Simon Rhodes from Lobsterpot Fishmongers, Wood Street Food Hall

Oysters are in great demand at the moment - we get ours from The Colchester Oyster Company.

Oysters are a fantastic starter to any meal; they are light, easy to prepare and taste absolutely delicious fresh, and seasoned with a number of accompaniments.

Oysters have been around for a long time and the first recording of the word ‘shuck’ was in 1881. Apparently they were a real delicacy in London in those days and very popular.

My favourite accompaniment to oysters is a little soy sauce, a smidgen of wasabi and very finely chopped ginger and shallots, although traditionally they are served with either lemon or shallots in red wine vinegar. Washed down with a nice glass of bubbly, what could be better?

Oysters will be on sale when we at The Wood Street Foodhall celebrate our 4th birthday this Saturday.

To mark the occasion, we are having a festival of food with plenty of tasters from a number of our suppliers.

There will be a paella, and, of course, delicious meat tastings from our butcher.

In addition there will be various wines to sample from our friends next door at Magnum Wines, and, of course, oysters!

So why not pop along and see us and try some amazing food at the Wood Street Foodhall.

We’d love to see you there.