Posted by Michael Knoff on January 10, 1999 at 21:16:17:
Recently, one of our bartenders here in NJ went surf fishing, and his party caught several limits of wild striped bass. He promptly brought them to the restaurant to clean them, and he ended up giving the chef 3 of them. The chef and the owner/general manager decided they wanted to sell them as a special.I told them I felt they should take them home, and use them privately, that there could be legal ramifications should someone become ill from eating fish we sold them that had'nt come from a purveyor.The solution they came to absolutely disgusted me. The chef (a not so knowledgeable or well trained, older man) made the point that striped bass is a common game fish, that maybe we should call it something else.They (the chef and the owner/manager) decided they would run the stripers as CHILEAN SEA BASS !!!!So thats what we did.We sold the unassuming public something that was so far from what was advertised that it made me sick. I was furious!!! How could anyone consciously deceive someone into eating a falsely named food stuff, no matter what type?!!! I am sous chef of this kitchen, so I didnt say anything in front of the other employees that might indicate a lack of respect for my chef, but the next morning, I let them have it with both barrels.I would have quit on the spot, had I any alternative job options.This restaurant is , how can I say it without sounding like a prima donna, slightly below me in terms of where I've been , and where I'd like to go food-wise.If, God forbid, someone gets sick from this fraud, I will be first in line to testify in court.Has anyone here had any experience like this? How did you handle it? I am truly, for the first time in my life, at a loss.