Reputation is an important part of owning a successful restaurant and if your eatery becomes renowned for fresh and awesome tasting food the customers will keep on coming back on a regular basis.
The chef can take care of how great the food tastes when it comes out of the kitchen but you need to be able to source the best and freshest ingredients if you are going to keep everyone talking about your restaurant.
Here are some tips on how to choose and source the best seafood around, which is often a barometer of how fresh and tasty everything else will be on the menu.
Every day is different but the routine should be the same
When you are talking about sourcing fresh ingredients for your restaurant, every day will set a new challenge to find the best seafood catch and the best crop of fresh vegetables that have been picked hours before being offered for sale.
If you are going to be purchasing fresh seafood that has not been frozen there are a few characteristics that are well worth getting familiar with so that you can make an informed decision on what to buy each time.
Using a supplier like Citarella can help the process as specialist suppliers like that are often able to point you toward what is good right now and where the best quality is.
There are a few specific things that you should be looking for when inspecting fresh seafood prior to purchase and you need to use your eyes and your nose to get the freshest and tastiest catch.
The fish should always have a what could be described as a seawater or cucumber aroma and you definitely don’t want a slightly sour or ammonia-like smell hitting your nostrils when you are inspecting the fish.
The eyes of the fish should be clear in appearance and slightly bulged at the same time. You are also looking for firm flesh that looks unmarked and if there is any exposed flesh it should not have any traces of browning.
If you prod the fish gently with your finger the body should spring back immediately and inspect the scales to see that they are still holding close to the skin.
It might seem like a lot of things to check when inspecting fresh seafood but you can quickly become adept at interpreting what your eyes, nose, and hands are telling you, which will improve your odds of landing the freshest fish ready for your eager diners that evening.
Why choose fresh over frozen?
There are pros and cons attached to buying fresh seafood, especially when you are running a restaurant and you don’t want to waste money on buying ingredients with a limited timespan for consumption, but the benefits outweigh the negatives.
Having a constantly changing menu in response to the daily catch you are able to buy will tell customers that you are committed to providing them with the freshest ingredients and it can also allow you the chance to show you care about sustainable fishing.
Having fresh seafood available also eliminates the time-consuming challenge of defrosting the food ready for the plate.
Locking the flavor in
Although it is hard to argue with the appeal of fresh seafood you can purchase frozen seafood that packs a flavorful punch that is just as appealing but the trick is to make sure you buy the highest-quality for that to happen.
Technology has changed the landscape of frozen seafood and fish can now be caught and flash frozen to lock in the flavor and the obvious advantage to anyone running a restaurant is that you can stock up on frozen fish without worrying about it going bad before you get a chance to sell it.
Dare to be different
It is also worth mentioning that American consumers predominantly consume five main types of seafood such as shrimp and salmon, but with fears of overfishing and concerns about catch methods and antibiotic overuse, you could stand out by offering something different on your menu.
Fish species like mullet and scup are in plentiful supply and your customers might not only appreciate the taste of this seafood but also the fact that you are demonstrating your sustainability credentials as a restaurateur.
If you follow some of these tips on sourcing the freshest seafood around there is every chance that your customers will appreciate your efforts and keep coming back for more.
