Wild Edibles Newsletter 6-12-2013

Good Morning Chefs and Buyers,

The miserable weather along the eastern seaboard is finally over and all boats are back on the water today. We expect to be well stocked on American Red Snapper, fresh 16/20 Gulf Shrimp and all your Florida-caught favorites tomorrow morning. We will also look forward to a fresh batch of beautiful Portuguese Sardines tonight. Soft Shell crabs are around but not in great numbers so proceed with caution going into the weekend.

The always-popular Uni trays from Maine have been scarce this week and likely won't be available until Friday morning. The same goes for Fluke which have still not returned to the Long Island Sound after retreating to deeper waters during the storms. We do however have delicious local Flounder to substitute in the meantime.

Be aware that we are limited in our access to all East Coast Oyster varieties until next week. When a certain amount of rainfall is recorded, nearby oyster beds must lay dormant for 10 days according to the FDA. Oysters are filter feeders, and any chemical run-off in a heavy rainstorm could end up in your oysters, creating obvious problems. Oysters south of Maryland and most Canadian Oysters are around this week, but some staples like Wellfleet Oysters are off limits.

Our recommendations today are Halibut from Nova Scotia and Black Sea Bass from Long Island. Both fish are truly spectacular this time of year and are priced lower than normal. Take advantage of this quality while you can. Razor Clams from Maine are also in this week and continue to arrive wriggling in their boxes.




"Why does Sea World have a seafood restaurant? I'm halfway through my fish burger and I realize: Oh my God... I could be eating a slow learner." -Lynda Montgomery
Have a great day.

Wild Edibles
740 Barry Street Bronx, New York 10474
P: (718) 860-1000 F: (718) 860-1015
www.wildedibles.com

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Wild Edibles Newsletter 6-11-2013

Good Morning Chefs and Buyers,

When it rains like it has for the past few days, we take notice. Your meat and produce purveyors don't need to worry about the weather, but when tropical storms run up the east coast like Andrea did the last few days, fish usually act strangely. Whether its fleeing off the continental shelf to deeper waters, or being washed in to shallower waters with a storm surge, seafood can be difficult to track down when severe weather hits.

Luckily, the heavy rain in the Northeast has not greatly effected local items. Wild Striped Bass from Maryland and Rhode Island are readily available and super fresh, as are amazing Long Island Black Sea Bass. If there was ever a time during the year to have Black Sea Bass on your menu, these late spring/early summer weeks are certainly that time.

Razor Clams are expected to arrive from Maine tonight, but be sure to reserve them in advance since they sell out quickly. Walleye season is in full swing in the Great Lakes and today we were lucky to get a few boxes of the best 4-6lbers in the city. Softshells are on a day-to-day basis. All the run-off from the storms has made coastal items like crabs and oysters tricky to harvest this week. We hope for a more stable supply next week.

The relatively calm North Atlantic has yielded amazing Halibut and Icelandic Cod today. Halibut is a staple item so it’s rare for us to get this excited after seeing it almost everyday. But today may be the best batch of 10-30lb pristine specimens we've seen all year.




Florida items are still missing after the Gulf was bombarded with storms for the last 10 days. We are told American Red Snapper will be absent until Thursday, and likely 16/20 fresh shrimp as well. We are supplementing the Florida Grouper shortage with Red Grouper from Panama for the next few days.

"I have so many things to work on, and so many ways that I fail. But that's what grace is all about and I constantly wake up every morning trying to get better, trying to improve, trying to walk closer to God." - Tim Tebow

Wild Edibles
740 Barry Street Bronx, New York 10474
P: (718) 860-1000 F: (718) 860-1015
www.wildedibles.com

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Wild Edibles Newsletter 6-10-2013

Good Morning chefs and buyers,

In from the market this morning we have some of the items that are the fantastic local offerings and are sometimes overlooked. Local Monkfish tails ranging sizes 4-8lbs look amazing this morning.




The under-appreciated Bluefish, caught fresh in the Long Island Sound, are at the peak season for quality and value. Locally caught Blackfish also looks fantastic today. These guys are usually a Fall item but we've seen a surge in catches recently so try and take advantage while you can. All three of these local fish are priced to move so don't miss out.



Head on Mahi came in today from the Mid-Atlantic states. This is a good sign after Mahi was scarce last week. From further south is farm-raised Siberian Sturgeon. If you haven't worked with Sturgeon before, you can almost treat it like a piece of beef when combining flavors and considering cooking methods. Its a meaty, almost smoky flavored fish with a satisfying thick texture that holds up well to bold, umami-rich flavor profiles. Sturgeon is reasonably priced and its domestically raised in carefully monitored, closed circuit aquaculture systems. This is just a complicated way of saying its a great sustainable seafood choice that you can indicate on your menu.

"I don't believe in pessimism. If something doesn't come up the way you want, forge ahead. If you think it's going to rain, it will"
-Clint Eastwood.

