Top Seafood Restaurant Owner in the US
Making waves in the seafood world is no easy feat, especially ones that span coast to coast. With many seafood hotspots from California’s expansive coasts, to Florida’s seabed of abundance, good seafood can cause a splash. However, exceptional seafood should cause a tsunami.
Broad Street Oyster Company’s founder, a top Seafood Restaurant owner, Christopher Tompkins, accomplished the seemingly impossible. Turning a weekend pop-up into a mini-chain of restaurants during a global pandemic, Tompkins’ perfected the combination of stellar seafood and good vibes. With locations in Miami, Santa Barbara, Malibu, and two in Downtown LA, and San Francisco Tompkins’ approach to food ranks him as the top seafood restaurant owner in the country.
Originally from New York, he bounced around a bit before landing in Los Angeles to dive in head first into building his passion project. That’s how Broad Street Oyster Co. started, with Tompkins loading up his van, traveling anywhere between LA and Santa Barbara, shucking oysters as a pop-up mobile raw bar. The quality and freshness of the oysters steadily grew a following, and Tompkins created a laid back atmosphere that kept patrons coming back for more. He was known as “The Oyster Man” around town, leaving customers wondering where he’d pop up next. To say he grew the enterprise would be an understatement.
From weekend appearances at Smorgasburg LA and Smorgasburg Miami, Tompkins first brick and mortar restaurant would open in Malibu at the height of the Covid pandemic. Thinking outside of the box is part of Tompkins’ approach, so he transformed the space into a drive through and walk up window. Providing a safe place to escape quarantine, the Broad Street Oyster Company outdoor patio overlooks Malibu Lagoon’s sundrenched shores and word of mouth spread fast. Santa Barbara’s State Street location followed soon after, then a corner stall at Grand Central Market. Tompkins isn’t stopping anytime soon, taking his talents as the top seafood restaurant owner in the US now north of California with a San Francisco location opening in 2023.
As the name implies, the oysters started it all. While still a popular mainstay on the menu, it’s Tompkins’ take on the lobster roll that would catapult Broad Street Oyster Company’s name to seafood lore. The lobster roll is the worlds famous lobster roll, served warm with butter or cold with mayonnaise. Tompkins’ wanted more though, and began imagining a combination so luxurious it left people in awe at the sheer possibility. He found exactly that with caviar and uni, and offered them together as a one-two punch to crown the lobster roll. Outrageous? Yes. But once you try it, you’ll never look back.
Broad Street Oyster Company’s menu has so much more to offer. Get fancy with oysters, rockefeller, and shrimp cocktail, but enjoy them in the casual atmosphere under the sunshine and sea-salt air. Keep it fresh with live uni, the daily crudo, ceviche, or tuna tartare. Classics like fish and chips and Baja tacos are perfected to a crisp. Come with a big group and share the seafood tower, a pound of mussels, or smoked trout dip. With pastas, salads, sandwiches, and sides, Broad Street Oyster Company is the perfect ruckus of different culinary styles. Tompkins ensures the party keeps going with a fridge full of beer and natural wine, the best match to wash down the top seafood in the country.
Tompkins’ is known as a top seafood restaurant owner in the US from the food, atmosphere, and locations. You can check out his food by visiting any of the Broad Street Oyster Co. locations, in Smorgasburg Miami, Santa Barbara, Malibu, and Smorgasburg LA, and Grand Central Market Downtown LA, and now San Francisco. If you’re a seafood lover then you definitely don’t want to miss this. Once people come they become regular seafood lovers and fans of Broad Street Oyster Co. by Christopher Tompkins making this possible, being a top US Seafood Restaurant to visit.