Rain comes down but Oyster Festival in Oyster Bay goes on

The rain was pouring, but the shucking continued as the 40th annual Oyster Festival got off to a soggy start in Oyster Bay on Saturday.

A few thousand still braved the elements for the kickoff to the two-day festival, which typically draws more than 150,000 people to Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park.

For some, that was part of the appeal.

“On a nice day, you could spend half an hour on this line,” said Isabella Tsioptsias of Oyster Bay, huddling under a tent to enjoy oysters on the half shell with her cousin Charlette Hamamgian, who visits from Queens every year just for the festival.

Rain didn’t deter what has become an annual tradition for the oyster-lovers.

“It’s great for the community and makes a lot of money for local charities, sports and things like that,” Tsioptsias, 48, added.

The bivalves were the main attraction of the event hosted by the Oyster Bay Rotary Club that also featured food, artisan vendors and live music. Proceeds from the festival are donated to several nonprofit organizations.

“It’s an incredible event,” said Oyster Bay Rotary president Monica Rubin. “We had to wear a poncho at times, but it’s a little bit of rain. We don’t melt. It’s still a beautiful day.”

There was no shortage of seafood to feast on, from tried-and-true favorites like fried oysters served by the Mill River Rod & Gun Club to new offerings like wood-fired oysters and clams oreganata prepared by Anthony Castelli of La Parma in Huntington.

“You get a little smoky flavor in there and they cook within two to three minutes,” Castelli said, warming his hands by the brick oven.

With temperatures barely above 50 degrees, soup was a popular pick.

At a table near the main food court, a Syosset father and his 13-year-old son chased a plate of oysters with a sampling of Manhattan and New England style clam chowders, debating the merits of each.

Nearby, 14-year-old Johnny Huang of Queens prepared to try chowders with his brother, Zi, 19. The pair agreed that the food was the best part of the festival, along with spending time as a family. “We’ve been coming for five or six years,” Huang said. “This is the only time that we’re all free together.”

Festival organizers estimate that more than 60,000 oysters will be shucked and served throughout the weekend — and their shells won’t go to waste.

Colorful bins marked for shell recycling were spotted around the festival as part of an effort to bolster shellfish spawning grounds in the harbor, where millions of oysters and clams are “seeded” every year.

“There are a lot of areas [on the bay bottom] that are really muddy and oysters can only grow on hard surfaces,” said Sara Covelli, 28, an environmental specialist who works for the town of Oyster Bay.

The town has been collecting discarded shells from more than a dozen local restaurants and last year took in six tons alone from the festival, Covelli said.

Saturday marked the fourth straight rainy weekend for Long Island and festival organizers are crossing their fingers for better weather as the event continues on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

There is a 30% chance of rain before 8 a.m. Sunday, but clouds are expected to clear out and the high temperature will be around 56 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.

Carnival rides, which were shuttered Saturday because of the weather, are expected to be open Sunday. The annual oyster shucking and eating contests were also postponed until 2 p.m. on Sunday. Contestants will race the clock to shuck as many oysters as they can in four minutes, or slurp down as many of the delicacies as possible in two minutes and 40 seconds.

“It’s something that people really look forward to,” said co-production director Patrick Greenawalt. “We want to make sure they have the opportunity to watch it.”