The annual International Boston Seafood Show concluded its three-day extravaganza on Tuesday, February 26, 2008. We were there when the doors to the show opened the Sunday before, giving us a head start to meet and greet many of the people who we regularly do business with, and to see some new things in the seafood world. The Boston show, which gathers thousands of suppliers, growers, buyers and restaurateurs, is generally regarded as the best of its kind.

In addition to roving the aisles of booths and people, we engaged in such group discussion forums covering sustainability of wild fisheries, seafood safety, fish farming and aquaculture, menu preferences and trends, among other topics. On the lighter side, The Fish Market’s own Aiden Coburn was one of three judges overseeing this year’s oyster shucking competition, presumably comprised of the world’s top oyster shuckers. Lastly, we made time for a day trip to New Bedford, on the southern coast of Massachusetts, for a facility tour of our long-time supplier of fresh, dry-pack eastern scallops. Knowing our suppliers and their operation has always been important to us, and it allows us to vouch for the excellence of this product.

There are many areas of interest, opportunity and concern for those of us in the seafood business, and it’s our job to be on the forefront of these. We realize that our guests depend on us to be the seafood experts, and we take that responsibility seriously. In the end, our goal is that each guest of The Fish Market enjoys the freshest, highest quality seafood available.