Wild Edibles
740 Barry Street Bronx, New York 10474
P: (718) 860-1000 F: (718) 860-1015
www.wildedibles.com

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Wild Edibles Newsletter 6-6-2013

Good Morning chefs and buyers,

We don't have too much news to break this morning, which in turn is great news. All of our usual staples are in house today and look fantastic. Local Monkfish, Black Sea Bass and Barnegat Bay Scallops are all impressive again today. These items are at peak season prices this week so definitely give your sales rep a call to take advantage. Norwegian Cod is here to replace meager Massachusetts offerings.
These Norwegians are head-off and huge, and can easily yield thick versatile portions.

Florida's best items came in fresh today to cover you for the weekend. Fantastic Red Grouper, Golden Tilefish and Snapper are particularly great today. One item that is absent is Fresh 16/20 Gulf Shrimp. Bad weather in the Gulf of Mexico has sent boats home empty. We should be ok on Florida fish for the weekend, but don't count on Fresh Florida shrimp until Monday.

On the shell fish front we have more awesome Razor Clams from Maine. Soft Shell Crabs weren't so awesome today - there was absolutely nothing available at the market and we are unsure of availability tomorrow. Try and call as early as possible to reserve whatever we can find tomorrow.



"It's easier to be faithful to a restaurant than it is to a woman." - Federico Fellini

Have a great day.

Wild Edibles
740 Barry Street Bronx, New York 10474
P: (718) 860-1000 F: (718) 860-1015
www.wildedibles.com

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Wild Edibles Newsletter 6-5-2013

Good Morning chefs and buyers,

At the market today we picked up some pristine Wild Striped Bass. Both Rhode Island and Maryland seasons are in full swing right now. This fish has a very clean and mild flavor with meat that has a firm texture.

Other highlights include our increasingly popular Spanish Turbot and Wild King Salmon. Both items arrived overnight so you can be sure they are as fresh as possible. Staples such as Halibut and Wild Striped Bass are readily available this week, as is Golden Tilefish from Florida.

We were surprised to find spectacular Cobia at the market today. Caught off the coast of Virginia, wild Cobia is a by catch item and thus difficult to supply regularly. It’s a unique item, but its firm, pale-pink flesh could be most closely compared to a Yellowtail or other member of the Jack family.



Golf is a game in which you yell "fore", shoot six, and write down five.  Anonymous

Wild Edibles
740 Barry Street Bronx, New York 10474
P: (718) 860-1000 F: (718) 860-1015
www.wildedibles.com

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Wild Edibles Newsletter 6-4-2013

Good Morning chefs and buyers,

The star of the day is undoubtedly our fantastic Jumbo Black Sea Bass. Locally caught off the Montauk coastline, these fish weigh between 2 and 4lbs each and are so fresh that most are still in rigor even as I write this email. The blue sheen evident on the scales of each fish is a sure sign that these were in the water a matter of hours ago.
We recommend you take advantage of these Black Sea Bass while you can because the quality and value we're seeing this week will not last for long.

Other highlights include our increasingly popular Spanish Turbot and Wild King Salmon. Both items arrived overnight so you can be sure they are as fresh as possible. Staples such as Halibut and Wild Striped Bass are readily available this week, as is Golden Tilefish from Florida.

We were surprised to find spectacular Cobia at the market today. Caught off the coast of Virginia, wild Cobia is a by catch item and thus difficult to supply regularly. It’s a unique item, but its firm, pale-pink flesh could be most closely compared to a Yellowtail or other member of the Jack family.

One local staple we can't seem to find this week is Mahi. The fantastic fish we saw last week are still sitting at the market today. For now we've chosen to pass on these old fish and wait for new catches to come in, hopefully by the end of the week.

It's a round ball and a round bat, a you got to hit it square.  Pete Rose

Wild Edibles
740 Barry Street Bronx, New York 10474
P: (718) 860-1000 F: (718) 860-1015
www.wildedibles.com

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Wild Edibles Newsletter 6-3-2013

Good Morning Chefs and Buyers,

To start your week off right we have some fantastic local items in fresh this morning. Tuna and Swordfish look fantastic this week, and both are coming in locally and extremely fresh. Tonight we expect to receive both 10/20 and U/10 size Barnegat Bay Day-boat Dry Scallops from Barnegat Bay New Jersey.



From farther down the coast Maryland has opened their Striped Bass season as promised, and Jumbo Soft Shell crabs are still the best size to choose. Two large Permit - basically a much larger Pompano - showed up from North Carolina this morning. These fish are roughly 20lbs each and are best treated like other members of the Jack family such as Amberjack or, of course, Pompano. They won't stay for long, so call your sales reps for pricing immediately.

Local Cod were pretty small today, so tomorrow we are bringing in Norwegian Cod. We've had great success with Cod from Norway and we expect more of the same large, flawless fish. Norwegian and Icelandic Cod have been approved as more sustainable than Gloucester or Chatham Cod by the Marine Stewardship Council.



Contact your Wild Edibles Representative for any further questions. Have a great day!

You can't put a limit on anything. The more you dream, the farther you get.
~ Michael Phelps

Wild Edibles
740 Barry Street Bronx, New York 10474
P: (718) 860-1000 F: (718) 860-1015
www.wildedibles.com

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