Original Oyster House Awaits Your Discovery

XX The Original Oyster House on Discovery Bay, 5781 Highway 101, Port Townsend. ($$ 1/2) Seafood, steaks, prime rib. Lunch ($6.95 to $8.95) 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday; noon to 4 p.m. Sunday (no midweek lunch). Dinner ($12 to $18) 5 to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday; until 10 p.m. Friday, Saturday. Full bar. Major credit cards. Nonsmoking areas. No pipes or cigars. Reservations: (206) 385-1785. ------------------------------------------------------------------- If you think oysters are an acquired taste that you have little likelihood of ever acquiring, drop into the Original Oyster House on Highway 101, a few miles west of Port Townsend on the road to Sequim.

It's on the water at Discovery Bay, the tide lapping at the restaurant's footings. The oysters under discussion, however, came from a few miles away.

"Our fresh oysters are the original Quilcene Pacifics," said partner and co-owner Debbie Erickson. "They are very popular. They're picked daily on Dabob Bay 13 miles south of here near Quilcene. People come from all over the area to try them. For those who are afraid to eat them raw, we recommend our Baked Oyster Hood Canal ($13.50), which we do with bay shrimp, crab Montrachet and barbecue sauce."

I'd try them au natural first, and I LIKE cooked oysters.

The Original Oyster House is one of those pleasant off-the-highway discoveries that offer the traveler a charming respite from the usual national chains - and is good enough to have developed a largely local clientele.

Craig and Debbie Erickson own it and run it. They're an unusual example of a formerly married couple who found they still like working together. Craig developed the menus and runs the kitchen. Debbie's in charge of the front of the house.

They earlier owned the Pleasant Beach Grill and Oyster House on Bainbridge Island.

Start off with the oysters, raw or cooked. They are served with a robust, horseradish-laden cocktail sauce and a crisp vinaigrette, but you may want to try them unadorned, or with a slight squeeze of lemon.

"A nonoyster lover can be converted by these things," said the Research Assistant.

Also popular is a rich (perhaps too rich) Seafood Chowder ($2.75 for a cup; $4.25 for a meal-size bowl and $4.75 for a take-out pint).

Salads come with robust housemade dressings - blue cheese, caesar, a Dijon ranch and a fine raspberry vinaigrette. The caesar is served with an anchovy draped ceremoniously over the top. In general, the salads are acceptable, if overdressed.

That's not true of the clientele. This is a laid-back, casual dinner house, with everything from anniversary celebrants to passing-through fishermen.

The place specializes in grilled king salmon and Alaska halibut in season (about $15), given a variety of treatments. I would opt for the simpler variations.

The Baked King Salmon with Smoked Salmon and Horseradish Crust is a novel twist for those too jaded to appreciate a generous fillet of fine fish, but the Grilled King Salmon with Hollandaise is a better choice.

"Some of the surface flavors are a bit rough," said one friend of the horseradish embellishment.

Another friend murmured happily over a large slice of fresh Grilled Halibut ($13.50) set off nicely by ginger-lime-cilantro butter and accompanied by a substantial mound of wild rice pilaf, dotted brightly with chopped red pepper, which did more for the eyes than the taste buds.

I tried something ornate called Halibut Neptune ($15.50). There was a lot of it: a big fillet, with large pieces of Dungeness crab, bay shrimp and hollandaise ladled over it. It was an elaborate, imposing entree that would have benefited from a little less heat. The thinner portions of the cut were somewhat overdone.

Dungeness Crab and Shrimp Cakes ($13.50) were well executed and boldly seasoned, if rather dense. Again, it's a lot of food. Pieces of crab and shrimp are added to sauteed red, green and jalapeno peppers, green onions, egg, bread crumbs and cream. It's served with a horseradish remoulade.

"We sell a lot of them," Craig Erickson said. "Our philosophy is to provide as much portion as we can for the money, and the people around here seem to like that."

The menu offers more than seafood. Salt-Roasted Prime Rib ($13.75 to $15.50, depending on the size of the cut) is served on weekend nights and usually sells out.

The waitress warns when the rarer cuts are gone ("But there's still some medium rare, tending toward medium . . .").

Veal Scallopini ($16) was imaginatively assembled and surprisingly tender. A dish I often avoid, this version was done with sun-dried tomatoes, mushrooms, pine nuts, Dijon mustard and basil pesto.

A medley of vegetables - cauliflower, broccoli and carrot steamed until barely done - came with all of the dinners.

The wine list is well-chosen and affordable ($12 to $20).

The Original Oyster House sits in the middle of an emerging condo resort. It's a pleasant, congenial spot, well-situated for a dinner on the way to or from the Olympic Peninsula. (Copyright, 1993, John Hinterberger. All rights reserved.)