Old Ebbitt Grill

In November 1994, Old Ebbitt Grill's Oyster Bar was reopened, receiving accolades from guests & press alike, including Washington Post food critic Eve Zibart, who, writing in August 1995, said that its highly polished woodwork, counter facing the ice bed and shuckers, and excellent selection of oysters made it a "first-class raw bar."

The raw bar had taken a 2-year hiatus after nationwide reports of widespread bacterial contamination in the U.S. oyster crop. When the Old Ebbitt Grill reopened at its current location in October of 1983, oysters were sold on the half shell. The only oysters served back then were Blue Point oysters, harvested from Long Island Sound off the coast of Connecticut. Shipped in non-descript boxes, these oysters were the norm for all serving oysters in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic states.