Week of December 20 Small World Seafood Update

Phew! It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas with this cold, huh? The sunshine is amazing and definitely helps the mood. In fact, we need whatever we can get to help our moods. A lot of them are not doing so good right now. I get it. I'm there with ya. Well, I look forward to  the end of the week when days get longer. Yup, beginning on December 24th, the length of day increases by 1 minute. It's the little things, people.

So this week and next, we will be sending out the order form on Wednesdays with pick ups on Thursday. We want to give everyone enough time to plan menus and such for the weekend. So, Wednesday ordering for Thursday pick up.

To give you more cheer than just an additional minute added to the day, this week we have some really fun stuff! First off, the fish of the week will be the glorious, the royal, the delicious striped bass fillet!! Yes, this local fish coming to us from Maryland is at its best during the winter when they fatten up. The meat gets sweeter and firmer. It is the king of the bass family on the Eastern seaboard. Great for one of your fishes if you are trying to get to seven.

We had the debacle with fresh smelts last week which we ended up sending back but we were able to find some frozen smelts for this week which are really great quality coming from Peru. These come packed in one pound bags so an easy toss in, for sure!

The salmon of the week is back to Faroe Islands. This sushi grade salmon is top notch stuff as many of you have come to discover. Great in a poke bowl but also great roasted or broiled. You can always kick it up a notch using our miso glaze. Yum!

Another treat for the holiday is Jonah crab claws!! These triple scored claws come frozen and are the local counterpart to Stone crab claws from Florida but much more affordable. Great stuff. There is a nifty video on how to open them up on our website with a mustard dipping sauce similar to Joe's in Miami. 

Live clams are around this week as are the frozen chopped clams. Oysters will be Pemaquids from Maine. Quick note that both of these items have a week shelf life. We will have kippered salmon as an add on to the usual smoked fish. Shrimp shumai are around as well as Mycopolitan mushrooms all the other usual suspects. We will sell escargots as well as more pie dough this week and next too since some of you were away

And now for more stuff to bring you cheer. The first is more applewood smoked bacon from El Camino!! For those of you who have had this bacon, you know how amazing it is. Virtually no purge of fat when cooking up in a pan and the flavor. OMG. It makes the best BLT ever but would be a great addition to your chopped clams to make a nice chowder, for sure!

And then there is cheese. So, we are teaming up with Stephanie from Valley Milkhouse in Berks County once again. But this time, we thought that we should add a dimension of fun to it. So, we are going to feature two pairings; one horizontal and one vertical. Meaning, Steph make a creamy lactic cheese which is ripened with vegetable ash which gives it an earthy flavor note and an unctuous cream line beneath its bloomy blue-gray rind. She also makes the same kind of cheese but blooms it with dried Chamomile from a local herb farm for a more floral aroma and flavor. So, you get one of each to taste side by side and therefore, a horizontal tasting.

She also makes a cheese called Marigold which is her "alpine" cheese made from the rich milk of heritage breed cows grazing on lush grasses in the hills of Berks County.  You will get 8oz of 2 month old subtly buttery Marigold as well as a more intense and nutty 8oz piece of 8 month old Marigold. Therefore, the vertical tasting. It is not often that we get to taste cheeses this way side by side so this will be fun!!

For those who are away this week, we wish you a happy holiday. We will miss you. We will try to carry over some item for next week as well since I know a few of you may be coming back. 

Anyway, I know, I know.. that's a lot of words....

Look out for the order form Tuesday at 11am for Fairmount/444 N 4th St

Look out for the order form Wednesday at 9am for Fitler/Rittenhouse/Washington Sq

Peace

Robert Amar
Small World Seafood
Owner