Written by Gita Seaton, Chef and Owner of Nouveau Palais
My name is Gita Seaton; I am chef/owner of Restaurant Nouveau Palais in Montreal. The restaurant has been around for over 80 years, though my partners and I have owned it for just three.
Our goal, from the start, has been to develop a business that demystified food by making the experience of dining with us accessible and affordable – while still offering a quality product in a relaxed environment. By environment, we mean all of it – food, employees, music, space and clientèle. Every part of the place makes up the whole. I love its idiosyncrasies and it incongruences. I love that it is a warm and welcoming place.
Taking 80 years of business history and improving on it, Montreal’s Nouveau Palais aims to demystify food by making the experience of dining accessible and affordable, while still offering a quality product in a relaxed environment. © Jon Cleveland.
Using the enigma that surrounds The Palace, as we call it, to improve my own work keeps me inspired. It’s a fine line between holding on to the history of the place and improving on it – and my partners and I are always conscious of walking that line.
The fish we serve is part of our efforts to improve, as odd as that may sound. I’m not that well-versed on all of the environmental issues surrounding overfishing. But here is what I do know: we are taking more wild fish than our oceans and lakes have to offer, and if we don’t make smarter choices, there’s not going to be much left for us to choose from. So with that knowledge, choosing to buy and serve sustainable seafood at The Palace makes sense to me.
When I’m buying fish, I work with several purveyors from the country’s Atlantic and Pacific coasts. I trust the people I work with; I have relationships with them. They’re the ones who know what is going on in the waters. I rely on them to inform me.
I ask questions – lots. And you should too. At restaurants. At supermarkets. At your local market. The fishermen I work with care enough about their product that they’re willing to take time to answer me, to tell me what is in season, to sell to me. I haven’t experienced the same level of customer service with large import companies.
I have been working with some of these guys for more than 10 years; others have come to me more recently because they know that I prefer to buy sustainable. I use wild-line caught and sustainably farmed fish. I tend to order direct from the fishermen, if they let me. But I realize this might not be an option for the average shopper. The good news is that there are a growing number of places you can find sustainably caught or farmed fish, ranging from restaurants like mine to specialty retailers and major supermarkets. Increasingly these are labeled – Marine Stewardship Council, Ocean Wise, SeaChoice are good ecolables. Keep an eye out for them.
Nouveau Palais chef / owner Gita Seaton
© Omnivore (Paris).
That said, I have no choice but to balance quality versus price. My fish dishes make less profit than anything else I serve. But it has been my choice to serve a good, flavourful piece of fish and not give in to poorer product at lower prices. Ultimately, though, if mass fishing were to offer me good product at an affordable price, I confess that it would be hard to resist.
As for endangered species, we don’t offer them. We don’t sell Bluefin tuna, Chilean sea bass or abalone. I’d rather see endangered species make a comeback so we have the opportunity to enjoy them in the future.
To me, it seems ridiculous not to follow the harvest. When mackerel is in season, it is inexpensive, plentiful and fresh. The same goes for halibut, salmon, spot prawns, oysters, crab, ling cod and clams: I could go on.
Why would I buy imported, nearly extinct or tragically poor-tasting fish? Why, when I can get great product and tell people I am not destroying the oceans for their culinary pleasure? Canada has great sustainable fish and I choose to serve it.
The challenge for you is to look – and ask – for local sustainable fish. Choose to serve it when you can – you’ll generally find you’re getting a fresher, healthier and tastier piece of fish. The added bonus is that you’ll be improving on history by making smarter choices that ensure our oceans stay healthy in the future.
Canadian Halibut served with asparagus and Israeli couscous. © Omnivore (Paris).