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All the United States Florida Orlando Lee & Rick’s Oyster Bar
Gastro Obscura

Lee & Rick’s Oyster Bar

One of the oldest restaurants in Orlando is a no-frills seafood shack still shucking fresh oysters by the bucket.

Orlando, Florida

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Luke Fater
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When it opened in 1950, Lee & Rick’s was a 9-seat countertop eatery, but it’s since grown to house an 80-foot counter as well as table seating.   Courtesy of Lee & Rick’s Oyster Bar
When it opened in 1950, Lee & Rick’s was a 9-seat countertop eatery, but it’s since grown to house an 80-foot counter as well as table seating.   Courtesy of Lee & Rick’s Oyster Bar
Oysters are shucked to order by the dozen, unless you’re seated at the counter where you can order by the bucket.   Courtesy of Lee & Rick’s Oyster Bar
Besides oysters, this Orlando institution offers a range of steamed and fried seafood, including shrimp and snow crab.   Courtesy of Lee & Rick’s Oyster Bar
A photo of the original husband-and-wife team, Lee & Rick.   Courtesy of Lee & Rick’s Oyster Bar
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About

In a suburban pocket of West Orlando, there’s a restaurant with a façade resembling a red-and-white ship, named the "USS Lee & Ricks." Inside, wooden walls are lined with historic photos and the jukebox plays nothing but classic rock. If it seems like a vestige of another time, that’s because it is—with a loyal following after 75 years in business, Lee and Rick’s Oyster Bar is the oldest original family-run restaurant in Orlando.

When Lee and Rick’s Oyster Bar opened in 1950, it was a nine-stool eatery shucking fresh oysters for locals over a small concrete bar. Husband-and-wife team Lee and Rick Richter ran the restaurant up front while raising their family in the back (including today’s owner, Gene), with Rick making weekly drives to Apalachicola for fresh oysters and Lee keeping BYO beers cold in the ice box. The restaurant has today expanded to house an 80-foot concrete bar, air conditioning, and table service, but the spirit of a no-frills, family-owned seafood shack remains.

The menu includes steamed seafood like mussels served with corn and butter as well as fried options like crab cakes and gator bites. The star of Lee and Rick’s is, of course, its oysters. They’re harvested wild from around the Gulf (primarily Louisiana and Texas) and shucked to order over the concrete bar. Rather than order by the dozen or half-dozen, customers at the counter can choose to order by the bucket (and at wildly affordable prices, to boot). For those sitting at the bar, they’re served on the half-shell straight on the counter—no plate needed—before customers slurp them down and toss the shells into a trough. Oysters are served with a sleeve of crackers and can be ordered “ice cold raw” or "piping hot steamed."

Of course, you can’t go wrong with any of Lee and Rick’s seafood dinners to round out the meal, with options like fried fantail shrimp, clam strips, catfish fillets, and more. And it wouldn’t be old-school Florida without a key lime pie on the dessert menu. 

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Seafood Restaurants Oysters

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If the front lot is full, there is parking along the side and rear of the restaurant as well.

Community Contributors

Added By

lukefater

Edited By

traceywilson

  • traceywilson

Published

April 24, 2024

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Sources
  • https://leeandricksoysterbar.com/about-us
  • https://10best.usatoday.com/destinations/florida/orlando/west-orlando/restaurants/lee-ricks-oyster-bar/
  • https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2019/09/16/lee-ricks-oyster-bar-aint-boutique-its-old-florida/
  • https://www.orlandoweekly.com/location/lee-and-ricks-oyster-bar-2285469
Lee & Rick’s Oyster Bar
5621 Old Winter Garden Rd
Orlando, Florida, 32811
United States
28.53882, -81.456917
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