Junk to Monk.

Before the mid to late 1980’s the Italians were already eating monk fish and the Japanese were enjoying Ankimo (monk liver) as a delicacy. Before it’s time, monkfish was known in America as the poor man’s lobster, a junk-fish. It was frowned upon for an ugly mug and unsightly gelatinous flesh. Its lazy way of catching its prey, by dangling long antennae in front of its giant gaping mouth didn’t exactly help the animal’s image either.

Thanks to Julia Child and other American chef pioneers who weren’t afraid to cross borders and try new things in the name of culinary delight, the monk became a staple on our menus and we now relish in its glory.  So much, in fact, that it’s monetary value has increased dramatically over the last 10 years, selling out to restaurants at unheard of prices. Strict fishing regulation has also been put in place to protect the monk bio-mass index making it a tough catch for fishermen. My own father made an attempt in the monk industry about 10 years back with the F/V Morue, only to decide it was too hard to make money in consideration of all of the rules.

So my point here is that times change. Things go in and out of style and generally we must stay open minded to keep abreast of our chosen industries.