Union Oyster House, Boston, Visitor Guide & Things to Do Nearby

The Union Oyster House is a seafood restaurant on Union Street in Boston, Massachusetts, and it calls itself the oldest continuously operating restaurant in the United States. It has served customers since 1826, in a brick building that is older still, a few steps from Faneuil Hall and the Freedom Trail.

The story behind it

The building dates from the 18th century and had other lives before it became a restaurant. The Union Oyster House opened under that name in 1826, when oysters were cheap, plentiful and a staple of Boston eating. Its claim to be America's oldest continuously operating restaurant rests on that date.

Two names come up most often in its history. Daniel Webster, the statesman and orator, was a regular and is remembered for settling at the oyster bar for long sessions of oysters and drink. Much later, John F. Kennedy was a customer too, and a booth upstairs is still known as the Kennedy booth.

What to look for

• The old brick exterior and the sign with its oyster motif, which sit comfortably among the narrow lanes of this part of the city.
• The semicircular raw bar on the ground floor, where the shuckers work in front of you, the spot linked with Daniel Webster.
• The upstairs dining room and the booth dedicated to John F. Kennedy, a small reminder of the restaurant's famous guests.
• The uneven floors, low ceilings and dark wood inside, which give a sense of how old the building is.

Tips for your visit

• You can go inside, since it is a working restaurant. Check current opening hours and whether to reserve, especially at lunch and dinner peaks.
• Even a short stop to look at the exterior and the raw bar takes only a few minutes, but allow longer if you plan to sit down for a meal.
• It is close to Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market, the Blackstone Block with its tiny old lanes and the Boston Stone, and the New England Holocaust Memorial on Union Street.
• Go outside the busiest mealtimes if you want a quieter look at the dining rooms, and wear comfortable shoes for the surrounding cobbled streets.

See it on a quest

The Union Oyster House is a stop on Historical Boston: The Record Breaker. You reach it on foot as one stop of a longer route through the old streets of the city. The app tells you about the place as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle in front of you rather than just glancing at the sign. It suits the historical theme well, and one ticket covers the whole group.