WHERE TO BUY GOOD FISH

A guide to the best European fiSHMONGERS –WHERE THE INCROWD SHOPS FOR fiNE fiSH AND SEAFOOD.

DAVID HERVÉ

In autumn, the boats leave for the oyster beds at sunrise. Not everyone’s stomach can tolerate the intense taste of a raw oyster at this time of day, but you can’t get them fresher. There are thousands of oyster farmers in France, but David Hervé, a family-run business, is one of the best and most famous. They have offered oysters of various varieties and sizes for three generations.

davidherve.com

LISA ELMQVIST

Market halls and fresh food markets are a great place for traditional food and fresh local produce. One of the traditional shops at Östermalms Saluhall in Stockholm is Lisa Elmqvist: in the early 1920s, the daughter of a fisherman sold her wares at a street market. Today the shop is run by the fourth generation of the same family. You can eat there, but you can also buy fish and seafood to take home.

lisaelmqvist.se

GLEN DOUGLAS SALMON

Glen Douglas Scottish salmon is the first non-French product to carry the Label Rouge, which is awarded for sustainable farming and

first-class quality. The fish is farmed under natural conditions, free from genetic engineering and antibiotics. On the Isle of Mull, there are numerous spots to catch salmon yourself.

visitscotland.com/see-do/active/fishing

IRENA FONDA’S BRANZIONO

Marine biologist Irena Fonda farms the world’s best best sea bass (branzino) in Piran Bay, a nature reserve, where she offers boat tours to her facilities. Fonda supplies top

restaurants on the upper Adriatic.

fonda.si

MANTEIGARIA SILVA

Portugal is famous for its stockfish, but you have to get used to the strong smell (so be sure to have it shrink-wrapped for transport).

Bacalhau, as the locals call it, can be found in every supermarket in Lisbon, but it is better to go to the small delicatessen Manteigaria Silva, where you can also find delicious wine, cheese, sausages and other local products

manteigariasilva.pt

ALPENKAVIAR

Michelin-starred restaurateurs such as Mraz & Sohn in Vienna rely on the Siberian sturgeon and sterlet sturgeon that Helmut Schlader farms on the edge of the Kalkalpen National Park in Upper Austria. Now popular across Europe, his Alpine caviar is mildly salted.

alpenkaviar.at

SIBERIAN STURGEON CAVIAR Sustainability is more than just a buzzword when it comes to this Siberian sturgeon, which is farmed in Sweden and milked rather than killed in order to obtain the caviar. Live-harvested roe is larger than that from fish that have been killed. Each tin is marked with the name of the sturgeon that supplied the caviar.

arcticroe.se

STURIA CAVIAR D’AQUITAINE

Sturia is a pioneer in the field of farmed caviar. When Sturia first cultivated Siberian sturgeon in Bordeaux, it was ridiculed, but the brand is now one of the best caviar producers in France. It has a satisfying, slightly nutty taste.

sturia.com

CALVASIUS

A classic: Calvasius has been farming fish for caviar in a small town in the Italian province of Brescia for over 40 years. The pure water of the surrounding area is ideal and the caviar is processed according to the classic Russian

malossol or “little salt” method to preserve the taste of the different varieties.

calvisius.com

ZWYER CAVIAR

Switzerland has also made a name for itself in caviar. But instead of farming its sturgeons in Appenzellerland, where the farm is located, the Zwyer family does so in Uruguay. The family also runs a game farm in Veneto, Italy.

zwyercaviar.com

CAVIAR NACARII

Siberian sturgeon is also farmed in Spain, in the Pyrenees and Granada. Caviar Nacarii, which follows the traditional Iranian method of producing caviar, also has a shop in Barcelona where you can try before you buy.

caviarnacarii.com