering oysters?
I like to try two of every single oyster on offer. I think most places offer about six to eight varieties. I think getting two of each lets you try one naked on its own, so you really get to try the location that it comes from and taste the waters. After that, you have one where you get to apply whatever condiments you want to it. For me, I like one with just a squeeze of lemon on top and then one with a good amount of horseradish on top. Also, I think oysters are great year-round, but they're always best in the fall. Any month that ends in “ber:” September, October, November, December, that's really when the best oysters are coming out. It’s because the waters have cooled down a little bit and you really get to taste the brininess and the salinity coming out of the respective places where they're spawned.
Do you have any tips for at-home chefs on how to source the best seafood?
We’re starting to see a huge decrease in independent fishmongers and people you can talk to and ask real questions. It’s always best to talk to someone who knows what’s best, what’s in season and what’s good to try. If you can still find a local fishmonger that you can connect with, I think that’s always the best way. In absence of that, I think the best thing you can do is ask someone behind the counter when the fish you’re purchasing has arrived so that you know you’re getting the freshest product.
Do you have a favorite seafood or raw bar dish?
My absolute favorite is a scallop crudo. If you get a beautiful, fresh, plump, firm sea scallop and you slice it really thinly and serve it with a little bit of acid, a little bit of fat and a little bit of salt, there’s really nothing better than that.
How did you settle on the dessert offerings at Puritan Oyster Bar?
Our pastry chef Rachel Dykes also runs the pastry program over at Puritan & Company. When we were doing the bar, we wanted things that were going to be light and simple. Our staple is our oatmeal cream pie cookie which we serve every night. They’re about twice the size of the ones you may remember getting when you were a kid in your lunch box. Those are from a company called Little Debbie, so we call ours Big Deborahs.
What do you think takes a cold bar offering from good to great?
I think if you’re just looking to pop into a place for oysters, that’s great, but if you’re really looking to experience a raw bar, you want to try all the different things that they put together in a seafood tower. Obviously, there’s a shrimp cocktail which people either like or love, but I think it’s the other things you put in there like ceviches and dressed lobster salads that can be a star. Also, anything you can put in there that’s been marinated, like a tinned fish, that can also make a seafood tower shine.
What would you like to develop more in the future at Puritan Oyster Bar?
We did a pop-up dinner in the space with one of the most talented sushi chefs in Boston and the dinner sold out in a week. Everyone was really excited to come and try our New England style approach to seafood blended with his sashimis and sushi bar style. I think that moving forward, finding more ways to incorporate that into the space—new ways that we can have people trying very beautiful, very fresh raw fish.