How Whole Fish Took Over Restaurant Menus In 2022 - Tasting Table

While whole fish is emerging as a trend in the U.S., the dish is nothing new in other cultures' cuisines. Per The Spruce Eats, whole fish is commonplace in Korea. Chinese lifestyle outlet The Woks of Life states that steamed whole fish is found on most Cantonese tables during holidays, formal weddings, Chinese New Year, and other special occasions. At Bonnie's, a new Williamsburg (N.Y.) Cantonese-American spot that's taking the city by storm, a deboned, stuffed rainbow trout called "yeung yu sang choi bao" is on the menu. 

During 2022, restaurants nationwide are serving whole fish grilled, steamed, broiled, smoked, roasted, wrapped in pasta, crusted in salt, and pan seared, via Nation's Restaurant News – for a good reason, too. It's a move for sustainability: Nose-to-tail eating reduces food waste. Per The Spruce Eats, fish skin, head, tail, and fins are all edible. Depending the fish and how it's prepared, you can eat the bones, too. In fact, explains the outlet, the back of a fish's head is an underrated delicacy that filleted-fish-eaters totally miss out on. Not to mention that serving a whole fish creates a captivating visual, says Sheree Sarabhaya of the New Jersey restaurant Kai Yang (via Nation's Restaurant News). Although Zoë Robinson of I Fratellini in Missouri admits that, while whole fish makes for a fun plate, diners do have to take care to avoid the bones as they chow down, via Feast Magazine. The extra caution is well worth it.

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