The Fatted Calf & Hog Island Oyster Co. Picnic was set for September 12th, 10:30am SHARP out in Marshall California. More specifically Marshall Boatworks right on HWY 1 just up the road a piece from Pt. Reyes Station on Tomales Bay. We’d been having a heatwave, 94 degrees on a daily basis going on 2 weeks. Not Sunday morning it wasn’t, we’re talking heavy over cast with some icky looking darker clouds. Didn’t matter, if Fatted C. & Hog Island were involved I would have taken a taxi out that windy road for one and a half hours.

We arrived at Marshall Boatworks in fine style, the windshield wipers pushing heavy fog out of the way and about an hour early. It was fine though because Taylor, Toponia and her uncle were there already. Taylor offered up a scone, but we were antsy and decided to pace for a while. Soon Luke from Hog Island showed up and served forth the news that it wasn’t going to get much warmer or clearer and suggested we don’t take the boat ride over to the secluded beach on the other side of the bay. He ‘suggested’ we drive around and find another more secluded spot. Yeah, the water was grey and quite choppy. We had been looking forward to the boat ride, no biggie the meat was still in our future. Who cares.

As you can see we made it over, but not without adventure. Half the party set up on the beach and the other half set up in the picnic area you see before you. We found each other and moved stuff over quickly. My job was to carry burning embers in a leaky metal fire starter stove up the .22 mile trail. We had mesquite burning in the weber and about every 46 feet down the trail. Perfection.

The tent housed a ring of tables smothered in linens & meat. Kim sliced up salumi & pate. Toponia laid out the paper thin beef salami, the extra virgin olive oil didn’t make it for this trip. Still good though. Pretty trays of food everywhere, half of one white linen table had beautifully arranged wine glasses with cases of wine in a local tin filled with ice. Ice chests under every table had fancy cold beers or more food, mostly more food.

The oyster table was a thing of beauty. As you slurped 3 different kinds of that-day-fresh Hog Island Oysters, your eyes could gaze over Tomales Bay. Absolutely breathtaking, slurrrrpppuf.

The sausage Fatted Calf prepared for this day were unique. We’re talking spicy smoked paprika with orange zest crepinettes, a ring of bordelaise sausage that Ian made (Sausage Craft Fu Master #2((maybe 30% fat, the sausage not Ian)), Crepinettes made from the leftover Quail Stuffing … the list goes on and on. Plus Taylor made a HUGE stainless steel vat of Gumbo. He’d braised some ham shanks er something and made the base from that, plus his andouille. After it had warmed over a mesquite fire, he tossed in a load of the oysters! YEAH !!! Get bowl, put in rice, dump in Gumbo then pull File from my pocket and GO MAN GO !!! Oh it doesn’t stop there, NO. Get this, the flatware was made out of sugar cane er somethin! Cool factor just jumped up.
At some point that day you’d find yourself up the hill at the restrooms. Huh? What’s THAT? Toponia had laid out fancy liquid hand soap and a scented candle in the women’s room. This is her Way.
All went on for probably 3 hours or so with maybe 40 some odd people. It was clear after even an hour that this party was put together for people, for people to have fun for a day. Nothing more, surely not less. Not one mention was made of business, what someone did yesterday or where someone had to be the next day. I have no idea what anyone did there for work or if they had children. I remember a few names and have already forgotten most. But not the Fun, no sir. And certainly not the food.
After eating ourselves in to a stupor, many made it down to the beach for a swim in the oddly warm water of Tomales Bay. Some decided to try out the frisbee and the random orb of destruction (a football). Ian accidentally made one little girl cry and decided to move 30 feet to the left, excellent decision sir! All was fine though, even Leigh (sorry if I got the name wrong) retrieved her turquoise hunk from the sand (I FOUND IT!).
The beach got a bit gusty and we moved back up to the meat area and reloaded the weber full of mesquite. During this time the tent had blown 47 feet hard in to a local sign, snapped a few legs. Oh well. The ranger asked us to move our picnic OUT of the State maintained path, huh fancy that. It looked like an appropriate place 5 hours (6 beers, 3 glasses of wine, slam of Maker’s Mark) ago.
At this point the tent is gone, the tables were in a fray, all the beer was gone, most of the wine was gone, the last of the tequila was being sectioned out and Taylor was soaking wet from head to toe. Quite a sandy set of toes it was too.
Even so, every last human was smiling and looking for the next trick. This came in the form of a huge cooler laden with another half dozen bags of fresh Hog Island Oysters. Eeeek. It was nearly 6 hours in to it and there were about 7 people around the oyster table furiously shucking oysters!! Slowly I turned, only to find Taylor (had on his thermals now budro) flipping ANOTHER bordelaise sausage ring on to the fire !!! Oh well.
Yeah, you’re confused. Hell man, I was THERE and I’m still in a Meat Fog. And that is what this day came down to, a Meat Fog. Mmmmmmmm, Meat Fog.

People starting making their way out about 4pm or so and as they left Toponia or Taylor would hand them beautifully wrapped meat in white butcher paper. A meat party with Meat-to-Go! How thoughtful is that?

Artsy Fartsy Oyster Photograph.
Thank you to the hosts for a wonderful day. Much appreciated by all.
Xo Xo