In response to my email to the MBAquarium Restaurant

This is a tragic email that I got in response to an email sent to the food manager of the Monterey Bay Aquarium. My parents are coming to visit us on Thursday and of course want to go to the Aquarium-and although it's a beautiful place it also has a restaurant feet away from the tanks of beautiful fish-who serves these beautiful fish. Ok, so they really don't serve the actual fish from the Aquarium, but they might as well. My cynical idea when first going there and seeing this restaurant was that they should just have a clubbing station right then and there where you can go and club a sea otter, or stick a hook through a big delicious tuna, or even catch a sting ray with your bare hands from the 'exploration pool.' We live in a fucked up world and although the signs that litter the Aquarium pointing way to the restaurant that depict cartoon crabs, fish, oysters, etc. it's really all the same (tank or ocean or 'sustainable' fish farm) they all die either way. So back to the point of this story-I wanted to let the aquarium know that I was uncomfortable with their menu and their 'happy seafood' attitude. Because, really people, we all know the only animals that are happy are those that are alive. Here's the response I got that almost brought me to tears:

Hi Megan,

Thank you for your email of concern. I want to reassure you that the seafood we serve is from sustainable sources. We believe strongly in foodservice for a sustainable future and go to great efforts whether it is beef, pork, chicken or fish. We are increasing our vegetarian selections but are learning that a vegetarian based society is not only impractical but unsustainable. You can learn more about our initiatives at bamco.com

I look forward to the opportunity to continue this dialogue, please feel free to contact me at 831-648-4966 to discuss any concerns you may have about the foodservice here at the aquarium.

Best,

Dory Ford

Executive Chef