Foodstuffs: Cooking Classes and Oysters for All

Cooking Classes With Chef Marco Barrila

Chef Marco Barrila will lead an interactive cooking class at Barrila’s Pastaria Restaurant & Bar in Riverhead on Wednesday, October 16, from 6 to 8 p.m. Participants will learn how to create Italian dishes from scratch, in a relaxed atmosphere. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned cook, Chef Marco will guide participants through each step with his tips and techniques.

Set in an open eatery, Chef Marco will teach all the tricks behind creating favorite Italian dishes. For this class, on the menu will be crespelle di zucca (butternut squash fritters) and sweet potato gnocchi with two signature sauces (brown butter and sage and duck ragu) and ravioli dolce (fried sweet pumpkin ravioli).

All ingredients used in the class are fresh and sourced from local farms or imported from producers. After the class, the group will sit down together to enjoy all the dishes the class has whipped up and join in conversation with Chef Marco. Tickets are $155 per person at eventbrite.com.

In addition, on Sunday, October 27, at 1 p.m., Chef Marco will offer a Kids Cooking Class for ages 8 to 16 at his restaurant. For this class, drop off the kids for an exciting day of food and fun where they will embark on an interactive journey of planning and organizing delicious meals using local, seasonal ingredients. On the menu will be fresh mozzarella sticks and mini meatball sliders (beef and chicken) and cinnamon sugar zeppole. Tickets are $79 per child at eventbrite.com and includes lunch.

Proceeds from the cooking classes benefit Citizens 4 Humanity, a grassroots organization of “people helping people” based in Water Mill. Citizens 4 Humanity has been feeding gourmet healthy meals to families in crisis and homebound seniors since 2012. Visit citizens4humanity.org for details. Barrila’s Pastaria Restaurant & Bar is at 300 East Main Street in Riverhead. Visit barrilaspastaria.com for more information.

Oyster Week Is Here

The second annual Long Island Oyster Week runs from October 14 through 20. An initiate of the creators of Long Island Restaurant Week and the Long Island Oyster Growers Association, for the designated seven days, participating restaurants will offer oyster specials sourced from participating oyster growers. Specials range from $1 oysters, $2 oysters and an oyster sampler to special oyster appetizers and oyster entrées. Restaurants may offer one or all of these oyster specials, all of which will be listed on the Long Island Oyster Week website at oysterweekli.com.

The week kicks off at a Shucktoberfest at The Snapper Inn in Oakdale on Sunday, October 13, at 2 p.m. The event will feature Long Island oyster farmers Keenan Boyle of Tall Muthashucka, Matt Welling from Lucky 13 Oysters and Phil Mastrangelo and Brian Tuthill from Oysterponds Shellfish Company in a shucking contest followed by an oyster talk with oyster expert Don Ballan. Raw bar items will be available for purchase as well as a cash bar. Later in the week The Snapper Inn will host Great South Bay Tall Muthashucka oyster grower Keenan Boyle on Wednesday, October 16, shucking oysters starting at 6 p.m. as well as a talk by oyster expert Don Ballan and Maureen Dunn from Seatuck Environmental Association.

“Oysters, just like wines, take their flavor from the location they are grown and Long Island has been known for over 100 years as one of the finest places to grow oysters in the world. Who hasn’t heard of Bluepoint Oysters,” said Richard Remmer, one of Long Island Oyster Week’s founders and owner of The Snapper Inn. “My family’s lives have been intertwined with Long Island oysters for six generations and The Snapper Inn has been serving Long Island oysters for 95 years. We are ecstatic that our great Long Island restaurants and amazing oyster growers are getting together to celebrate the best oysters in the world. Let’s get shucking.”

A key component of the event are the Long Island oyster growers. Eric Koepele, president of the Long Island Oyster Growers Association, has coordinated the growers to participate. “Long Island Oyster Week is not just a celebration of seafood; it’s a testament to the region’s commitment to sustainability, community engagement, and the revival of a natural resource that purifies our waters and supports local economies,” said Koepele. “It underscores the importance of oysters in our ecosystem, highlighting their role in filtering water, restoring habitats, and fostering a connection between the community and its environment. During Oyster Week, we honor the humble oyster, recognizing its significance in both our culinary heritage and our ecological future.”

Participating oyster growers include: Davy Jones Shellfish, Deep Water Oyster Co., Oysterponds Shellfish Co., North Fork Big Oyster Co., Founders Bay Oyster Farm, Thatch Island Oyster Farm, Eel Town Oysters, Hamptons Oyster Company, Great Gun Oyster Co., Little Ram Oyster Co., Long Island Shellfish Co., Lucky 13, Maris Stella, Neguntatogue Oyster Co., Peconic Gold Oysters, Montauk Pearls and Tallmuthashucka.

Long Island Oyster Week also supports Half Shells for Habitat, is an island-wide partnership that collects waste oyster shells from restaurants for the purpose of returning them to Long Island’s estuarine waters through oyster restoration and other habitat improvement projects.

Oysters are not only delicious but extremely beneficial to the Long Island ecosystem. One adult oyster filters up to 50 gallons of water per day. Long Island Oyster farms contribute to the removal of more than 192,000 pounds of nitrogen and more than 57,000 pounds of carbon each year. This greatly improves overall water quality free to the public. Not only are oysters benefiting the ecosystem but they are beneficial to consumers as well. Oysters are full of vitamins and micronutrients such as vitamin D, zinc and omega-3 fatty acids that are hard to find in other foods and are essential to immune health. More benefits from oysters can be found on the Oyster Week website.