Fish Talk
Sea Products Inc. is a great little seafood shop tucked away behind the Snob Shop on West End Boulevard in a spot where few people probably even know it exists.
A lot of Sea Products’ seafood comes straight from the North Carolina coast, which is one good reason to go there.
The owner, George Streblow, has entered the Digital Age with a Web site and mail orders of such popular items as crab cakes.
George recentlhy started an e-newsletter. He sends them out about once a month. Each is mainly a short little essay on one particular type of seafood, as well as a liist of what’s in season. (Yes, different types of seafood do each have their own season, just like produce!)
Last month, the newsletter was all about scallops. George went into detail about how to tell a good one from a bad one, accompanied by a great photo showing out a natural scallop should be dry enough to stick to your hand.
This month’s he talks about salmon. He includes such tidbits as the fact that salmon dates back to 11,000 B.C. in America and 25,000 B.C. in Europe.
He also gives a very brief summary of the wild vs. farmed question, which I quote here:
“Through all the controversies of wild vs. farmed salmon the facts can be briefly summarized as follows.(1) The same levels of healthy omega-3 fatty acids contained in fish oils are the same for both.(2) The health and nutritional benefits of eating salmon are the same for both.(3) Trace amounts of pollutants are found in the same levels in both and are deemed safe to eat by the F.D.A. and every other regulatory or nutritional body.”
That doesn’t include every single environmental concern, but it does address the major concerns with eating the fish.
George is an advocate of farmed salmon, and he’s happy to talk about why carries it and no other salmon in his store.
In fact, George has definite opinions about all kinds of seafood. Maybe not everybody agrees with everything he says, but he brings almost 30 years of experience to the table.
Restaurant chefs have been making use of George’s expertise and fresh seafood for many years. Too bad he’s a bit of untapped resource for the rest of Winston-Salem.
If you want to learn more about Sea Products, see a goofy picture of George horsing around with fish, and sign up for his mailing list, go to http://www.seaproductsnc.com.
