Our story began in 1947 when Philadelphia lawyer Samuel Mink purchased seafood restaurant Kelly's on Mole Street.

The Mink family has been serving Philadelphians fresh seafood at reasonable prices ever since... though the menu has changed from one generation to the next. 'Half Broiled Chicken with Waffles' is no longer available.

Kelly's was a 200-seat restaurant whose walls held the undisputed 'World's Largest Oyster Plate Collection'. Many of those plates hang on Oyster House's walls today.

'He begins each day at 6 a.m. and hand picks each fish he serves.'

'...the best food buy in the city was Philadelphia's old-time oyster houses. Oyster houses served good food cheap, in an atmosphere that was cheery, loud and clanking. If somebody didn't drop a tray at every meal, you felt cheated. Every customer knew the owner, had a waiter or waitress of choice, and a crony two tables away who called affectionate insults over plates of pepper hash, fried oysters, oyster stew and the inevitable stewed tomatoes. You weren't just dining here, you were participating in a ritual as sacred, and as unchangeable, as the Mummer's Parade.

-Jim Quinn, Philadelphia Inquirer

April 1987

On March 9, 1771, a Colonial legislature passed an act to prevent the destruction of rockfish and shellfish.

For nearly 200 years, it was illegal to eat oysters between May 10 and September 1...

...until the law was repealed in 1961. Kelly's had a party and burned the act.

In 1969 David Mink took over the family business at age 22...

...and moved to Oyster House's current address at 1516 Sansom St.  The restaurant was originally half the size, as what is now the bar was once a barber shop.

Sansom Street Oyster House was reminiscent of Kelly's, with wood-panelled walls and, of course, the oyster plates. But David had an eye on the future. 'We used to change the menu every six months', said David in a 1987 interview. 'Now it's twice a day. The menu's determined by what's available in the market that morning- we buy everything fresh every day.'

For decades, the waitstaff consisted of immigrant Irish women affectionately referred to as 'Kelly Girls'.

Many of these drinks fell into obscurity until the cocktail renaissance of the last decade. Rye was more popular than bourbon, and a glass of wine was 35 cents.

Samuel Mink with son David, who would eventually take over the family business.