Sunny Autumn Day at the very blue Bay Center

I took my dog, Jake, for a thorough and long walk yesterday, going a little further than we usually walk. It was a crisp, sunny, Autumn day and perfect for getting out of the house after the wind and rain storms of the week before. My mother had sent some of her digital photos of Autumn colors where she lives and I had thought I might take some photos to show off Autumn where I live. Well, I didn’t find much color, found a lot of blue, but some great photos anyway. Sharing a few here.

full size click here - processing building Palix River, on Bay Center Dike Road

full size click here - Fishing boat on Palix River, Bay Center Dike Road

full size click here - processing building on pier posts, Palix River on Bay Center Dike Road

full size click here - private ramp and dock on Palix River, Bay Center Dike Road

full size click here - private dock for fishing boats, Palix River, Bay Center Dike Road

full size click here - Dock of the Bay tavern and restaraunt Bay Center, WA

full size click here - old historic Pioneer Cemetary, Bay Center, WA

full size click here - historic former owners of our house; Bochau marker at Pioneer Cemetary, Bay Center, WA

full size click here - View of the Palix River and Bay Center Port from old historic Pioneer Cemetary

full size click here - Oyster shell holding area - oyster shells galore

Chester Tavern in South Bend featured in New York Times Restaraunt Review

Who knew?  Right here in my own neighborhood!  South Bend is the town just up the road from our little Bay Center hamlet.   Wish we liked to eat oysters, but neither of us do so living in what is named as South Bend - the ‘Oyster Capital of the World’ isn’t quite the draw for us.  The region, the geography, the people, living off the I-5 corridor or as one of the local people calls the area - ‘God’s Valium’.  One apt name, there are others that try to describe this pristine wilderness paradise gem in Pacific County.

article; New York Times; South Bend, Wash:;  Chester Tavern, Sept 30,  2007

…….

Not so at the Chester Tavern. In this unprepossessing bar in South Bend (1005 West Robert Bush Drive, 360-875-5599), on Willapa Bay near the Washington coast, oysters are deep-fried with the kind of fanatical care you might expect in the self-proclaimed “oyster capital of the world.” (One in six oysters consumed in the United States come from the bay, according to the local Chamber of Commerce.)

No overbattered blobs here. The three-inch oysters — selected by the graders at the Coast Oyster plant — get a mere dusting of cornmeal and are fried in clean, unfiltered vegetable oil at 350 degrees, hot enough to seal in the sublime juices.

The result is sweet like corn bread, briny like the sea, creamy as a raw oyster and greaseless enough for even the calorie-concerned to down a dozen. Seven dollars buys six oysters with French fries, and $3 more gets the perfect chaser, a Fish Tale organic amber ale. For what may be the best fried oysters in the country, this is a bargain well worth the roughly two-hour drive from Seattle (or even a $318 round-trip flight from New York on JetBlue).

The genius behind the shell is Tim Sedgwick, who worked in the garment business in Seattle until 1994, when he bought the bar and began developing his oyster recipe. Oysters have since become the family business — Mr. Sedgwick’s daughter Amy was nominated for a regional Emmy for her public-television documentary “Shucks: An Oyster Story.”

Mr. Sedgwick is no monomaniac, however. Researching the history of the tavern, which dates from 1897, also occupies his time. A secret poker room once stood outside the building, he said, and big black-and-white photos over the pool tables show Oscar Chester, the original owner, who happened to be the town sheriff.

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Dock of the Bay and the Willapa Whopper burger

We know a bit of the history of the ‘Dock of the Bay’ restaraunt and tavern in Bay Center. For decades it was known as ‘The Blue Heron’ under ownership of Beverly Smith. She sold it a couple of years ago, and the new owners, from out of the area, Yelm, WA, tried to make a go of it but it didn’t go. Last year a local couple bought it and seem to making a go of it. So we’ve eaten there and even had a few beers under three different owners. We will ‘treat’ ourselves every once in a while to a meal there when we are permitting ourselves to eat meat. Our efforts at being sort of vegetarians go along well enough, allowing for occasional white meat as chicken, but every once in a while we just have to lapse and have a good old fashioned heavy duty burger and we know two places to get them - ‘Dock of the Bay’ and Clarks Restaraunt in Artic, WA.

So it was pleasing to see a write up that included and referenced the Willapa Whopper burger on the menu of Dock of the Bay in Bay Center. My husband, Arthur (Sweetie), had one of those Willapa Whopper burgers at one of our outings, and the amount of meat on the burger is close to obscene! He dared me to have one at another of our outings, and I can’t believe I took him up on his dare, but I did and sure enough, there are so many ingredients of that burger, it gives the Clark’s Restaraunt menu item of a hot doggity burger a real run for the money.

Article from Coast Weekend - Mouth of the Columbia:, These Willapa Bay roadside attractions are worth the stop

Pacific County, Wash. - On a clear day, following the Pallix River from U.S. Highway 101 west to Bay Center, then returning along the Willapa Bay shoreline (on Bay Center Road), is as pretty a drive as you’ll experience anywhere in the Northwest.

Oysters are king here, and the Willapa bivalves are grilled to perfection at Dock of the Bay, the only restaurant between Naselle and South Bend.

Savvy diners may remember this place as the Blue Heron Inn. Not much has changed since the change in name and ownership, save for the cosmetic improvements to the rough ‘n’ tumble lounge. You still might see a patron kicking back an oyster shooter and a beer at, say, 10 a.m. on a Sunday morning. Unless you want to belly up to the bar or play a game of pool, the small adjacent dining room, where slanted windows look out toward the harbor, is a better bet to enjoy a meal.

Our favorite time to mingle among the locals is morning, though fishermen and loggers ofttimes occupy the three tables during noontime and dinner, too. The half-pound Willapa Whopper burger draped with ham, bacon and an egg is popular, as are the deep-fried or sautéed prawns and the fish baskets. But we come for oysters, especially the hangtown fry omelet or oysters and eggs. The latter breakfast, available any time, showcases a quartet of medium-sized Willapa Bay beauties, oysters so fresh they taste of morning sunlight sparkling on saltwater. Accompanying hash browns, and lots of them, are the real deal: grated taters heated on the same grill as the ’sters. A heartier breakfast you won’t find, but don’t come here expecting espresso (coffee’s from a pot), tea other than Lipton or anything fussy or fancy.

Other meals featuring oysters include a six-ounce steak and ’sters, oyster burgers, oyster club sandwiches and a seven-piece oyster dinner sided with a flavorful oyster stuffing that’s unlike anything you’ve ever tasted from inside a turkey.

Dock of the Bay, Bay Center Road and Second Street, Bay Center, Wash., (360) 875-5130, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays (open every day in summer); breakfast and lunch entrees less than $10, dinner $9 to $20; must be 21 or older to dine here.