A 200-year-old Boston seafood institution is about to bought by a billionaire family in Texas, according to Wicked Local media partner WCVB.
The outlet reported that Union Oyster House, which was established in 1826, is set to be bought by the family of Landry’s owner Tilman Fertitta, according to a Fertitta family spokesperson.
For over the last 50 years, the Union Oyster House has been owned by retired US Army Brig. Gen. Joe Milano, who also serves as the honorary consul general to Thailand in Boston. Milano lived in Lynnfield for 45 years before he became a Boston resident, according to a 2025 interview with 01940 Magazine.
Here’s what you need to know about the history behind Union Oyster House and the Fertitta family.
Union Oyster House’s Boston history
Before it was a classic restaurant (located between Haymarket and Faneuil Hall), the Oyster House was a dry goods store and also served as the headquarters for the Continental Army’s paymaster back in 1775.
“There is no reason to doubt that Washington himself was familiar with its surroundings,” the Union Oyster House website reads. “At the very spot where diners today enjoy their favorite New England specialties, Federal troops received their ‘war wages’ in the official pay-station.”
In 1826, the store closed and the Union Oyster House opened (originally under the name Atwood and Bacon). The restaurant endured, even serving the Kennedy family and President John F. Kennedy himself.
“Since 1826, the Union Oyster House has known only three owners,” the website reads. “Carrying on proud traditions in dining and service since 1970 have been Mr. Joseph A. Milano Jr. and Ms. Mary Ann Milano Picardi.”
More: Boston has nation’s oldest continuously run restaurant. Where to find it
Who is the Fertitta family
The family of Tilman Fertitta, owner of the Houston Rockets and Gold Nugget Casinos, is also comprised of his four children, who help him run his various enterprises. They used to own the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The patriarch of the Fertitta family is worth $11.2 billion, according to Forbes.
The prospective new owners of Union Oyster House are no strangers to the restaurant industry. Fertitta owns the restaurant group Landry’s, meaning they own the following businesses as well as many others:
Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse
McCormick and Schmick’s
Union Oyster House would be another feather in their cap, should the deal go through.
Rin Velasco is a trending reporter. She can be reached at rvelasco@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on wickedlocal.com: Billionaire family to buy Boston’s 200-year-old oyster house
Dining and Cooking