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Issue link: https://seafoodbusiness.epubxp.com/i/84786
Top Story Alicante, Grupo Oter diners sees increasingly selecting sole, monkfish, grouper, tur- bot, sea bream and hake. Diego Domínguez, head chef for Grupo Combarro two-Michelin Star restaurant Gastro features only two fish dishes on its menu in keep- ing with what chef/propri- etor Sergi Arola Gastro says is a "moral debt to the sea." Trained in Catalunya under world-renowned chef Ferran Adrià, Gastro only sources ingredients such as smoked salmon from the United States or Canada and sup- ports the trend for sustain- able species. "While five years ago there would be five or six fish on the menu, today diners and res- taurateurs should look for less fashionable fish to eat. Oily fish such as sardines and her- rings are great," says Gastro. Spain's trendsetting win- Andalucía's Restaurante Calima features an eclectic menu designed by head chef Dani García. luxury seafood Sanxenxo in Madrid's up- market Barrio restaurants Salamanca, and Combarro, top of the agenda for the city's rich and famous, was recently named president of the Association of Young Spanish Restaurateurs. Domínguez insists on both establishments ning streak is reflected in An- dalucía's only two-Michelin Star Restaurante Calima in Marbella's 5 Star Hotel Gran Meliá Don Pepe, Málaga, where hypermodernist head chef Dani García serves an eclectic "Menu Oximoron 2012" Ceviche, Boquerone's (anchovies), comprising Cañailla Stall Roteña's Red- branded Seabream, 'Gacha- Miga' of Crab and Devilfish with Fried Aubergine. Back in Barcelona, Bigfish "buying sea- sonal products for maximum freshness and size, at auction where there's the best pro- duce, under a highly super- vised quality selection criteria, and where all products have their own tracking guide." As his select clientele voice concerns about seafood sus- tainability issues, Domínguez identifies a trend in diners' tastes for "strictly seasonal products caught within their legitimate timeframe," largely sourced from Galicia. High- lights include Nécora crabs or gooseneck barnacles de la Ría and boiled or grilled Europe- an lobster. Meanwhile, Madrid's hip 22 SeaFood Business October 2012 Raw Bar in the Born district serves seafood with a Japanese touch, sourcing supplies direct from owners Joan Soler and Gemma Madir's fish stall in the upscale Market Galvany in Sant Gervasi. "We work only with abso- lutely fresh fish. Our hands give the best cooking treat- ments to different types of fish. Market Galvany is in a wealthy neighborhood boast- ing an educated, demanding clientele, and as the trend for Japanese cuisine expands, it has normalized raw seafood consumption. Our audience enjoys good food and taste sensations from our variety of sushi, such as rice with lobster or traditional cooked sea bass," says front-of-house manager Astar Sebastia of the Bigfish menu. Joan Manubens, restau- rant manager at El Passadís del Pep in Barcelona's Pla de Palau, sees a steady stream of regular local customers who favor the simplicity of clams, shrimp, Norway lobster and the species of lobster Span- iards call langosta. Signifi- cantly, there's no menu avail- able, only the fresh fish the restaurant buys daily. Retailers add value to low-cost imports In his report on the Span- ish fresh seafood market pub- lished in July, José Fernández- Polanco, marketing research professor at Cantabria Uni- versity, concludes that while "prices of species with large imports [sea-caught hake and anchovy, farmed salmon] have decreased or moderately increased even in periods of local supply shortage, re- tail prices experienced less variations than producers' or wholesalers'. Value added by retailers has increased in spe- cies with large imported sup- ply and decreased otherwise." Low levels of value-added product for domestic seafood indicate retailers' high de- mand for domestic products, instead adding value to lower- priced imports. With 1,356 supermarkets in 46 Spanish provinces, Mercadona's Rafael Berro- cal, managing director of meat and seafood purchas- ing, highlights the company's commitment to Retailer Mercadona is committed to boosting productivity. boosting productivity in the fish sec- tor since signing open-ended Good Commercial Practice Agreements with the Pro- vincial Federations of Fisher- men's Associations of Valen- cia and Castellón, and the Fish and Seafood Producers' Organizations of Marina Alta and Alicante. Judging the 2012 Seafood Prix d'Elite new products conditions within the eco- system, meet audited specifi- cations and undergo effective monitoring from cultivation to processing. An effective supply chain is key, according to Alcampo hypermarket's Marta Peñal- ver. Operating 54 centers nationwide and in Spain's Canary and Balearic Is- lands, "Te best quality fish and ingredients at the best Visit us online at www.seafoodbusiness.com competition at the European Seafood Show in April, María Robles Santos, fish purchas- ing manager at Spain's Grupo EROSKI, knows what makes or breaks a product. "Qual- ity at the best price, guaran- teed freshness based on the product's technical sheet, and reducing the time between species' capture to sale by EROSKI store fishmongers." Headquartered in Biscay with 1,000 stores nationwide, EROSKI extended its Anda- lucía franchise throughout 2012, opening eight super- markets at the beginning of the year, 20 more by the end of the year, taking its regional store count to 54. In February 2012, in ad- dition to becoming Spain's first distributor to stock Marine Stewardship Coun- cil (MSC)-certified fresh hake — sourced from South Africa and sold as breaded fillets, burgers and fish sticks — EROSKI ex- tended its sustainability policy to all of its aquacul- ture suppliers, requiring each to ensure species' optimal Photo courtesy of Restaurante Calima Photo courtesy of Mercadona