This is the first in a series of articles by Wild Fish co-owner Liz Jacobs, introducing us to the fishermen behind the meals at the Pacific Grove restaurant:
It’s always exciting to start working with a new vendor because it feels like opening a door that leads to somewhere unknown but promising, imagining edible treasures that you can lay your hands on and use creatively, a new friendship, and a more resilient local food community that I grow to love more and more.
When, on the coldest day of the year, I met Pacific Grove fisherman Robby Miller selling his fish at the Pacific Grove farmers market—I just got that feeling that something great could come of this. I guess it was his warm smile, enthusiastic energy and passion for his product that I know always translates into an excellent partnership.
After a call to the chef and some negotiating, there was a delivery of his Bristol Bay sockeye salmon in all its glory in the Wild Fish kitchen. The crew immediately started brainstorming: “obviously smoked, because you can’t not…the deep red would look so beautiful with a bright green spicy mojo… let’s use it for a pop-up Japanese Izakaya night with chawan mushi…salmon nduja sausage…” The ideas kept popping.
And then the conversation took a turn with staff reflecting on how all over the West Coast people eat a variety of salmon, but in California wild king salmon (aka chinook) dominates the market. In Oregon, Washington and Alaska folks might be grilling coho, poaching sockeye or sautéing pink salmon. The whole crew confessed that they didn’t know much about chum salmon, except one who said we shouldn’t dismiss chum either—he quite likes it.
It was a sort of microcosm of environmental activist Paul Greenberg’s argument that we stop eating only “mainstream” heavily marketed fish. He advocates getting off the beaten path and celebrating the ocean’s diversity for sustainability reasons, and also—as the crew agreed—for culinary reasons!
“We really need to be educators, here. This is too good to leave to only those who know! We need to get folks eating all the varieties of salmon!” said Wild Fish staff members.
For me it was an exciting conversation—it meant a new direction in dealing with one of our most popular menu items, and the fun of sharing this diversity with folks who come to us especially as a niche specialty fish restaurant.
Later Robby came by to do a Q&A session with all the staff, who clearly had a blast learning about the uncomfortable sleeping quarters on a fishing boat (he was on the boat 54 days to catch our harvest) and the stunning description of how the ocean looks like it is bubbling and boiling when the salmon appear, all silver and flashing.
He explained that the catch method he uses is sustainable and results in no bycatch or wasted smaller fish. He talked about the Native American stewardship of the fishery, cheeky seals who follow their boats, not to mention the playful families of orcas who come up close. Stories that helped staff connect with the amazing food producers who deliver to us every single day.
It is just the best to stop, slow down and find out more about the “ordinary” food in our local system—you might just discover that it is in fact nothing short of extraordinary.
Fishing for sockeye salmon on Bristol Bay, Alaska
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