And more oysters. And more oysters.

Buddy Harrison is a Chesapeake legend. He's been running charter boats into the Bay from Tilghman Island on fishing trips since Noah's flood receded and knows the waters better than most of the fish he catches. His Chesapeake House is known for its summertime lodging packages for anglers and boaters. The restaurant is popular for steamed crabs, too.

In the winter, the marina is a desolate place. The wind off the Bay is more than cold; it's a bitter, slicing, numbing entity that seems to be alive and delighting in forcing people inside.

If they take refuge at the Chesapeake House on a Friday night, that's not such a bad thing. Because Friday nights are oyster nights at Buddy's restaurant.

If there is a temple to the bivalve, the altar is at Harrison's Chesapeake House . On Friday nights, the dining room is devoted to the celebration and reverential consumption of the oyster in all of its varied preparations. Yes, you can order off the menu, so those who don't or can't enjoy oysters can savor all of the other seafood and steaks on offer. But most guests don't even ask to see it.

Their eyes are drawn to the buffet line. The long, tempting buffet line. The all-you-can-eat oyster overload buffet line.

You start at the far end, actually. Down where the dessert is (homemade bread pudding, done right -- moist, with cinnamon accents). A large, smiling gentleman sits besides a bushel basket of oysters. A master with the shucking knife, he's opening oysters as fast as his blade will allow. The gleaming morsels on a half shell are placed on mounds of ice that fill two serving tables where the waiting line of customers load them onto plates and carry them back to their tables.

There's a Jewish song sung during Passover called "Dayenu." Which means "if that's all there is, that's fine." It has to do with all of God's gifts and how each additional blessing is wonderful, and if there were no more, "Dayenu."

So if there were nothing more than the raw oysters, Dayenu. (Yes, I know that a Jewish song extolling the pleasures of a decidedly non-Kosher food than many Jews would never touch is a bit ironic, but God has a sense of humor, I think.)

But there is more. There are steamed oysters (Dayenu), fried oysters (Dayenu) , oyster fritters (Dayenu), oysters Rockefeller, oysters Chesapeake, and oyster stew. Dayenu, Dayenu, and Dayenu. In a nod towards the traditional oyster roast held at VFD halls all over the Eastern Shore, there are thick slices of fresh ham, stewed tomatoes, cole slaw, and really good lima beans. And more of those freshly shucked raw oysters, Ever so often, one of the kitchen help appears with another bushel of oval shells waiting to be pried open and slurped.

Mind you, some people would contend that this is an exercise in, well if not gluttony, certainly over-indulgence. But consider that oysters are high in protein, calcium, iron and zinc. Zinc deficiency causes the body to age prematurely. Consider that six oysters provide four times the recommended daily allowance of zinc. It's a health food!

If anyone needs further encouragement to restore the Bay and its bounty, to convince people to become part of the civilian oyster nursery project, to loosen the Federal monies needed to research the parasites that decimate the oysters -- haul them down to Harrison's on a Friday night.

The oyster buffet is offered every Friday night until the second Friday in April. It's $31 per head. Reservations are not required, but if you are bringing a big party, it's appreciated. 410-886-2121. www.chesapeakehouse.com