After working in the restaurant industry for a decade, chef Rob White dreamed of someday opening a place of his own. He envisioned a small, intimate spot where people could have a full meal or just some oysters and a drink.
From that vision, White opened Liv’s on Second Street, where customers can enjoy chilled East Coast oysters and locally sourced seafood dishes, including lobster rolls and chowder bread bowls. Now five years on, the business is still going strong.
To celebrate the anniversary, White invited Loquat Oysters to join them for a fun, collaborative dinner on Friday. The special menu they have been developing for weeks features items like white peach and mint crème-dressed oysters and a halibut po’ boy sandwich. Reservations can be made online under the “Experiences” section on OpenTable, with a $16 deposit and dishes priced between $16 and $34.
“It’s just another day, but it’s cool that they’re joining us because, you know, the five-year thing seems like a big deal,” White said.
White is excited to have reached this milestone, but he thinks there is still more work to be done before he can call it a true success.
“It still feels the same as when we first opened, in the sense that it doesn’t feel, to me personally, like we’ve made it,” White said.
Despite feeling like he’s still trying to prove himself, Liv’s isn’t going anywhere, White said.
“I’d love to be on the street like the other restaurants for, you know, 20, 30 years,” he said.
Over the past five years, Liv’s has changed a lot, particularly in their approach to food and the menu, and White said he is really the only thing that has stayed the same. These changes come from team members bringing in fresh ideas and a commitment to continuously work to make Liv’s better. That work will continue as the restaurant moves forward.
“My favorite part of owning Liv’s is probably the constant evolution,” White said.
When White opened the restaurant in 2021, he named it after the daughter he someday hoped to have. Though he doesn’t really see himself having kids in the future anymore, the name has grown to really fit his restaurant.
“It gives us a blank slate at times to be creative and do things that we want to do,” White said.
Within this blank canvas, White is creating the restaurant he has always dreamed of in a community that he really loves.
Liv’s, 5327 Second St., is open Mondays and Wednesday through Friday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday through Sunday from noon to 9 p.m.