OceanFest 2006

By: Linda Hunter

Slanted Door Chef Charles Phan. Photo: Jamie Hall.

October 7 was a gorgeous, sunny day as we celebrated the sixth annual OceanFest on Crissy Field. Thank you to all for coming!

OceanFest celebrates the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary and its sister sanctuaries as precious protected marine areas whose health is affected by your daily activities and is inextricably linked to that of the oceans around them and the world at large.

We want to hear about your day at OceanFest. Take our survey. A quick two minute response enters you into a raffle for a whale watching trip to the Farallon Islands!

The sustainable seafood offerings were a gastronomic wonder!

Philip Dedlow from Chez Panisse served Caldo verde de mariscos, Veracruz style fish soup featuring local lingcod with hoja santa, tomatoes, and lime.

Charles Phan from Slanted Door created a rice vermicelli dish with seared Alaskan halibut, dill, and green onions. 

From Farallon Restaurant, Heather Ames and Parke dished up locally caught grilled calamari with white beans, lemon and basil.

Judy Rodgers from Zuni Cafe served Pan Bagnât, a traditional Provençal meal in a bun: country bread stuffed with local Pacific albacore in olive oil, peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, basil, capers, olives, and hard-cooked egg then brushed with salt water to mimic the ocean.

Hog Island Oyster Co. shucked hundreds of fresh local oysters.

Monterey Fish Market and Ports Seafood generously donated the fish for these wonderful dishes so that all event proceeds benefited the Farallones Marine Sanctuary Association. (Read our interview with Tom Worthington of Monterey Fish in this issue.) Everything tasted great paired with wines donated by New Zealand Wines and beer from many local breweries.

 

The kids from the Prescott Circus and ZunZun entertained to the delight of kids young and old.

What did people learn at OceanFest? They learned (among other things) the difference between farm-raised and wild salmon, that water quality in our ocean is determined by our actions on land, what it looks like inside of a deep ocean ROV  and that you can compost oyster shells!

People attending OceanFest also learned about the valuable work for the environment being done by our environmental fair participants and about FMSA's environmental education programs and efforts on Bay Area beaches to protect marine life. OceanFest gave people the opportunity to join FMSA.  If you missed your opportunity to join at OceanFest, consider doing your part to protect the ocean. Become a FMSA member today.

Phillip Dedlow from Chez Panisse related his favorite OceanFest story: “A 13 year old said that he didn't eat fish at all, but after tasting his father's soup, he decided it was so good he would have one himself! He said the other time he liked fish was when he had salmon in Alaska. Having an event about sustainability and fish in sight of the ocean from whence they came has powerful allure.”

 

 

  Not for Prophet jamming at OceanFest. Photo Jamie Hall.