Freshly harvested Jervis Bay mussels are hitting the grill at the Jervis Bay Shellfish Market in Woollamia. We sit down with aquaculture veteran Hika Rountree to uncover the patience, seasonal indicators and morning boat runs behind these plump local delicacies. From coastal wattle blooms to homemade garlic butter, trace the short journey from suspended longlines to your lunch table.
Next up in our Spring Menu Series, we are following a hot new local menu item back to where it all began, the aquaculture farming, the harvesting, and the people who make it possible— the trail leads straight back here to the heart of Jervis Bay.
For the first time, freshly harvested Jervis Bay mussels are being served hot from the grill at Jervis Bay Shellfish Market in Woollamia’s business district. It may be a small addition to the menu, but there is a much bigger story behind those delicious grilled mussels.
We were invited to join mussel farmer Hika Rountree and his crew for an early morning trip aboard their harvest boat, Blue Revolution, to see the process first-hand. Unfortunately, large swells and the weather had other ideas with safety a priority for all. Instead we sat down with Hika, who brings decades of shellfish aquaculture experience from New Zealand and Australia, and he gave us an invaluable insight to share with our readers into what happens between those ropes going in the water and the mussels eventually landing on our plates.
It turns out to involve a lot more knowledge, patience and careful timing than simply dropping a rope into the sea and waiting.
Life between the ropes
Fresh from the waters of Jervis Bay, these mussels have travelled only a short distance to reach the grill on Bolten Street Woollamia. They are grown on suspended horizontal lines known as longlines on the north-western waters of the Bay, about 1.2km southeast of Callala Beach.
There are six longlines on the farm, holding an estimated 50 to 60 tonnes of mussels. In a good week, around 8 to 10 tonnes can be harvested, but getting that harvest out of the water is never simply a matter of following a calendar.
For Hika, farming mussels is about understanding the conditions around the farm and knowing when the mussels are ready. Their size and condition, water temperature and the weather all play a part. Then there is the safety of the people doing the work.
“There is a fine line between staff and vessel safety,” Hika explains, with the skipper ultimately making the call on whether it is safe to head out.
That decision can affect more than the day’s harvest. If the vessel cannot safely get onto the water, it can also determine what makes it through to the processing plant and, ultimately, what is available for customers.
“There is no rushing it,” says Hika, “Mussels have their own growing seasons, much like vegetables on land, and reading those seasons is part of understanding the farm.”
Reading the Season from the Shore
Hika has great respect for the knowledge of the local custodians and the ways Country can be read through changes in the landscape. It is an understanding he has carried into his own approach to farming the sea, paying attention to what is happening around the farm as well as within it.
One of his seasonal indicators is the first flowering of the local Coastal Wattle, Acacia longifolia subsp sophorae, growing around the shores of Jervis Bay.
“When we see the first season blooms of our native wattles, it is an indicator our mussels are at their most mature stage being plump, sweet and juicy,” he says. It is another way of reading the season, looking beyond the ropes and into the landscape around them.
From Harvest to Factory
Once the mussels are harvested, the next part of the journey moves quickly.
“Within two hours of harvest, our mussels are inspected and graded on the belt,” says Hika. They are then submerged in 400-kilogram wet-storage bins filled with Jervis Bay seawater selected close to the farm, before being packed the following day into 1-kilogram MAPP packs then sent out the door at their freshest.
There are strict guidelines around the process, particularly with the constantly changing weather and water environment. Water from the farm is sampled fortnightly and sent to laboratories in Victoria for testing, helping monitor the conditions the mussels are growing in and maintain quality from farm to factory. It is a tightly managed process, but one that still starts with something as unpredictable as the weather and when to harvest.
A Lifetime on the Water
Hika brings decades of shellfish aquaculture experience to the operation.
His connection with mussels began in New Zealand in the 1990s, when he worked alongside his father on the Challenger Scallop Enhancement Program. Green mussel spat was discovered as an unexpected by-catch, eventually leading the family into growing mussels, scallops and oysters.
Those early years shaped an approach that still guides his work today: watch the environment, understand what it is telling you and work with it rather than trying to force it.
