Popular lore has it that oysters are an aphrodisiac. This will be put to the test, literally, on Saturday at the Harbor View Hotel as part of the annual Romancing the Oyster event. Tests will be taken before and after eating each oyster — written, verbal and new this year, by heat-o-meter. Plus, everyone who consumes a dozen or more oysters will be ushered into a VIP fishbowl and watched closely by experts and everyone else at the party.

Just kidding. There will be no tests or acts of voyeurism. But there will be lots of oysters — and it will be just a few days before Valentine’s Day.

The party is on Saturday, Feb. 10, from 6 to 8 p.m. Oysters are supplied by local oyster farmers. The event is cocktail style, with some stations, passed hors d’oeuvres and local raw bars. And most important, it is a fundraiser for The Martha’s Vineyard Shellfish Group, a non-profit organization comprised of the shellfish departments of the six Island towns, and the reason Martha’s Vineyard has such a wide variety of delicious oysters.

Tickets are $60, available at brownpapertickets.com/event/3322603.

Let the romance begin.