By The Water

Is Trader Joe's Seafood Overrated?

By The Water — Sat, 03 Jan 2026 13:50:43 GMT

My Trader Joe’s Seafood Experience

On Monday I published the next video in the Grocery Seafood Series, and this week was Trader Joe’s. Going into this one, I expected decent quality, reasonable prices, and a smaller, more curated selection. That’s usually how Trader Joe’s operates, and seafood was no different.

The seafood section was compact and easy to navigate, but the selection was limited. There were a few solid options, but nothing that really stood out as exceptional. Compared to Wegmans or Whole Foods, the variety just wasn’t there. Still, what they did offer looked clean and well handled.

My Sam’s Club Seafood Experience

By The Water — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 14:19:58 GMT

On Monday I published the next video in the Grocery Seafood Series, and this week was Sam’s Club. Going into this one, I expected big portions, lower prices, and decent quality. But maybe I was expecting too much from a grocery store that’s closely aligned with Walmart.

My Whole Foods Seafood Experience

By The Water — Thu, 04 Dec 2025 11:02:58 GMT

On Monday, I published the next video in the Grocery Seafood Series, and this week was Whole Foods. This was the store I expected to have the most consistent seafood quality. Clean stores, better presentation, and higher standards are what they’re known for.

My Wegmans Seafood Experience + How to Shuck an Oyster

By The Water — Thu, 27 Nov 2025 11:55:11 GMT

Monday I published the next video in the Grocery Seafood Series, and this week was Wegmans. After Walmart, this was a completely different experience. From the moment I walked in, I knew I was in a better store. The layout was clean, the seafood case looked organized, and the atmosphere felt calm instead of chaotic.

The Best (and Worst) Tinned Seafood I Tried This Year

By The Water — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 00:00:29 GMT

Recently, I started a series where I rank all the tinned seafood I’ve tried this year. Honestly, I was hesitant to dive into tinned fish at first. Sardines, anchovies… they’re pretty intimidating. But as I worked through different tins, some great and some absolutely terrible, I started to find a bunch that are genuinely delicious. After trying 30 different tins, here are my general observations.

It’s hard to can oysters. Ekone is by far the best I’ve had, and two of the others I tried ended up being some of my lowest ranked seafood overall.

I actually like white anchovies. When I thought about anchovies, I only knew the super salty ones you throw on a pizza. But white anchovies are like a sardine and an anchovy combined, and they’re surprisingly good.

More companies are really stepping up their game. I’m liking the higher end tins from brands like Fishwife, Island Creek, and even Patagonia.

If you want to see how I ranked all 30 tins, click below and it will take you to my Google Sheet with the full list. S tier is the top and then it goes all the way down to F.

What I Found in Walmart’s Seafood Section

By The Water — Tue, 18 Nov 2025 11:10:28 GMT

My Seafood Walmart Experience

Yesterday I published the next video in the Grocery Seafood Series, and this week was Walmart. Out of all the stores I’ve visited so far, Walmart was the one I was most hesitant to do. First, going into Walmart is sensory overload for me. There is just too much going on. Second, I’ve seen the seafood section many times, and I’ve always been underwhelmed. Combine that with the recent recall for radioactive shrimp, and my expectations were at an all-time low.

Fuyioh! Would Uncle Roger Approve My Scallop Fried Rice?

By The Water — Wed, 12 Nov 2025 03:39:17 GMT

Cooking anything on the internet these days can definitely open you up to some scrutiny. While a lot of people might think of Gordon Ramsay, I always think of Uncle Roger and his critiques of people’s fried rice.

For me, though, that kind of feedback is actually helpful. I love the discussion around the different ways to build a dish, and it’s amazing how many variations exist for something as simple as fried rice. While I do believe there’s a correct “base recipe,” I also like to play with flavors a bit.

My favorite version so far was a Dungeness crab fried rice I made a while back (I’ll share that recipe one day). But when I got down to my last six scallops in the freezer, I knew I had to make a variation of that crab fried rice…this time with scallops.

It’s not exactly traditional (it even has cilantro 😬), but hopefully Uncle Roger wouldn’t go too hard on me.

From Aldi Shrimp to Perfectly Seared Scallops

By The Water — Tue, 11 Nov 2025 01:37:57 GMT

How Does Aldi Pull Off Good Seafood at Low Prices?

Yesterday I published the third video in my Grocery Seafood Series, and it was Aldi’s turn. Honestly, I’m always surprised when I buy seafood from Aldi. While the variety is limited, the prices are consistently affordable.

I think because Aldi keeps things simple with fewer options, smaller stores, and quick turnover, they move seafood faster. That means “fresher” seafood, and since they aren’t sitting on excess stock or wasting product, the savings likely get passed on to us.

What surprised me most this time were the Red Shrimp from Argentina. They were shell-off, tail-off, and deveined, and I’ll admit my expectations were low. I figured they’d taste like frozen langostino, which I’ve always found pretty bland, but I was completely wrong. These shrimp had the sweet flavor of lobster tail and the tender texture of perfectly cooked shrimp.

Eating Raw Oysters- Wild Malpeque Oysters

By The Water — Tue, 14 Jan 2025 15:54:52 GMT