EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETS IN NEW YORK

Jan. 24, 2003.  Key members of The Oyster Foundation convened in New York City today to discuss the group’s upcoming May convocation in Geneva.  The meeting was chaired by George Klein, a resident of Geneva, who is Oyster country director for Switzerland .   Also in attendance were Stephen Banker, president, who arrived by Amtrak from Washington DC, and Jethro Marks, who flew in from Ottawa, representing his grandfather, Edward B. Marks.

The meeting took place at a restaurant in downtown Manhattan, Balthazar.  The first order of business was to determine whether an American plateau de fruits de mer could compare to that so famously available in France .   The conclusion was that the Balthazar version — briny, tart and fresh — was fully competitive in terms of both quantity and quality.  The addition of sweet, firm Maine lobster, unknown in Paris, put it over the top.  While none of the 9 varieties of American oysters represented was as full-flavored as the Bélon variety, the rest of the platter more than made up for this deficiency.

A discussion ensued on the classic philosophical issue of biters vs. sliders when ingesting oysters and clams, with a consensus duly emerging that the correct biting:sliding ratio is 11:1. Many other matters were weighed and resolved over the generous plateau, along with beer, ale, apple turnover and lemon tart.