Tracie’s daughter here–with my first contribution to the blog!

I love Oysters.  Like really, really love Oysters.  The first time I had them was when I was in Baltimore for a few days prior to a wedding celebration.  Like most people, I had my reservations about trying a slimy blob from the ocean, and I had no idea what to expect.  What unfolded on that magical day in Baltimore was a serious love, and soon-to-be obsession with these little treasures of the sea!  I distinctively remember sitting in Thames Street Oyster House gazing in awe at the plethora of different oysters!  They give you a menu, similar to a wine menu, with each type of oyster, where it’s from, it’s size, and the “notes” that you will smell and taste.  I believe that I ordered two of EACH type they had to offer and began slurping!  There was no going back after that experience.

After that trip, every time I see oysters on a menu I have to try them, which unfortunately isn’t that often here in Northeast Ohio.  So when Scene Magazine of Cleveland announced they were putting on their first annual oyster fest, Shuck Yeah CLE!, I immediately bought 4 tickets!  Apparently this event was dreamed up by a group of friends that get together every year and have their own little mini fest, but they decided to go big and make it public.  Boy were they surprised.  All my fellow Ohio oyster lovers came out of the woodwork to attend the event.  They rented out this warehouse space downtown Cleveland in Tyler Village to set up shop.  While the space was definitely big enough, they still experienced a few hiccups.  Luckily my mom, stepdad and I got there right at six and got our first drink and batch of oysters before it got crazy.  Within the hour the place was swarmed!  For our second go around we waited in line for over an hour (no exaggeration).  I felt SO bad for the VOLUNTEER shuckers.  They were working their butts off (from 6-10 mind you), but it just wasn’t quick enough.  They had over 6,000 oysters!

Now, being a woman attempting (keyword there) to plan my wedding for next August, I know how freaking difficult it is to coordinate an event.  I cannot imagine putting something together like this!  However, I do have a few suggestions for the planners.  I think they should have stopped selling tickets after noticing how out-of-control it was getting.  I also think they should have had two bars on opposite sides of the room, as well as space out each oyster station around the room instead of a buffet line.  I do believe, however, that the people who hosted this wonderful event (I don’t care that I had to wait in line…patience people!) recognized these issues and will be better prepared to handle the masses next year.  Scene Magazine even went as far as sending an e-mail to all the people who came and offered them a free ticket to one of their future events.  Now THAT’S customer service.  Little touches like that show how much a company cares about their customers, respect their time, and appreciate their business.