Hog Island Oyster Co.
John Finger and Terry Sawyer planted their first oyster seed in Tomales Bay in 1983. Both were marine biologists. The farm works 160 acres there now, and 90 more in Humboldt Bay. It sells over five million oysters and Manila clams a year. This Ferry Building counter is where the city eats them.
Why go
The Sweetwater is the oyster the farm was built on. Racks and bags give it a deep cup. It tastes sweet and finishes smoky. It goes out year round. The others come and go. Kumamotos take two to three years to reach an inch and a half. Atlantics run in summer. French Hogs put copper on your palate. The farm calls the Olympia the West Coast's only native oyster, and grows that too. MacKenzie Chung Fegan and Cesar Hernandez are the Chronicle's two restaurant critics. They ate 29 Ferry Building vendors in July 2026. They put this counter at No. 13.
Acidifying seawater was killing billions of baby oysters in the Pacific Northwest, and the seed shortage reached Tomales Bay. Hog Island answered by building its own hatchery in Humboldt Bay. John Finger told KQED they never expected to be in the hatchery trade. In June 2021 the Marin Agricultural Land Trust closed a $1.1 million easement on the 250-acre Leali Ranch. That ranch sits across from the Tomales Bay headquarters. It was the first easement involving aquaculture in the trust's history.
Order this / avoid
- Order: the oysters grilled. Fegan and Hernandez pick that over raw,
doused in the restaurant's signature garlicky chipotle bourbon butter.
4 - Order: the Manila clam chowder, which the MICHELIN inspector calls exceptional.5
- Avoid: the patio, if you would rather watch the shucking than the water.
What locals & experts say
- The MICHELIN Guide inspector, on the oysters: they are
some of the sweetest, freshest bivalves on the West Coast,
and the lemon, Tabasco and mignonette are optional becausethey're good enough to slurp solo.
5 - Terry Sawyer, co-founder, to KQED in September 2014:
We have no choice but to face it: We're on the leading edge of what climate change and fossil fuels are doing to our waters.
6
Good to know
- Getting in: no reservations. Dine in, or buy oysters to take away.
- Closed: Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
- Also: the farm sells at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market on Saturdays.
- Where: 1 Ferry Building, Shop 11A, on the bay side of the marketplace.
Verdict
should-visit — Ask which bay each one came out of before you order, because Tomales and Humboldt do not taste alike. A dozen and something hot is a whole meal for one person. The rush is at lunch, so eat at its edges.