Conscious Choice: Fish Math

July 2008 | Healthy Living :: Tastebuds

Fish Math

Seattle chefs do their homework on what we should eat — under the sea

By Amy Pennington

Used to be the most difficult question asked over a lovely dinner out was “Red or white?” These days, as we become privy to more and more information about where our food comes from, I often find myself running a well-rehearsed Q&A with my server. “Where is the beef in your burger from?” “Do you have any organic wines on your list?” “Where are you finding strawberries this time of year?” and so on and so forth. By the time I’m ready to order, what I really need is a cocktail. And while I’ve grown more concerned about my veggies, meats and grains over the years, I hadn’t given much pause to consider our neighboring oceans.

In our region, and the world over, the waters we pluck food from (as with farmland) are susceptible to the growing pressures we place on them as our population increases. And with the population comes an increase in the universal demand for food.

Overfishing, bycatch (unwanted or unintentional catch), habitat damage and aquaculture are some of the key issues surrounding our oceans depleted fish stocks. As with most complex problems, there is no clear answer on how to improve the odds of continued and long-lasting fish stocks in the Pacific Northwest. Depending on who you ask, the answers will fluctuate, so it becomes (like most eco-decisions) a personal choice.

Fortunately for the consumer, there is a sea of information available for to make educated choices. An in-pocket guide of sustainable fish recommendations is available from Seafood Watch (www.seafoodwatch.org). The Marine Stewardship Council, a certification program for global fisheries with reliable fish stocks and fishing practices (www.msc.org) that includes a fancy sticker on the final product. My personal favorite, however, is the conscious contingency of local chefs doing their seafood homework. And thank goodness, because if you’ve ever tried to do the “fish math” yourself, it’s likely made your head spin. Luckily, the following folks share their hard work and allow us all to “cheat” a little.

Lark
926 12th Avenue, Seattle
206.323.5275
larkseattle.com

I can’t help but stand in awe and appreciation of Chef Jonathon Sundstrom of Lark. It seems whenever I’m at some farm fundraiser, salmon sustainability luncheon or educational foodie conference, I run into him. A long-time member of Slow Food Seattle, Sundstrom supported the local, organic food movement well before it was cool to do so. He is the brains behind the brawn that is Lark Restaurant, a small and intimate space on Capitol Hill. Recently, I had the fortune of dining on a delicious Washington salmon fillet (served with English peas and a lemon-y sauce). That’s right…I said Washington salmon. Not every pink fish we eat is plucked from the chilly waters of Alaska. The Washington Trollers Association (washingtontrollers.org), fisherman using fish and line to catch, works to protect the natural resource of salmon in the Pacific Northwest and Lark works to support them. It’s a win-win for all that eventually ends on a plate. A recent read of Lark’s menu turned up Yellowstone River caviar (traditional Beluga caviar is a near-extinct fish stock), Penn Cove mussels and local oysters.

Flying Fish
2234 1st Avenue, Seattle
206.728.8595
flyingfishseattle.com

Over the last couple of years, Flying Fish has stepped up it’s commitment to operate a conscious business. About four years ago, Chef Christine Keff began working directly with farmers to grow the food for her kitchen. “We have made changes to the menu over time, as we’ve learned more,” says Keff. The restaurant relies on both information from their purveyors and information they seek out. Chris does a whole lotta reading (such as the monthly Seafood Magazine) on her own and is looking to the future when she purchases fish. Check her platters of whole rockfish or salt and pepper Dungeness crab — perfect for sharing.

Crush
2319 East Madison, Seattle
206.302.7874
chefjasonwilson.com

Crush is in it’s third year of service, and it’s safe to say everyone still has…a crush (I know, I know, I’m sorry) on this delicious restaurant. I spoke to chef and co-owner, Jason Wilson, recently and suddenly felt like I was falling in love all over again, myself. “We’ve taken a different approach to sourcing our menu over the last six months, ”Wilson says. His primary focus has (and always will be) on using high quality ingredients it’s just that the definition of “quality” has evolved. That quality has translated into serving fish like Kona Blue Kampachi, which are grown using aquaculture off the coast of Kona, Hawaii. “I started looking at Seafood Watch, but if I’m just taking fish from their list and putting it on my menu, I’m not doing as much homework as I can.” No longer driven purely by taste, Wilson now considers sustainability and availability along with several other personal parameters when considering his seaward options.

Art of the Table
1054 N. 39th Street, Seattle
206.282.0942
artofthetable.net

Last time I ate at Art of the Table, all of my friends were late for dinner because none of them could find the restaurant. I like to think that’s part of the charm at Art of the Table, along with the communal seating and the inspired (and inspiring!) chef. Chef Dustin Ronspies, who recently celebrated Art of the Table’s first anniversary, serves a five course feast three nights a week along with a Happy (Hour) Monday. He is a rare find in a chef-run kitchen in that he does all the shopping for each dinner at local farmers’ markets and the fishermans’ terminal on his own. Farmers’ markets are where he first encountered Wilson Fish (based in Federal Way), which provides him with halibut, black cod and ling cod from our local waters. “The whole world is being overfished right now. I follow Seafood Watch and talk to the fisherman to find out what’s going on,” says Ronspies. Thankfully, it’s much simpler to do this when you’re dealing with people face to face and buying fish from them off a pier.

Steelhead Diner
95 Pine Street, Pike Place Market, Seattle
206.625.0129
steelheaddiner.com

Chef Kevin Davis is known for several things — he’s an avid runner, a lover of gumbo and a (mildly?) obsessive fly fisherman. He is also the owner (along with wife and partner, Terresa) of Steelhead Diner. Concerned about the planet, they took matters into their own hands, opened their own place and use only sustainable food and “good-for-the-earth” practices. When he’s not in his hip waders on a river, Kevin can be found in the small but very busy kitchen of Steelhead Diner. True to its name, the best seat of the house in this diner is front and center at the counter where you can watch some of the best fish dishes in the city being prepared. Kasu-marinated black cod is caught in the waters of British Columbia, cod for the fish and chips comes from a monger in the Pike Place Market and petrale sole (an often-overlooked simple fish) is from Oregon. The menu changes nearly every minute, so you’re guaranteed something new every time.

Amy Pennington grew up eating blue claw crab on picnic tables draped with newspaper with her dad. An avid kid-crabber, she also caught sunfish, mackerel and fluke. Today, she “catches” most of her fish at the Pike Place Market.

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