SUPREME   LOBSTER   MARKET   REPORT

03-10-10

Signs of Spring are all around us!! I’ve been waking up to birds chirping, snow melting and with the first 40+ degree days of the year, Chicago has officially entered the flip flop and shorts season. People have been coming out of their caves and are hungry for some tasty morsels. What are you planning for your weekend specials? 

As we told you in last week’s fish blog, a sure sign of Spring is the opening of the 2010 Wild Alaskan Halibut Season this last Friday. The initial trips had most of the boats blown back into ports due to high winds. As expected though, pricing on the first runs are high and catches are tight. We can hope for Big Daddy Halibut to hit us for Saturday but to be more realistic plan on Monday. Keep checking with your personal monger for updates. Folks have also been itching for the Spring runs of Wild Alaskan King Salmon. Fishing on Southeast Alaskan Kings is very sporadic and vessels may only be pulling in a couple hundred pounds per trip. This is keeping most fish local and pricing very high. If you’re one of the must-have Wild King Salmon peeps then be sure to let your rep know so we can keep on the hunt. There is a new run of super fatty, Sterling White Sturgeon that just hit the coolers. These giant beauties are this particular fish monger’s favorite pescatory delicacy. A firm, dense texture and high intermuscular fat marbling allows these incredible animals to adapt to a huge variety of cooking techniques and accompaniments. Sturgeon were harvested yesterday and hit our coolers today still in rigor. We love rigor!!

Atlantic Fleets have been taking a beating for the past week. Storms and high winds have had an effect on fisheries and aquaculture across the board. Maine waters have reopened after last week’s closings so we will be seeing new shipments of Casco Bay Buchot, Bar Harbor and Wild Whitewater Mussels starting today. The fleet at Hampton Roads Fisheries have fished in the face of danger and gone out to source some incredible catches for their favorite Chicago Chefs. We will see limited runs of Wild Rock Bass, Hirame Fluke, Spanish Mackerel, and Wild Porgy from the crew in Hampton Virginia. There will also be new shots of Hook n Line Caught Day Boat Gloucester Cod arriving Wednesday and Friday for all of you ravenous cod-o-philes. The small 25 vessel fleet of Barnegat Light New Jersey is feeling the pinch as well. There will be limited catches of Barnegat Light Spotted Winter Skate and Large Ankoh Monk Tails for this week. When I expressed my disappointment I was quickly reminded “This is sustainable fishing Carl.” The Barnegat Light Fleet did have some great luck however hunting for Hudson Canyon Golden Tile about 200 miles east of the Light. Fish will be landing this morning. Be sure to get with your rep early to secure your inventories because eastern species will be tight.

Big Love is a ray of light through some hard times. His close relationships with family fishermen and vessel owners has us looking pretty decent for Gulf Species moving towards the weekend.  We should be seeing new drops of Cape Coral Florida Amberjack and Red Grouper starting today, along with additional deliveries of Day Boat Mahi, Wahoo, Escolar and Sustainably Harvested American Gulf Snapper from our fishermen of the Gulf Reef Fisheries Shareholders Alliance.  The only recognized recovering snapper fishery on the planet!!  Last week’s debut of our Atchafalaya Basin Soft Shell Crawfish was huge with foodies all over the city scrambling to find the restaurants that were peddling these little scrumptious mud bugs. Chefs were all over trying something they’ve never had the opportunity to work with before and the sweet flavor and bright snap of the shell did not disappoint! Call your rep today to try your skills with this incredible new offering.

The Professor’s Report

There are a couple of boats that have access to open water but the majority of Lake Erie fishermen can not get out of the harbors because of ice. The lake has ice covering about 50% of its surface according to Monday's satellite photos. Currently the wind has pushed it to the U.S. side of the lake. Because of Erie's shallowness it freezes faster than the other Great Lakes. Green Bay & Door County are still iced in with about 85% of ice covering the area. Lake Huron's ice is concentrated in the fishing boat harbor regions but is 80% ice free. With that said we will start seeing an increase of fishing as weather and ice permits. There will be some large White Bass, White Lake Perch and Smelt which are being reported this morning from Lake Erie that will be here for most customers’ delivery on Thursday. Still quiet on Walleye, Yellow Perch and other species.  

