Maison Premiere's French 75
Because National Oyster Day Calls for Bubbles.
Oysters & Bubbles at Maison Premiere
To the many publicists who subscribe to LAST CALL (thank you!), I’m making a rare exception today and breaking my general rule of not acknowledging, observing, or covering any made-up “National [INSERT TOPIC] Day,” excluding National Bourbon Sour Day (see: “The Rick Dalton Whiskey Sour”)on June 14. But today is National Oyster Day and I wanted to take the occasion to celebrate the beloved bivalve with a cocktail recipe from one of my favorite oyster-centric Brooklyn bars, Maison Premiere (the 2016 James Beard Award winner for Outstanding Bar Program).
The rotating oyster list at Maison Premiere features more than two dozen varieties, and when I interviewed Maison Premiere’s Executive Bar Director William Elliott, I asked him about his favorite approach to enjoying oysters.
“I really love East Coast oysters, specifically Canadian maritime oysters, most specifically New Brunswick or Nova Scotia. Raspberry Points are some of my favorites for sure, and I also love oysters from Maine in Damariscotta and oyster farms like Glidden Point—that’s a good one. With an East Coast oyster, at most I will just squeeze a drop of lemon per oyster. However, for West Coast oysters or from maybe farther south in America, I love a little bit of mignonette. It’s really about the creaminess and the minerality. I prefer briny oysters and ones with more umami.”
I also featured Will in my 2019 book, Last Call, on the wisdom and rituals of last call at bars around America. Champagne is a classic pairing for raw oysters, and Will selected the famous Champagne cocktail the French 75 as his final drink.
What’s last call like at Maison Premiere?