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Boston Globe

The lost story of the former slave who opened one of Providence's first restaurants and elevated the oyster

The establishment was located on Town Street, which is now South Main Street, near the site of the old Custom House where The business's name — if it even had one — has been lost in history, much like the story of Bernoon and his oyster house. Related : Advertisement 'Oysters were sloppy and dirty. And they were cheap,' said Robb Dimmick, the co-founder and program director of But oysters play a critical culinary role in Black history in America — as much as the ham bones and hominy grits that enslaved people cooked in the South, according to the National Museum of African American History & Culture. On the East Coast, Black vendors would peddle oysters on city streets. They served them During the 19th century, long after Bernoon's restaurant opened, oysters were still associated with working class bars and brothels. And then in 1825 Thomas Downing, an Related : Advertisement Later dubbed the Black oyster king of New York, Downing was a fine-dining pioneer, who served elite businessmen and rubbed shoulders with wealthy aristocrats. He also created a path to freedom through the oyster industry for those who were still enslaved. Today, oysters can be found at scores of But Downing's success in New York — and American's love for oysters — was built upon Bernoon's efforts in Providence. When Bernoon opened his restaurant on Town Street, most families cooked at home and dining out was a rarity. But Bernoon's oyster bar was located nearly at the mouth of Narragansett Bay, so people coming into port had to walk by his oyster house. That attracted business immediately, from sea captains, sailors, merchants, and the residents of the 15 houses along Town Street. Advertisement 'We know for a fact that Bernoon was serving the elites of Rhode Island and those who came into the port,' said Dimmick. 'As an emancipated slave, Bernoon satisfied the cravings a thirsty generation and softened the heart of the softening town by way of a gratified and contented stomach.' Related : Bernoon took the humble oyster and served them on tables set with glass cups and expensive pewter plates — status symbols for the upper and middle classes at the time. Serving oysters on pewter may have been Bernoon's attempt to elevate them, noted 'We forget how much food was eaten on wood,' said Rickman. Bernoon's restaurant brought him success. When he died in 1769, he had amassed a house and personal estate valued at 539 pounds — the equivelent of about $175,000 today. He left the estate, 10 shillings, and pieces of china to his wife, according to his will, which is in the city's archive. His establishment was 'successfully competing with the eating places run by white men,' wrote Advertisement Bernoon was laid to rest in the Some historians, such as Rickman, also believe Bernoon's establishment was the first oyster bar in the country. 'There's nothing else recorded,' said Rickman. 'So we have to go off of what we know. Emmanuel "Manno" Bernoon, a formerly enslaved man who was freed in 1736, is buried in North Burial Ground in Providence, R.I. Jonathan Wiggs/Globe Staff Alexa Gagosz can be reached at