A First Look at Bearwalrus

“If I ever open an oyster bar, I’m going to call it Bearwalrus,” Phil Spencer said to himself after the first time he met his now-soon-to-be brother-in-law. “He said, ‘Who is this big bearwalrus?’” Spencer recalls. “And according to him, it was not meant as a compliment, but I thought it was a really cool name.”

What’s even cooler is the menu at this Rock Hill, South Carolina, restaurant whose focus is indeed oysters but also Texas-style barbecue and a strong bar program. “Those are literally my two favorite food groups,” says Spencer, who is a native of York County but has worked in Charleston and Atlanta kitchens, where he developed a love of brisket. He returned to his home county three years ago to open a butcher shop, Longbottom Meats. “I’ve been cooking Texas style barbecue for probably 10 years or so now. And I’ve been eating raw oysters since I was, like, three years old.” He says the combo works based on a surprisingly simple pairing premise: “The oysters are so salty, and the Texas barbecue rub is based heavily on pepper—so, you know, salt and pepper.”

Bearwalrus seats 85, with a long community table and bar, and a dining bar that overlooks the large open kitchen, all housed in a historic building next to the former Rock Hill printing and finishing factory where Spencer’s grandparents once worked. “Right where they worked is where I work now. We wanted to keep as much original to the building as we could. ”The brick is original, and the community dining table, bars, and liquor shelves are sourced from the building’s original wood. Pews from a 19^th-century church provide seating along the walls, which are painted “gentleman’s gray,” which has an eel green tone that Spencer felt bridged ocean and land. Décor includes photos of Spencer’s grandmother’s framed recipes.

“You can really feel the history here. It’s kind of cool that this building has been here for 180 years at this point, and we hope we’re gonna help get it to 200.”

Spencer compiled what he calls a “greatest hits” menu of dishes he’s been making for a long time, many of which are homages to chefs and places he’s admired and enjoyed over the years. The Bearwalrus kitchen utilizes products from roughly 40 local farms in dishes like heirloom cornbread made with Sea Island blue cornmeal from Marsh Hen Mill. 

Bearwalrus smokes items like brisket and wings on a Texas-built smoker with white oak from South Carolina, and they also utilize a wood-burning grill for dishes like the ember-roasted bone marrow with pickles and sourdough, which can be upgraded with a pour of Jameson to shoot down the bone when you’re through. They also use the prime brisket in a beef tartare with oyster aioli and a fried oyster on top, and their 8-ounce burger, which is ground out of brisket scraps and smoked to mid-rare, then finished on the flat top with American cheese, pickles, onions, and Duke’s mayo.

Other land-based proteins include a half chicken, Duroc spare ribs, housemade sausages, and steak frites with steak sourced from Longbottom Meats. Seafood is also in rich supply; in addition to starters like peel-and-eat shrimp sourced from Tarvin in Charleston, and a daily rotating ceviche sourced with fish from either the Gulf or the Carolina coast, Spencer, who used to own a fish camp, offers a fried fish plate and a rotating wood-fired fish special seasoned simply with lemon, chile butter, and garlic.

Then, of course, there are oysters. “We have four different types of oysters at all times,” Spencer says. The “good oyster” is often a James River or Chesapeake Bay and is also used in the grilled oyster dish. The “awesome oyster” is from the Northeast, a PEI or Blue Point, and the “baller oyster” options are currently Beausoleils from New Brunswick and Kumamotos from the West Coast.

Sides rotate with the seasons, but Spencer says guests can always expect to find slaw, potato salad, mac and cheese, and beans. Current seasonal options are a sweet corn summer salad, chilled black-eyed pea salad, end-of-season heirloom tomato salad, watermelon salad, and buttermilk Caesar salad. Bearwalrus sources desserts from the pastry program at Amelie’s French Bakery and Café: “coconut cake because that was my grandfather’s favorite, chocolate cake because that’s my favorite, and key lime pie.”

At the bar, 14 rotating draft beers are anchored by Coors Light and Shiner Bock, another nod to Texas. Cocktails lean toward Southern-influenced classics like a julep and a sazerac. There’s also a frozen gin and tonic, a Hemingway daiquiri, and at happy hour, a 2-ounce gin mini-tini for $6. For fun, Spencer again pulls from his family history with My Redneck Cousin, Mexican Coke served in the bottle with 100-proof Evan Williams and peanuts. “We’re just trying to have a little fun with it and introduce a proper cocktail. I’m into proper glassware, proper ice,” Spencer says. “I like to sit at a bar and have a properly made drink.”

Bearwalrus is a place with broad appeal in the best of ways. “If you want to come in and have two dozen oysters and a steak and a nice fish and a nice dessert, go for it,” Spencer says. “But if you want to come in at happy hour and have two oysters and a mini-tini and some chicken wings, go for it. We’re very much into quality in everything we do.”

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