Like many people, I love seafood but I’m confused by the many conflicting reports over what is abundant and fished in a sustainable manner, and what is threatened and ought to be avoided. I try to keep up with things by consulting Web sites like the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch. But even that information can be perplexing because of the many variables. Was that Atlantic cod line-caught? That’s O.K., Seafood Watch says, but not if was caught in a trawl net.
Eric Asimov is the wine critic, and interim restaurant reviewer, for The Times.
One thing seems incontrovertible, however: the bluefin tuna is in dire straits. It is severely overfished; its Atlantic population is down nearly 90 percent since the 1970s, according to some estimations. Why? To many people, it represents the pinnacle of sushi. Its lush texture and rich depth of flavor are unmatched. Yet, I don’t want to order bluefin tuna. It disturbs me to see it on a menu.
Nonetheless, I ate bluefin at Sushi Yasuda, a sanctuary for traditionally prepared sushi, which I reviewed this week. I didn’t actually order it. In fact, I didn’t think about it at all on my first visit to the restaurant, when I sat down at the bar and ordered an omakase meal – that is, I let the chef decide what to serve me.
A beautiful procession of sushi came before me, which had me fairly swooning, until the arrival of a piece of fatty tuna – bluefin. Of course, I was dismayed, and not exactly sure what to do. I would not have ordered it, but it was in front of me. As a reviewer I did not want to make a scene and call attention to myself. I ate it, and of course it practically melted in my mouth. That’s why the demand remains so high. On subsequent visits, though, I specified in advance, no bluefin tuna.
Later on I spoke to Scott Rosenberg, one of the owners of Sushi Yasuda, and asked him why the restaurant continued to serve it. He allowed that he did not have a satisfactory answer.
“We’ve talked about it, and the hard line is that this is the tradition,’’ he said. “We’re sourcing such remarkably high-quality fish, most other places are not going to have too much use for it. I can’t really defend it much beyond that. It’s a fair challenge. Perhaps, ultimately, it’s a short-sighted outlook.’’
Short-sighted is about the size of it. It’s one thing to uphold tradition, which is one of the things that makes Sushi Yasuda wonderful. It’s another thing to take an active role in extinguishing a part of that tradition.