The oysters

Silver and gold, from Great Oyster Bay.

Two oysters, two seasons, two ways of farming. The Pacific (the silver) all year round, briny and clean from the cold bay water. And the Angasi -- Tasmania's native gold-shell oyster -- for the four cool months it likes to show its best.

Order & supply Eat at the shack
Two oysters, side by side

The silver, and the gold.

Most of our visitors will eventually taste both and pick a favourite. There is no wrong answer.

The silver Pacific

The silver Pacific oyster

Crassostrea gigas · long-line grown, Great Oyster Bay · year-round

The Pacific is our everyday oyster, and there is nothing ordinary about it. Long-line grown in Great Oyster Bay's cold, salty open water. The cold thickens the shell. The current works the oyster. The result is a deep, briny, sea-forward flavour that needs nothing but a wedge of lemon.

In summer, the silvers are beautiful and creamy. In mid-winter, they're lovely and quite meaty. Best eaten the morning they're shucked — which is exactly what happens at the shack.

The native Angasi gold

The gold Angasi oyster

Ostrea angasi · cylinder-basket grown, Swan River · cooler months only

The Angasi is Tasmania's native flat oyster — the one that's been here since before the Pacifics arrived. Cylinder-basket grown in the Swan River, where the tide tumbles them and rounds the shells beautifully. The flavour is sweeter, creamier, with a long, mineral finish.

The Angasi is only available for the four cooler months of the year. We're one of the only farms in Tasmania that cultivates them. When the season is in, the golds get the headline at the shack and the call sheet at the restaurants.

"Tried a mix of the gold and silver oysters with a glass of bubbles overlooking Great Oyster Bay. They were the best."
-- Farrar0109, Sydney · TripAdvisor

These had been shucked only an hour or so earlier and that's how it works at this place.

beeandhoney · Staffordshire, United Kingdom
TripAdvisor, November 2023
How they grow

Two bays. Two methods. Both done by hand.

The methods are different because the water is different. Long lines suit cold, open Great Oyster Bay; cylinder baskets suit the calmer, tidal Swan River. Both are worked by hand by Ian and the team.

Working the long lines

Long lines, Great Oyster Bay

The Pacifics grow on long lines suspended in the cold open water. As the tide and current move through, the oysters get rocked, fed, and worked. The cold thickens the shell. We grade and harvest by hand, year-round.

Cylinder baskets, Swan River

Cylinder baskets, the Swan

The Angasi grow in cylinder baskets in the calmer water of the Swan River. The cylinders tumble with the tide, which thickens the meat and rounds the shell. The baskets are checked, rotated, and turned by hand. Slower work, but the result is unmistakable.

2
SpeciesPacific (silver) & Angasi (gold)
2
MethodsLong lines & cylinder baskets
2
BaysGreat Oyster Bay & Swan River
1
FamilyThree generations, since 1984
Awards & recognition

Award-winning, four decades running.

Awards and recognition are part of the Melshell story, with medal imagery and industry acknowledgements already part of the farm's public identity.

Gold medal Royal Agricultural Society of Tasmania Fine Food Awards -- Gold Gold medal Silver medal Tasmanian small business DHN national finalist 2025
★★★★★

"The biggest and tastiest oysters I've ever consumed. Shucked fresh at the location, this gem is roughly 9 kms off the main road. A mandatory stop on the east coast."

Rowena S
Sydney · TripAdvisor
★★★★★

"Hands down the best Oysters I have ever had in my life. The golds are truly divine. I'm from Tassie but live in Melbourne -- every time I come home, Melshell is the first place I visit."

songenator
Richmond, Victoria · TripAdvisor
★★★★★

"Unmissable fresh oysters. I thoroughly enjoyed mine -- the sliminess I had associated with oysters in the past was because I'd never eaten truly fresh oysters."

beeandhoney
Staffordshire, UK · TripAdvisor
Where to buy

Eat at the shack, or have them sent.

The freshest experience is always at the shack. The morning's harvest, shucked on the spot, eaten at the picnic tables with the bay in view.

For Melbourne customers, restaurants and wholesale buyers: contact the farm for current availability, shipment timing and seasonal Angasi supply.

Wholesale & shipping Visit the shack
In the press

Long quietly known. Recently in the spotlight.

"Spectacular oysters — the best in Tasmania"

A summary repeatedly written about Melshell across the food press, blogs and travel guides. Multiple feature articles across Discover Tasmania, Eat Drink and Be Kerry, and Brisbane Whisky Scene.

Plan a visit →

Strong TripAdvisor visitor reviews

TripAdvisor · #1 restaurant in Dolphin Sands. The vast majority of reviews are full five stars and the reviewers come from across Australia and overseas — Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Singapore, the UK.

Read on TripAdvisor →

RAST Fine Food Gold

Fine Food Awards medal imagery and other industry recognition sit naturally beside the story of a family farm that has kept improving over four decades.

Full awards list →
Order or visit

Want to try them yourself?

Eat at the shack, or ask the farm about current shipment and wholesale options. For restaurant supply, drop us a line.

Visit the shack Wholesale & ship
Shack
9 Yellow Sandbanks Road
Dolphin Sands, TAS 7190
Open
Mon – Fri · 10am to 4pm
Phone
03 6257 0269
Wholesale
admin@melshelloysters.com.au