Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Food
Bad Day for Sushi?
By
Jacob Dobkin
Published Oct 21, 2005
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jacob Dobkin
Published Oct 21, 2005
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Ask Metafilter is trying to get to the bottom of one of the most pressing questions of our time: is it really a bad idea to eat fish in NYC restaurants on Mondays? The quick answer appears to be "maybe"-- it depends on the quality of the restaurant. Some responses:
I've worked in four restaurants all in the NY tri-state region. Only one recieved a fish order every single day of the week, and the place specialized in seafood, particularly local. The fish came from the town docks and from an indie wholesaler. The other three received fish orders twice a week.
My grandfather used to swear by this truism, or so I have heard (he died before I was born.) I can't believe that restaurants are still getting fish deliveries the same way they did in the 40s. Nothing else is the same, why would the fish delivery schedule have remained constant for over 50 years?
Honestly, if there's any chance that Monday's fish has been lying around for four days, we'd probably err on the side of caution. Especially after reading this famous quote from Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential:
"You walk into a nice two-star place in Tribeca on a sleepy Monday evening and you see they're running a delicious-sounding special of Yellowfin Tuna, Braised Fennel, Confit Tomatoes and a Safron Sauce. Why not go for it? Here are the two words that should leap out at you when you navigate the menu: 'Monday' and 'Special'.
"Here's how it works: The chef of this fine restaurant orders his fish on Thursday for delivery Friday morning. He's ordering a pretty good amount of it, too, as he's not getting another delivery until Monday Morning. All right, some seafood purveyors make Saturday deliveries, but the market is closed Friday night. It's the same fish from Thursday!
Almost totally unrelated: McSweeney's has an amusing list today-- My Rejected Cooking Show Ideas.
Tagged
anthony bourdain
Ask
bad idea
cooking
food
ideas
kitchen
Kitchen Confidential
nyc
restaurants
running
special
Jacob Dobkin
Jake Dobkin co-founded Gothamist with Jen Chung. In 2019, Jake released Ask a Native New Yorker, a book based on his Gothamist advice column.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE food
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
The global dish is shapeshifting and ubiquitous.
By
Robert Sietsema
Published Sep 12, 2026
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
Is it worth the high price and ridiculous wait? Gothamist needed to find out.
By
Sonia Rao
Food
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
Is it worth the high price and ridiculous wait? Gothamist needed to find out.
By
Sonia Rao
5 NYC banana puddings as good as Magnolia's
By
Hannah Frishberg
Where to eat in Greenpoint, Brooklyn right now, from Polish to Sichuan to Iberian
By
Robert Sietsema
Can a congressional candidate's dumpling diplomacy win over Queens’ immigrant communities?
By
Caroline Shin
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .