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Man finds valuable pearl while eating oysters at New York City restaurant

Posted at 6:43 PM, Dec 17, 2018
and last updated 2018-12-17 18:43:02-05

EDGEWATER, N.J. – Rick Antosh keeps being told that the world is his oyster.

With odds of perhaps one in 100,000, the retired hospitality executive found a pearl in his oyster pan roast at, Grand Central’s Oyster Bar in Manhattan, where he was having lunch with a high school buddy in early December.

"I just all of a sudden felt something like a tooth or a filling and it’s terrifying," Antosh told WPIX. "And then holy crap, I realized it’s not a tooth, it’s a pearl."

When he finally realized that it wasn’t a tooth, the 66-year-old father of two adult children called the Oyster Bar, trying to figure out what to do next.

"I got the floor manager and asked how often does this happen, and he said 'I’ve never heard of that happening yet,'" Antosh told WPIX.

The Edgewater resident has not gotten the pearl appraised yet but some pearl experts estimate it’s worth is between $2,000 and $4,000.

Antosh says he will definitely be returning to the Oyster Bar at Grand Central to search for more hidden treasures.

“Yea, I’m on a roll,” he added with a chuckle.