JANUARY 4, 2021

HELLO EVERYONE!!!

Well, there is just one word, for me, to describe 2020. OVER!!! I can't even...

Last week was an amazing week for us. So many people in the city having fun with lobster!! Including us! Lobster tails, lobster rolls, lobster pasta, lobster bisque. What a way to end it!! People were cooking unbelievable meals comparable to anything you could see in any restaurant that could've been open this year, which they couldn't. What a difference a year makes when so many of you have learned how to recreate your favorite dishes out there or create new ones. All with great ingredients to work with. What fun and what personal satisfaction for all of us. I know most of us can't wait for restaurants to reopen for real but, man, are they going to be facing a much more savvy, culinary and discriminating audience. You. You know how much things cost and you can make many things yourself now. 

So, this week in the fish world is always a little tough to gauge. Many of the fishermen don't go out because it is traditionally a slow week after the restaurants polish everything off on New Year's Eve. Also, new quotas kick in to many regions and usually start out low making it not very profitable to go out for it. Lastly, the fishermen want to take a little break and this is as good a time as any to take. What this means for us is that I don't know what we will be featuring this week yet. I have to hear back from boats that are still out to see what they bring back in the next day or two. They may have intentions to catch one type of fish but came back with a bag of doughnuts so we have to wait and see. Thinking black bass, fluke fillet, skate wing, maybe. Not sure so hang tight on that one.

What is certain is that this will be mussels week. Oysters will be St. Simons out of New Brunswick, Peruvian bay scallops are available and fish stock from Rouge along with parsley butter from Bibou will be on the truck.

As, we roll into 2021, we have been thinking about how to continue this culinary journey that we all on together. This past year has been really key in learning technique in cooking fish and seafood. This year, I think it is time to begin introducing ingredients that can expand your culinary resume. In some cases, it could be a component such as fish stock. In making a bouillabaisse, making the stock is the most labor and product intensive part. Once you have fish stock, the rest is easy. So we got pros to make it for you. Same with the shrimp stock, lobster stock and parsley butter. How much easier is it to make a lobster bisque once you have the stock? Loads. So, that's one part. Stay tuned.

The other part is finding ingredients that can be hard to find but of great quality. Diggers as we are, we find these things and these crazy people that do super things. Like the guys at Mycopolitan Mushrooms. These three guys have been cultivating fresh mushrooms right here in Philadelphia in the Northeast, actually. We are going to team up with them to put together a 1lb variety pack of three mushrooms. This week we are doing it for the Thursday pick up locations. Next week for the Friday pick up locations. You can go to their website, mycopolitan.com to check them out. And, who knows, if the reception is very good, we could do a variety pack every week or so. They would love the support and we would love to support them. I know not everyone loves mushrooms but for those who do, these nuggets are totally different from store bought. We will post up some recipes for you later this week. Can't wait!!

Lastly, I want to just say that even though 2020 is over, many of our problems are not going away yet and new problems may arise. We all have, to one degree or another, some form of Post-Covid Stress Disorder. I never claim to have the solution to ease the pain. There is a different path to healing for everybody. I also don't think many of us have a clear sense of that path. It's still pretty fuzzy now even with vaccines coming and so on. As some of you may know, I am a big believer in CHOOSING the valence of my energy. It takes the same energy to be negative as it does to be positive. It's hard though. We worry. For ourselves. For others. We can't help it. But sometimes, it's not so easy to take that first step. Sometimes, we need a little nudge. Sometimes, we need a little hopeful idea. Sometimes, we just need to believe with faith rather than with brains. Especially the smart ones. Just listen and watch this and see how you feel after. Just give into it. There is a message there.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27G_biVnOEg

To a healthy and happy new year!!!

Robert Amar
Small World Seafood
Owner