The Newport Oyster & Chowder Festival Returns to Bowen’s Wharf to Kick off the Summer Season

MEDIA CONTACT:
Adrienne Krueger, Marketing Communications Manager
adrienne@bowenswharf.com
Bowen's Wharf Company
401-849-2243
13 Bowen's Wharf
www.bowenswharf.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Newport Oyster & Chowder Festival Returns to Bowen’s Wharf to Kick off the Summer Season
Newport, RI – The Newport Oyster & Chowder Festival will return to Bowen’s Wharf this weekend in downtown Newport as the first large-scale event in the area to take place after over a year of cancellations due to the pandemic. This rain or shine festival begins Friday, May 21 at 6pm and runs through Sunday, May 23 at 6pm, bringing together local oyster growers, select restaurant vendors, signature beverage sponsors and live music to kick off the season in the City by the Sea.

After a gap year in 2020, the event has celebrated the Rhode Island aquaculture seafood industry in what has become an important community event for Newport, the environment and the local economy. “We started the festival in 2016 to focus on Rhode Island’s growers, with their diverse varieties and excellent quality. Now we’ve added clam chowder to the mix, another New England staple, and it’s more important than ever to showcase these restaurants and oyster farmers and their products which are harvested right here in our backyards, and to emphasize an integral part of the economy that aquaculture plays,” says Bart Dunbar, President of Bowen’s Wharf Company.

Tickets have been sold online in advance and a limited quantity will be available at the door, as wristbands will be required to access the festival tents in several “sessions” throughout the weekend. The schedule is as follows:

Friday, May 21st, 6-9 pm
Opening Night Party | Cost of admission: $60
Includes a dozen oyster/chowder tokens and alcoholic beverage
Saturday, May 22nd
Cost of admission: $40
Includes six oyster/chowder tokens
SESSION 1 – 11am-1pm | SESSION 2 – 1:30pm-3:30pm | SESSION 3 – 4pm-6pm

Sunday, May 23rd
Cost of admission: $40
Includes six oyster/chowder tokens
SESSION 1 – 11am-1pm | SESSION 2 – 1:30pm-3:30pm | SESSION 3 – 4pm-6pm

The event will benefit both the Ocean State Aquaculture Association and Rhode Island’s official
flagship, Oliver Hazard Perry, kicking off the weekend with a single Friday evening session,
which offers three hours to enjoy a dozen oysters (or several chowder samples) and alcoholic
beverage included in the ticket price. A full bar and other food provided by local restaurants will
also be available for purchase. The festivities will continue Saturday and Sunday with café-style
seating throughout the wharf and outdoor bar service, which will not require a ticket to access.
Tokens will be sold on site for $2 each, which can then be redeemed for additional oysters from
six different local growers or samples of fresh chowder. Not a fan of oysters? Participating
chowder vendors and select restaurants such as Diego’s, Matunuck Oyster Bar, Speakeasy Bar &
Grill, Blue Rocks Catering and Newport Chowder Company will serve up their most celebrated
recipes and dishes, including non-seafood items too! Treats from vendors like Sweet B’s Donuts,
Mooseman’s Kettle Corn and Sprinkles Ice Cream will sweeten the event.
Meet and mingle with these local growers on-site:
• Salt Pond Oyster Co.
• Matunuck Oyster Farm
• Watch Hill Oysters
• Behan Family Farms
• East Beach Oyster Co.
• Walrus & Carpenter Oysters

Beverages will include specialty cocktails from brands like Don Julio, Captain Morgan,
Tanqueray, Bulleit, Belvedere and Ardbeg whiskey, along with crisp wines from Cloudy Bay
and Whispering Angel. Moët & Chandon will provide the bubbly, with their signature Moët
Minis and Chandon’s AluMinis™ in Rosé and Garden Spritz varieties. If beer is more your style,
Guinness and Rhode Island’s own Whalers will be sampling and serving up cold brews to pair
with the oysters. Chevrolet joins as another sponsor this year, so in between bites and sips, be
sure to check out the stylish Corvette and Tahoe on display along famed America’s Cup Avenue.
Live music will enliven the waterfront all weekend long!

Friday, May 21, 2021
6pm – 9pm: Jake Kulak & The Lowdown – Blues & Classic Rock

Saturday, May 22, 2021
11am – 1pm: Timeless – Classic Rock & Oldies
1pm – 3pm: The Teledynes – Surf Rock
3pm – 6pm: CBD – Soulful R&B, Rock w/ a touch of Country

Sunday, May 23, 2021
11am – 1pm: Mel & The Unruly Roots – Folk Rock
1pm – 3pm: The Z Boys – Surf Rock
3pm – 5pm: The Copacetics – Reggae & Ska

The Jamestown Newport Ferry will also be offering special express service to Bowen’s Wharf to
transport guests from Jamestown to and from the festivities: https://www.conanicutmarina.com/express-events/newport-oyster-chowder-festival

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About Bowen’s Wharf – The Anchor of Newport
Centrally located at the foot of Newport’s Historic Hill, along America’s Cup Avenue, Bowen's
Wharf offers public access to Newport's famed waterfront. Historically, it was the vital
commercial port of thriving pre-revolutionary Rhode Island, and it is still commercially
important today. A full-service marina, restaurants & eateries, tours, boutiques & galleries as
well as events make it a year-round destination. No matter the season, a visit to Bowen's Wharf
is enlivening and educational! www.bowenswharf.com