Fish thread has me thinking.

Seems the last 10 yrs or so, fish at restaurants (around here) has become almost all pollack, zander and "alaskan whitefish". Used to be you could go out for a fish fry or fish dinner and get honest yellow perch, walleye, cod. Salmon is still salmon, but if it's fried, its almost all pollack and zander.

Some will state it in the menu, but often its just called perch or walleye and they do the ol switcheroo. Sometimes they even get creative and call it "zander perch" or something. Sometimes its cooked right and tastes fine, but it's nothing like real perch or walleye.

I get costs and everything, but just wondering, is it like that everywhere in the midwest?

I stopped eating restaurant fish years ago. I only eat fish I catch and clean.

Price of fish here is through the roof, marine species. I used to get fish if I went out, now it's practically unaffordable. it's not just the restaurants, price off the boat has remained high. The only fresh water fish sold here is Tilapia, which I won't eat, same with farmed shrimp, If you know how they're raised you'd understand, lol
Even with marine fish there's always been some dodgy switcharoos, cheaper fish substituted with more expensive fish, but anymore it's all expensive..

Around here, restaurants mostly have tilapia and swai too, along with salmon.

Keith

Here in the U.P. you still get the real deal with Great Lakes fish but some places will pull a fast one.Years ago I was working in Munising and my wife and I went out on Friday for a fish fry,we ordered their perch.Nastiest tasting fish we ever had,found out they were serving ocean perch not lake perch,they left out the "ocean" part when they advertised perch.

Most of the places around here have ocean perch, if they have perch at all. They mostly don't offer perch. If they get yellow perch in, they make a big deal about it and usually put it on the sign out front. The same thing goes for walleye, which usually isn't available.

There's one fairly large yellow perch farm in my area. When they pull fish, many of the restaurants around here carry it for a while, not that we have many restaurants around here.

The largest indoor trout farm in the world is about 25 minutes from here.

There's some freshwater shrimp farms around here that usually harvest in later September to very early October. When they harvest, many of the local restaurants carry fresh shrimp.

I think it's neat we can buy decent, live shrimp in Ohio. I would like to grow some out sometime, just for us, family and friends.

Keith

Most restaurant cooks don't know how to cook fish. I won't eat tilapia either. Nothing ever hits the bottom of the tank they're raised in.
Occasionally walleye can be found which isn't too bad. I've had sea bass in Flirida which is decent.

Theres a lot of UP places slinging zander and pollack too


There was a restaurant in Marquette called Whiskers when I was in school "All you can eat perch". Tried that once. Ocean perch.

as I understand it Zander is Russian/ European walleye they look like a stripe free walleye

and was brought into Canada to farm raise

I just watch this video minute ago......
Not a fan of Sea shep,,, but good info

Yessir. Look a lot like walleye.

Again, not horrible if prepared right, but just shifty to call it something it isnt

my son worked at a now out of business supper club
out of business for poor money management not bad food , although so much of the menu was dolled up Sysco , the owner wasn't in charge of food , but she did buy a new jeep and truck with the money she should have been paying to the food suppliers.

Pollack was what they listed as walley on the menu

they served cod for most of the fish fry

if you can make a decent beer batter , old fashion and cold beer on a Friday night there is never a reason you should be closing down

but if you can't pay people , you close

the sad part is most people have zero clue about fish and bone structure and meat texture to know any better.

they would probably take longer to explain

I have seen it listed at Russian or Canadian Walleye on a menu that seems the most legit.

Down here you generally won't find wild caught unless it snapper or other gulf commercial caught. Catfish is everywhere and it's all farm raised.

We can get some outstanding catfish and buffalo on the river hole in the walls

In WI it's not hard to find what you want on Fridays. Find a few good venues and stick to them. You'll never be disappointed.

Western Wisconsin is cod or haddock and maybe walleye-the rest of the state they pawn that pollock off at the Friday fish fries.

Here in northwest Wisconsin it's mostly walleye and cod. Within 20 miles of me it's those two, perch and even bluegill.

I'm surprised the sea Sheppard hasn't been sunk yet!

It would make good fish habitat.