Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-09-06
OYSTERS REGAIN
POST OF HONOR
IN BILL OF FARE
Their Value as Food Impress
ing Itself on Housewives.
Economical Substitute for
High-priced Meats
TooTHSoME DIS E S
Philadelphia Especially Well Situated
Regarding Source of
Supply

Now that the changing season has re-
stored the "R" TO the name OF the month,
the oyster has returned to It's own and is
gradually forcing Its way into the very
centre Of the culinary stage. So that the
! patrons OF the cheap restaurants have al
ready become accustomed again to hear
ing the waiter cry:
Fry a half"
And again the quiet, dignihed, efficient
waiter OF the best cafes is used to serving
a haif-dozen Blue Points on the shell or
an oyster cocktail as a prelude to a meal.
! But 1t Is Mrs. b. y. Housewife who is
giving the "succulent bivalve' the most
serious attention. To her the oyster is
often an answer to the question, what
shall have for dinner tonghtY' And IL is
more than that. II is one avenue by which
she may escape running up her bill for
food to a point which often her means
viii not permit.
Housewives have found that the oyster
Is one of the cheapest foods on the mar
kot. Unlike many foods, however, IL Is not
one the use OF which accomplishes
economy at the cost Of nutriment. Many
physicians and food experts assert that
the bivalve contains more nourishing ele-
-
food on the market
This year more than ever before those
who have an eye to economy are turning
to the oyster. frequent article OF diet.
For there are many whose incomes are
limited who cannot afford to eat meat
daily, and who have become disgusted be-
cause the price Of vegetables has con-
tinued high despite the oversupply
There are so many ways of preparing
oysters that no good cook need ever be
puzzled. Perhaps the bivalve takes its
most universally popular form when II
Is fried. for then it is both tasty and
filling. From to 12 of them suffice for
whole meal, and may well prove a substi-
tute for the much more expensive meat.
In fact few persons care to eat more
than a half dozen at one time, as the
kind usually selected for frying are of
the large variety.
Oyster stews are almost as popular. A
stew is just as satisfying as the fried
oysters, for milk is used in its prepara-
ton and a large piece of butter. Then
there are the crackers, without which a
stew is never complete.
During the summer months, when the
oyster is prescribed. claims are used ex-
tensively. but now that September is hero
they have been relegated to the back
ground. At most banquets during warm
weather CLAIMS are served as an appetizer
but now the oyster is back again. Served
raw on the shell or I'm cocktail It is a
delicious food, although fortunately, not
as filling as the fry or stew
One Of the great arguments in favor of
the oyster is the ease with which II is
digested. No one need fear distress after
a meal composed of oysters, unless they
are fried.
The oyster is an article of food almost
the entire world over. In % countries IL
is staple article OF diet The United
States is the greatest oyster-producing
country In the world, for of the annual
production of more than 80, 000, 900 bushels
uOoOO,OOOOW oysters), more than 26OOO, 900
come from Uncle Sans waters. France
is next, with supply of 100000 bushels
annually.
Philadelphia is particularly well sit
uated as regards the source OF the oys-
tiers. The Middle Atlantic States supply
more oysters than any other section OF
the country. and Chesapeake Bay is the
most fertile field Of this locality. So that
residents OF this city may be reasonably
certain that the oysters they eat are
fresh, providing, of course, that proper
precautions are taken by the merchants
who handle them here.
The Few oyster dishes mentioned above
are by no means all that are made.
"Oysters Newburg" is a popular dish In
the big cafes; the oyster pie Is found In
almost every restaurant; oyster filling and
oyster sauce are frequently used for
meats, omelets etc. Then there is the !
oyster sandwich and the "fried-oyster-
with-every- drink" saloon, where you grab
the greasy bivalve In your hand. And
there are oysters a la this and a la that
You may take your choice.