Seafood Battle: East Coast vs Gulf Coast vs West Coast

[edwardsyzzurphands]

Originally Posted by tcave360

Andrew Zimmern also focused on snakeheads when he was doing an episode in the DC area. I honestly didn't know you can eat them nor did I realized that there are actually quite a few restaurants that have snakehead on the menu.....A clever and Eco-friendly way to deal with their invasive presence in the Chesapeake Bay and the various other watersheds throughout the DMV and the Delmarva. Might give it a try one day!

I remember that episode as well, it was a good one. Thats the great part of that show, exposing you to foods you never even knew were in your own backyard.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by edwardsyzzurphands

Admittedly I never tried Dogfish until Andrew Zimmern the Bizarre Foods guy filmed an episode in Boston and featured them. Now I have to admit it really is delicious and wouldn't have even paid it any mind unless I watched that show.

By the way, just out of curiosity who is your Fishmonger locally? I go to New Deal in Cambridge personally.

It was Zimmern's who convinced me to try it too. I'm glad he did.

I go to Wulf's in Brookline locally, but the one I referenced was Fisherman's Market in New Bedford. Worth the drive. It's a retail portion of a wholesale operation (in the same building as the plant), so the prices are better- no auction nonsense- and so is the selection. It's temporarily closed as they are moving to a bigger location. Kyler's in New Bedford is also worth the drive.

[tcave360]

Originally Posted by edwardsyzzurphands

I remember that episode as well, it was a good one. Thats the great part of that show, exposing you to foods you never even knew were in your own backyard.

Yes! I really love the show. I also like that in some of his episodes, the restaurants he goes to often have "back-door" menu items where it is required that you know the secret password in order to have access to it. Like on one of his episodes in New York City (it was a nighttime episode where he was traveling with a cabbie at the start of the show). It was a Mexican hole-in-the-wall in Lower Manhattan (think it was the East Village). Some real interesting stuff on that menu lol.

[tocoto]

Worcester is so so close to Boston that it is overshadowed more than other cities on the list that are in their own regions.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by tocoto

Worcester is so so close to Boston that it is overshadowed more than other cities on the list that are in their own regions.

Was this supposed to be in this thread? 900k to 1.5 Million Metro's People Know The Least About?

[Champ le monstre du lac]

Originally Posted by lrfox

Was this supposed to be in this thread? 900k to 1.5 Million Metro's People Know The Least About?

Worcester? Seafood? LOL. With the mentality of growing up on the North Shore, I felt like Worcester may as well have been some medium sized city out in Ohio.

[powellmacaque]

Since the Gulf Coast isn't getting any love from you (obviously biased ) coastal folks, lemme explain why you're all wrong:

Grouper.

If that's not enough to convince you that the Gulf is better, let's dig deeper:

Oysters (Apalachicola)
Catfish (if Crawfish and Gator and Hudson River crabs are fair game, Mississippi River catfish are too)
Crawfish and Gator, and other freshwater fish.
Royal Reds/Pink/Brown Shrimp.
Snapper (Red, Yellowtail, Mutton, etc)
Mullet
Shark (Mako and Blacktip)
Conch (go to Key West for Conch Fritters)
Rock Shrimp
Spiny Lobsters
Hogfish (the best kept secret in seafood)
Grunts


And as far as preparations, let's not forget:

Gumbo
Etouffee
Shrimp & Grits (and Grunt & Grits)
Grouper Sandwiches
Po Boys
Smoked Mullet
Ceviche
St. Augustine Clam Chowder (if you can hang with the heat)

Honestly, New Orleans and Tampa alone could go toe-to-toe with any of the "heavy hitters" mentioned here (Boston, Seattle, NYC, San Francisco) as solid seafood destinations.

[Spade]

I picked East Coast mostly based off the South Atlantic. The South Atlantic is similar to the Gulf Coast to me. I find the Florida crabs better than the ones in Maryland too. The Gulf Coast does come in a close second for me though. Very close second.