PORTSMOUTH, N.H.—September 9, 2009—The New Hampshire Fish and Lobster Festival, a result of a special collaboration between Prescott Park Arts Festival, City of Portsmouth, Seacoast Local, Seacoast Eat Local, Slow Food Seacoast, and UNH Sea Grant, will be held on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009, from noon to 4p.m. at Prescott Park in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Admission is free.
Visitors can walk the decks of a local fishing boat, taste freshly landed local seafood prepared by Seacoast chefs, learn to identify local fish, watch an on-location cook-off competition, investigate the Gulf of Maine ecosystem, sing a song and hear a tale or two. Children are invited to play games, and storytellers will engage youngsters with classic tales from the sea. Everyone is invited make a fish print to wear, or investigate models of fishing nets, while musicians from the Portsmouth Maritime Folk Festival perform throughout the grounds. The sea-chanty rock band Sharks Come Cruising will take the stage from 3 to 4 p.m.
Dubbed the "Fishtival," this first-ever interactive festival celebrates 18 miles and 400 years of New Hampshire fishing communities and traditions in the waterfront setting of Prescott Park, and is designed to advance the region’s fishing industry by educating the public about the benefits of purchasing seafood locally.
To highlight the diversity and quality of the local fishing industry, chefs from restaurants and markets across the region will prepare creative, delicious samplings fresh from local boats. Each participating restaurant was assigned, by lottery, a different locally-caught seafood species to prepare and serve. For a nominal fee ($3 for fish and oysters, $6 for lobsters) celebration attendees can taste each of the species and the unique preparations. “Catch of the day” designation includes MONKFISH prepared by Jumpin’ Jays Fish Café; SQUID prepared by Philbrick’s Fresh Market; SKATE prepared by Robert’s Maine Grill; HAKE prepared by Seaport Fish; MACKEREL prepared by Fresh Local; LOBSTER prepared by The Blue Mermaid; FLOUNDER prepared by Portsmouth Brewery; COD prepared by Green Monkey; POLLOCK prepared by River House Restaurant; HADDOCK prepared by Portsmouth High School Culinary Arts; and BLUEFISH prepared by Old Salt Restaurant. Additionally, Portsmouth Lobster Company will provide whole steamed lobsters and Little Bay Oyster Company will present freshly shucked oysters.
"Iron Chef" fans will also love the chef cook-off competition between chefs Ben Hasty of the Inn at Exeter and Alex Maxon, a professional chef and fisherman from Newburyport. Dubbed the Seafood Throwdown, the chefs will be asked to prepare an undisclosed locally caught species on-site and with a limited amount of time to travel to the Portsmouth Farmers’ Market to collect supplies, and then return to the park to prepare, cook, and plate samples for the judges.