Hika also brings his knowledge of oysters to the farm, with short harvest ocean-finished Sydney Rocks recently reaching around 40mm, developing a deeply mineral character reminiscent of New Zealand’s famous Bluff oysters and those who are familiar to the great Bluffs couldn’t agree more.
Here in Jervis Bay, that means paying attention to the water, the weather, the mussels themselves and the changing seasons. The mussels need to grow as they filter nutrients from the surrounding water, with the natural environment doing much of the work.
Towards the end of our interview we shared a familiar favourite, we both love a good New Zealand mussel fritter, which brought back one of those food memories from my time working at the farm, swapping out the Friday staff BBQ and introducing a mussel fritter production line on one very large catering paella pan, there were left overs for days. Some food memories stick with you, and a mountain of freshly cooked, golden mussel fritters is certainly one of them.
We asked Hika what he loves most about his Australian blue lip mussels, and his answer came back to the people who eat them.
“I enjoy walking past cafés and restaurants and seeing Jervis Bay mussels written on the sandwich boards, then the smiles on people’s faces as they are eating them.”
He is proud that a product grown here is now enjoyed around the world. For Hika, the deeper waters of Jervis Bay help produce a sweeter, plumper mussel, and their versatility means they can be cooked in all sorts of ways.
“There is something particularly satisfying about eating them so close to where they were grown within a short time, from under the grill, you can look out towards the Bay where they came from.”
Hika’s favourite way to eat a mussel is even simpler: steamed, with a squeeze of lemon, a crack of pepper and an ice-cold beer.
More of the Bay on the Menu
The new grilled Jervis Bay mussels are available Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 11am to 1pm, or until sold out. Half a dozen are grilled to order for $10, with a choice of house-made garlic butter or creamy mornay sauce, prepared by shop manager Dani Bart.
There is more to explore from the grill, with half a local lobster served with mornay for $31 or garlic butter for $29. Oysters are available Kilpatrick or mornay, at $33 a dozen or $17 for half a dozen.
Speaking with Dani who has been part of Jervis Bay Mussels since late 2021 and is very much part of the team, she says, “Everything we make is made with love and care, right down to our sauces, which are all made from scratch and prepared fresh daily.
“I take a lot of pride in what comes out of our kitchen, and I love knowing that we’re serving our customers something fresh, homemade and full of flavour. One of my favourite parts of the job has always been experimenting with new ideas, creating different flavours and seeing those ideas come to life. There’s honestly no better feeling than watching customers enjoy something you’ve put your own time, effort and passion into creating.”
The grilled mussels have already won a large following, with around 50 dozen or more sold. For Dani, serving mussels grown right here in Jervis Bay makes the new grilled offering specially rewarding.
She says, “It’s about showcasing the incredible local produce we have right on our doorstep. I’ve been working at the farm since late 2021, and I still remember my very first day. I started during one of our busiest periods, right when COVID had knocked most of the team out.
“My first shift was actually alongside Hika and Scott, and we were all learning as we went. It was definitely a case of being thrown in the deep end, but I had to learn quickly, and looking back, I wouldn’t have had it any other way. I’ve learnt so much over the years and it’s been lovely being part of the farm’s journey.”
Instant Gratification
The small outdoor area right outside the Shellfish Market shop has a couple of large shaded tables surrounded by herb-filled planter boxes, giving you a front-row feel to the daily workings of Jervis Bay Mussels while you eat your piping hot food. You might hear the mussels being processed behind the shop, or see the refrigerated trucks arriving and being loaded as the harvest continues to move through the day. You cannot access the processing side of the premises, but sitting outside, you can still feel part of it all. Another popular recommendation is heading out to one of the local beaches with your grill boxes or follow the locals to White Sands Park in Huskisson, where the barbecue tables and shaded grassy spaces are perfect for a relaxed shellfish lunch.
For this season’s series, it’s the kind of menu addition that tells a bigger story. What looks like a simple plate of grilled mussels has travelled from the ropes in Jervis Bay to the harvest boat, through grading and chilling, before making the short journey back to shore and onto the menu.
Sometimes the most local food stories are the ones sitting right in front of us. You just have to follow them back to the source.
