The Fishery

We don't eat as much fish as we would like, partly because we don't like the cooking odor from fish in the house. Also, we are both a bit picky about which fish we will eat.

I'm probably a bit more venturesome in that regard, so last night when I was on my own for dinner, I went to The Fishery, aka Chevy Chase Seafood Market, at Connecticut and Livingston and got some trout to grill.

When we do eat fish, we usually go to The Fishery. The fish there have invariably been fresh. They break down their own large fish and it's fun if you happen to be there when they are carving out fillets and steaks. The salespeople are very friendly and will always offer tips on cooking.

The trout, I realized only when I got home, were not only cleaned and gutted, but also deboned. So although it looked like a whole fish, it was essentially fillets with the head, tail and skin still on. I would have preferred to have the whole fish intact, except for cleaning, and will ask for that the next time.

I dressed the fish with lemon juice and salt, grilled over charcoal, drizzled with melted butter and accompanied with grilled eggplant (drizzled with fig and meyer lemon balsamic vinegar), sliced tomato and mixed greens.

Wine with the meal was a 2008 Chateau St. Jean Sonoma Fume Blanc that was excellent and paired perfectly with the fish. Thursdays are the night for my weekly cocktail, dating back to when it was the deadline for my contributions to UCG. Last night I had Tanqueray Malacca Gin with tonic.

I've always been a gin fan, but I'll admit that Tanqueray's recent creative series of commercials highlighting the exotic botanicals that infuse gin with flavor have enhance my appreciation. The Malacca gin has been sitting in my cupboard for some years. The label says it is more aromatic and flavorful than London Dry gin, and it certainly tasted good last night.

I've liked trout ever since I ate fish I caught in a Colorado mountain stream at age six or so -- my first and virtually my last fishing expedition. In Europe, particularly in Germany, you often find trout, the whole fish, on the menu. It will be poached (Blau because it turns blue as it is cooked) or dusted with flour and fried (Muellerin because that's what a miller's wife would do with a fish).

Once you get the hang of it, it's quite easy to fillet and eat a whole fish on your plate. As with meat, I think the flavor of fish cooked bone-in is generally better.