Julie Qiu is an international oyster expert and educator, founder of In A Half Shell and co-founder of Oyster Master Guild. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Julie shares her love for oyster gastronomy through original content, virtual and in-person classes, and products designed to promote considered consumption. As a self-made Oyster Sommelier, Julie has been featured by Vogue, Food & Wine, The Chicago Tribune, USA Today, NPR, Huffington Post, Tech Insider, Somm TV, and Somebody Feed Phil on Netflix.
With over 18 years of branding and marketing experience, Julie has worked with some of the world’s most iconic brands in food & beverage, hospitality, and luxury. She spent the past eight years in the sustainable seafood space as the Marketing Director for Australis Aquaculture, building The Better Fish® brand. Today, Julie works full-time for Oyster Master Guild and her brand consulting business.
Julie also serves as a Professional Advisor to the Urban Assembly New York Harbor School, a Seafood Nutrition Partnership Ambassador, a friend of the Shellfish Growers Climate Coalition, and on the Billion Oyster Project Event Committee.
My Story
Born in Shanghai, China, I was introduced to a wide variety of shellfish at a young age—I learned how to eat periwinkles as a toddler. I grew up in the Midwest, but love being on the coast. While I enjoy most seafood, there’s something special about oysters. They embody a sense of place. Many are painstakingly hand-crafted. And an exceptional few are, dare I reveal, alive when you eat them. They are both humble and provocative. They’re sustainable. They’re nutritious. What is not to love?
While working at a global advertising agency in my early 20s, I started a blog that explored everything food-related. It didn’t take long for me to realize that I had a thing for oysters, and thought, “Would it be possible to focus exclusively on oysters?” A creative colleague suggested the name In A Half Shell, and amazingly, the URL wasn’t taken. Since that fateful day in 2009, my bivalve curiosity has taken me around the world and on all sorts of oyster escapades—inside hatcheries, out on the tidal flats, and at the chef’s table. In A Half Shell began as a personal quest to become an oyster connoisseur that gradually turned into a calling.
My goal today is to help fellow oyster lovers and professionals cultivate a better half shell experience, for themselves and others, wherever they go.
My Oyster Bucket List
Visit Australia’s Oyster Coast of NSW and shuck my own oysters
Visit an oyster farm in Tasmania
Attend the Bluff Oyster Festival in New Zealand
Harvest and enjoy Limfjord oysters in Denmark
Hang out at the Knysna Oyster Festival in South Africa
Visit French oyster country (this might take 1 month) — Normandy, Brittany, Marennes-Oléron
Explore a Croatian oyster farm
Visit oyster farms and friends of the United Kingdom
Hang out with my favorite Canadian oyster friends in Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver
Visit the oyster farmers of North Carolina
And South Carolina
Visit oyster farms in South Korea
Return to Japan and sample oysters from across the country
Finally make my way to the Western Bay of the Chesapeake
Four words: Hama Hama Oyster Rama
Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick oyster land visit needs to happen as well
Teach an oyster master class abroad
Take an oyster master class abroad
Dive for oysters with Glidden Point Oyster Farm
Do a podcast about oysters
Try a baby oyster omelette in Hong Kong and Taiwan
Visit an oyster farm in Portugal… and eat as many conservas as possible
Visiting the Dibba Bay oyster farm just outside of Dubai
Attend the Oesterfestival in Yerseke, The Netherlands
Judge oyster competitions on six continents
As Featured
For the love of oysters, this venture is schooling people in mollusc appreciation - CBC
We shuck 'em, you suck 'em: A slogan every master oyster sommelier loves - USA Today
The Oyster Farmer - Somm TV
The Best Cocktails To Pair With Oysters - Bro Bible
What The Hell Is ‘Merroir?’ Pairing Vodka And Oysters In Tomales Bay - UProxx
The World Is Your Oyster - Nobody Listens to Paula Poundstone
Chef’s Notebook: Shucking Oysters - Somm TV
Somebody Feed Phil, Season 2, New York City - Netflix
Unexpected Drink Pairings for the Oyster Aficionado - VOGUE
An "Oyster Sommelier" on the Best Oysters Around the World - Here Magazine
Raw oysters can still be alive when we eat them, but not for the reason you may think - Business Insider
Oyster Mythbusting: Debunking 5 Common Misconceptions - Serious Eats
The Economics of $1 Oyster Happy Hours - NPR Marketplace
Choose your oyster: Hot and buttered, or cold and decked with caviar - The Chicago Tribune
Oysters 101: Everything you need to know about the bivalve - AM New York
Your Guide to Ordering and Pairing Oysters - Morsel by Plated
12 sommeliers tasting things other than wine - USA Today
All About Oysters with Julie Qiu - At the Table Podcast
6 Sources for Super-Fresh Mail-Order Oysters - Food & Wine
5 New York City Oyster Joints for Every Occasion - Fathom Away
Wild Oyster Reef Death Doesn't Equal A Bivalve Shortage - NPR