The story behind this restaurant begins with Xinh (say sin) Dwelley winning the West Coast Oyster Shucking Championship five times while in the employ of Taylor Shellfish Farms, the largest shellfish. The story behind this restaurant begins with Xinh (say sin) Dwelley winning the West Coast Oyster Shucking Championship five times while in the employ of Taylor Shellfish Farms, the largest shellfish grower/processor in the West. Her energy, personality and ability could not be ignored, so Taylor asked her to set up a small retail operation at its processing plant outside Shelton, on Puget Sound's southwestern shores. Soon, on little camp stoves, she's was cooking meals for Taylor's managers and visiting VIP customers, employing skills she had acquired as a girl on an American Army base in her native Vietnam. By marrying Taylor's fresh-from-the-water shellfish to Asian flavors, Dwelley added a measure of culinary fame to her shucking renown.

Half-jokingly one day, Dwelley told her bosses they ought to buy her a restaurant. The bosses took this seriously, and, when a space became available in downtown Shelton, this splendid place was born.

Brightly colored in turquoise against a beige background, with shellfish shells bleaching in the windows and chopsticks on the tables, Xinh's is a place to relax over a long, multi-course meal. In summer, visitors predominate. On winter weekends, this is a favorite stop for locals. Everyone's casual, service is warm and friendly — and knowledgeable. (Don't hesitate to seek Dwelley's advice.)

Though the menu includes items like beef with black bean sauce, chicken curry and seared catfish, the jewels here come from Taylor's nearby saltwater farms: Mediterranean mussels, oysters and clams. Dwelley prepares them spectacularly well, stressing simplicity but not plainness. Her oyster stew, for example, is chockablock with bivalves in creamy broth flavored by scallions and celery. She bakes oysters with black beans, bacon, parmesan, garlic and basil. She steams clams with black-bean sauce, aromatic vegetables and basil and serves them with jasmine rice. (Of course, she also serves oysters on the half-shell…