COASTAL • Q&A Oysters

from The January/February issue of the Osider Magazine

by Montage Visual Communication

LOCAL BUSINESS • The Proper 32

Dining: Coastal

THE OSIDER JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2023

Thin Cut Catfish

Oysters cooked four different ways

Q&A OYSTERS

WORDS: SHELBY ROWE PHOTOS: ZACH CORDNER Dragos

Q&A Oysters offers classic Southern tastes in our little slice of paradise. Located on the floor level of the Brick Hotel, nestled next to Frankie’s, the oyster bar offers bold flavors smothered in Southern comfort.

While the restaurant is located in the same establishment of the historic Brick Hotel, the firstfloor eatery offers its own ambience. Since the Brick is more of an Airbnb-style hotel without a reception counter, the entire first floor is dedicated to Q&A. Upon entering, the space ushers you to the bar for a drink, with the smokey cognac-andrye-centric Voodoo Carre being a house hit. The attention is in the details, so make sure you pay attention to the Q&A stamp etched into the ice!

The menu at Q&A boasts serious New Orleans classics like Thin Cut Catfish, Shrimp Creole N Grits, Buffalo Oysters, and Dragos, which is a chick lobster filled with chunks of garlic and cajun cream pasta. It’s a dish inspired by the infamous Drago’s Seafood Restaurant in NOLA and tastes as delicious as it looks.

The Louisiana-style cuisine is a purposeful dedication and an ode to Chef Quinton Austin. If you’re wondering what Q&A stands for, it’s his initials! Chef Quinton Austin is the Executive Chef of Grind & Prosper, which is a San Diego hospitality group with locations sprawling across the county including Miss B’s Coconut Club in Mission Beach and Park 101 in Carlsbad.

Most notorious is Grind & Prosper’s first southern-inspired restaurant called Louisiana Purchase in North Park. Q&A Oysters is a sister restaurant of Louisiana Purchase, with both menus taking inspiration from Chef Quinton Austin’s family recipes and the food he grew up with in New Orleans.

Since Chef Quinton Austin oversees all Grind & Prosper restaurants, Chef Sean Elliot holds down the fort at the Oceanside restaurant. Him and his team serve up the mouth-watering seafood dishes of your dreams that are an absolute must-try!

The wide-selection of oysters is something truly unique to Q&A Oysters. Hence, the word “oysters” in the name. You can choose from a selection of raw oysters or try the Poppa Legba oysters, which are charbroiled with sriracha lime butter sauce, ghost pepper, and cilantro.

The selection of oysters shooters at Q&A also can’t be missed. If you want to try something different, then throw back an Ain’t Nothin’ To Shuck With, which is a chili and tamarind infused mezcal and montenegro oyster shooter. Talk about tasty!

Q&A Oysters offers some great seafood specials during the week. On Wednesday’s, they offer a killer shucking special with $1.50 raw oysters. On Thursday’s during the Sunset Market, they offer a seafood boil special—snow crab, shrimp, sausage, potatoes, corn, and all! They offer three different sizes and pour that bad boy all over your table to get down and dirty with.

With an unseen menu, Q&A Oysters offers Oceanside rare flavors that aren’t usually available in North County. So, come on down, slurp some oysters, and fall in love with New Orleans cuisine.