 In order to ensure the highest quality available, Supreme Lobster will now be offering our daily Feature Oyster Selections in 50ct boxes. Please check with your rep for our daily offerings and preorder availability!

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE WINNER OF THE 2010 MOOSE ISLAND SCALLOP BEST DISH CHALLENGE!!

 CHEF PHILLIP FOSS

LOCKWOOD – CHICAGO PALMER HOUSE HILTON

17 East Monroe Street
Chicago, IL 60603-5608
(312) 917-3404

www.lockwoodrestaurant.com

http://thepickledtongue.com/

Moose Island Day Boat Scallops, Potato & Lemon Blini, Heritage Prairie Farm’s Spinach & Pickled Vegetables, Fried Wild Mountain Capers, Candied Sage.

You could consider cooking an innate calling for Lockwood executive chef Phillip Foss. As a two-year-old, Foss was always in the kitchen watching his mom cook. Aware that young Phillip wanted to get in on the action, Foss' father built him a cardboard stovetop and let his son’s imagination and future career take him away. Years later, Foss got his first restaurant job as a short order cook in his hometown of Milwaukee. With a passion for the behind-the-scenes speed and intensity of a kitchen, Foss quickly worked his way into better restaurants. And then came a break. An employer noticed Foss' cooking talents and referred him to the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in Hyde Park, New York.

After graduating from the CIA in 1991, Foss joined the New York City dining scene with a job at the New York Times four-star rated Lafayette restaurant in the Drake Swissotel. There, Foss basked in the shadow of one of the country's leading chefs, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, who gained international acclaim for his innovative interpretation of classic French cuisine. Foss then went to the Quilted Giraffe, another four-star New York Times-rated restaurant, and under the tutelage of Barry Wine, worked every station in the kitchen. Here he learned how unique food presentations can make conceptually simple dishes more innovative and ethereal.

Recognized as a rising haute-cuisine star, Foss was hired by one of the world’s best restaurants, Le Cirque. There he worked as an entremetier preparing vegetables, pastas and accompaniments, on the fish station as a poissonier, and as a saucier, preparing and perfecting sauces, soups and meat dishes. After more than three years, he was made a sous chef.  

Foss went on to help open Le Cirque 2000 in the Palace Hotel. "This was the first time in my career where I took on a leadership position," Foss explains. "People looked to me as the go-to person for Le Cirque’s standards." At Le Cirque 2000, Foss had the privilege to cook for several U.S. presidents, including Nixon, Reagan and Clinton, and for Pope John Paul II, whom he served lobster bisque. Bill Cosby was his favorite celebrity. "His charisma was amazing. He sat in the kitchen and we made him a private dinner with roast chicken and truffles. To date, that was the best roast chicken I ever made." 

Foss acknowledges the additional challenge in making great dishes that let the flavor and freshness of the ingredients shine through, rather than falling back on the legerdemain of heavy sauces.  "Making a good roast chicken is something almost everyone can learn," Foss added. "But making a standout dish takes years and years to master."

After Le Cirque 2000, Foss traveled the world learning about indigenous ingredients and perfecting cooking styles from France, where he worked with super chef Jacques Maximin, as well as Israel, where he worked at the King David Hotel serving dignitaries such as Condoleezza Rice and Tony Blair. Foss' time with three-star Michelin chef Maximin made a lasting impression. "Maximin's uncompromising attention to detail and the quality of the products he used were incredible. Most everything came straight from the farmer to the plate." Foss also worked as a private chef in Palm Beach, Florida where the families of Winston Churchill and Donald Trump enjoyed his cookery. In addition, Foss also 'hung his toque' in the kitchens of Bistro Margot in Chicago (which earned three stars in the Chicago Tribune), the Four Seasons in Maui, and the AAA five diamond Newport Room in Bermuda.

"Cooking is and always will be a mixture of art and science.  One of the things I love best about being a chef is the constant challenge to adapt and advance what was previously considered 'the best there is.'  There is no recipe in the world that you can follow like a rote play book when you're striving to bring out optimal flavor from the freshest, finest ingredients every day, and make each dish and presentation a unique experience," notes the Chef. 

At the helm of Lockwood, Chef Foss has complete discretion with one requirement: perpetual innovation. And that's just fine with Philip Foss. Of all his many culinary accomplishments, he's most proud of "Never being complacent and having an open mind to do new things, yet always honoring the traditions of where the cuisine has come from."