Fish. Finding a source for fresh fish in Charlotte has been a problem since I’ve lived here, and that’s basically forever. (I arrived before the Panthers and before NationsBank morphed into Bank of America.) For me, having lived in cities on the water like San Francisco — with a wharf — and D.C. — with a mini wharf — and near Manhattan, which used to have Fulton Fish Market — this was an adjustment.
The question of where to find fresh fish was raised again after my speaking engagement at Davidson College last week. A man asked where he could find a good fish market. I floundered, so to speak. He had moved to this area from northern Jersey where fish markets are common and variety exists beyond Alaskan wild salmon, yellowfin tuna, mahi mahi, Pacific halibut, tilapia, rainbow trout … and did I say salmon already?
I cheerfully offered what we do have in abundance here: shellfish. Wild-caught shrimp, heads-on shrimp; blue, king and snow crabs; scallops — both bay and diver; mussels; crayfish; lobsters; and oysters. And prices for these items are reasonable.
But fin fish? Clearly Dean & Deluca at Philips Place has quality, but is expensive. While it is true that I’ve bought Icelandic Artic Char locally (at the Teeter), I rarely see Striped Bass (pictured above), Alaskan Pollock, King or Spanish Mackerel, or Pacific Cod. Charlotte’s Asian fish markets like Inner Harbor and Overseas carry a variety of smaller fish, but Charlotte does not have a large fish market with variety and reasonable prices as you would find in northern New Jersey.
This article appears in Sep 22-29, 2009.
Having moved here from NYC almost 4 years ago, I still miss fresh fish markets and a decent butcher!
There is a vendor that sells first rate fresh fish at the farmer’s market uptown at Trade and Tryon on Saturday mornings. Everything I’ve ever gotten there has been wonderful.