Local Rockfish- For the next two weeks, both Virginia fishermen
and Maryland fishermen (gill-netters) will be landing local wild Chesapeake Bay rockfish. The combined landings will suppress prices dramatically for the rest of February. Fillets from 5/8 lb fish will hover around the $10 mark, making them an extreme value. The large rock fillets will be available for about $3 more per pound. Beginning in early March, the migratory jumbo rock (magnificent 15-50 lb whole fish) will dash up the Chesapeake Bay, entering their respective spawning rivers. Virginia fishermen will do their best to use their limited tags targeting them. February 28th marks the date that Maryland, Chesapeake Bay gill-net fishermen must stop fishing. Most Virginia tributaries are effectively closed to commercial rock fishing (for large
Local Fluke- This is the time of year when the trawler fleet targets fluke in the mid-Atlantic. Most of these boats will change gear and start scalloping in early April. But in the meantime, they will catch fluke and lots of them. Fluke this week is around the $9 mark, making it, by far, the best value in white meat fish.
Local Black Sea Bass- This great fish is one of the absolute best-tasting fish that swims in the ocean. For most of the year, jumbo black sea bass, from a pricing perspective, is out of reach for most of our customer base. But there is a “window of opportunity” from now through the end of March where fillets cut off of jumbos (a big black bass is 2-3 lbs) sell for less than $1 per ounce. When you are considering doing a fish special, your customers will rave about the black sea bass you serve them.
Prices are subject to change.
2/14/2022
