A sculpture from Marshfield Metals of a fish on display at the Boston Seafood Festival. This sculpture is made of completely recycled metal.
Photo Courtesy of Dan Ott.

Celebrating the hundredth anniversary of the Boston Fish Pier, the Boston Seafood Festival, despite the rain, was a huge hit. People came from all over to celebrate seafood and art and participate in informative discussions and crafts.

Locals and residents from the surrounding area enjoyed this event and continued to buy tickets while the rain poured down. Participants lined up to buy for oysters, clams and lobster rolls from every vendor including Captain Marden’s food truck to Big Rock Oysters. Many sushi fans lined up for J.P. Seafood’s sushi rolls and seaweed salad as well.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) attracted a gathering with their collection of

NOAA representative speaks about the fully recovered population of Atlantic Spiny Dogfish Sharks and the benefits of eating them.
Photo Courtesy of Dan Ott.

preserved fish available for viewing. At this event, NOAA was promoting the Atlantic Spiny Dogfish, a type of shark that was once below the sustainable level but is now recovered. NOAA recommends eating Spiny Dogfish because of its abundance and nutritional value, as well as its availability. NOAA representatives commented that any fish market could provide it if asked and it is a good, low-fat source of protein and vitamins.

Additionally, Marshfield Metals promoted their art at the festival. Started by George Chambers from Marshfield, the studio is centered in Thailand and uses Thai scrap metal from disposed industrial machines and creates animal sculptures out of the screws, gears and anything they can salvage from metal scrap material. Marshfield Metals’ sculptures are great for restaurants, museums and aquariums as well as private collections.

Big Rock Oyster started at the Boston Seafood Festival as a provider of the raw bar in 2013 but was asked to come back as a vendor in 2014. Their company provides oysters from Dennis Beach in the Cape Cod Bay area. They grow about 1.5-2 million oysters there and sell them for wholesale or private sales as well as on a raw bar.

Unfortunately the chef demonstrations could not happen due to the rain, but the lobster bake was a popular event with the tent for protective covering.

Providing seafood from all over Boston, art from all over the world and even crafts for all ages this event was a success. Mark your calendars for next year – the Boston Seafood Festival 2015 is already in the works!

Tags: art, Boston Seafood Festival, celebration, clams, crafts, festivals, lobster bake, lobster rolls, NOAA, oysters, recycled metal, sculpture, seafood, sushi, sustainable fishing