When we first moved to Washington, my work colleagues helped me construct a list of must see/must do places and experiences to help introduce us to the Pacific Northwest. Several of them recommended Chuckanut Drive, a beautiful road that winds along the coast where the Cascade Mountains meet the sea.

We’ve completed that drive multiple times since then in the car and on the bikes, taking friends and family when they have come out to visit. Each trip we have discovered something new— found different places to stop and different places to eat.

When my brother-in-law and his girlfriend stopped out recently, we once again headed to Chuckanut Drive, this time stopping to not only buy some seafood from Taylor Shellfish Farms, but to  enjoy our purchases on site.

In the past we have stopped to grab some fresh oysters and other goodies but have taken everything home to eat. This time we were benefiting from a beautiful fall day and decided to snag one of the picnic tables out back. Once you buy your seafood there is ample covered seating on the building’s back porch as well as an open space with several picnic tables and grills. This time there was also a small setup that included other prepared food as well as multiple beers on tap and a couple types of wine for purchase!

We got a dozen oysters to share, including one of my favorites— Kumamotos— as well as some pickled herring and smoked oysters. While Brian and Mark shucked our oysters and Molly got our picnic table set up, I grabbed our sampler of beer. What a feast!

Taylor Shellfish has other locations in Seattle but if you want the very freshest experience I highly recommend you head to their oyster farm on Chuckanut Drive. There are tons of other seafood selections you can enjoy, they can prep your food or you can do it yourself, and it’s the perfect low-key day or afternoon trip. Check it out!