NBC Action News smells something fishy
By Owen Morris in News
Wednesday, May. 13 2009 @ 10:30AM
If you didn't catch the local news last night, KSHB really put it to many restaurants in the area who are serving fish that's not what they claim it to be.
The station's reporters tested 20 restaurants who serve expensive fish. Of the 20, only three -- The Savoy, Bonefish and Islamorada -- actually served the fish advertised on the menu. Another five or so restaurants served a variation of the species or had legitimate excuses. The Red Snapper did serve snapper to an undercover reporter, just not the red variety. The Bristol had invoices from its fish supplier with the advertised name on it. Michael Smith didn't serve the identified fish but served one just as expensive. For the other 10 restaurants, oh boy, it didn't look good.
The main message from the piece is that many (not all!) sushi places are untrustworthy. Of the seven restaurants that served the cheaper tilapia in lieu of the advertised red snapper, all were sushi bars.
The problem is industry wide.
The station's reporters tested 20 restaurants who serve expensive fish. Of the 20, only three -- The Savoy, Bonefish and Islamorada -- actually served the fish advertised on the menu. Another five or so restaurants served a variation of the species or had legitimate excuses. The Red Snapper did serve snapper to an undercover reporter, just not the red variety. The Bristol had invoices from its fish supplier with the advertised name on it. Michael Smith didn't serve the identified fish but served one just as expensive. For the other 10 restaurants, oh boy, it didn't look good.
The main message from the piece is that many (not all!) sushi places are untrustworthy. Of the seven restaurants that served the cheaper tilapia in lieu of the advertised red snapper, all were sushi bars.
The problem is industry wide.
Similar stings
have been conducted in Chicago, New York and California, and they all
found sushi places substituting tilapia. It's easy to see why. Red
snapper costs $15 per pound and up. Tilapia can be had for under $5 per
pound. In the cutthroat restaurant industry, food costs are one of the
only things restaurants can control and saving money on fish can mean
the difference between profit and loss.
That's not to say it's right. NBC caught 85 percent of the restaurants serving fraudulent fish. Even the supposed higher-end restaurants were guilty of the bait-and-switch.
So always be aware, especially of specials that sound too good to be true. Just as I would suspect a bar of downpouring if it were serving $4 Grey Goose martinis, so would I be suspicious of red snapper on any special board or happy hour menu.
To see which restaurants failed the test click here. (PDF)
That's not to say it's right. NBC caught 85 percent of the restaurants serving fraudulent fish. Even the supposed higher-end restaurants were guilty of the bait-and-switch.
So always be aware, especially of specials that sound too good to be true. Just as I would suspect a bar of downpouring if it were serving $4 Grey Goose martinis, so would I be suspicious of red snapper on any special board or happy hour menu.
To see which restaurants failed the test click here. (PDF)
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