Cape Ann Fresh Catch

Still loving the freshest of fish and great delivery people!

Terrific fresh fish! I see there were problems a few years ago. Seems like they’ve ironed them out. We signed up for a share every other week and it’s been there, as expected. We pick up in Chelmsford. I’m signing up for another 8-​week period. Yum!

The second week of the season we had pollock. It was the best pollock I have ever had (although I should admit that I’d never had pollock before). Better than Jackson.
The first week of the season we had sole. It was the best sole I have ever had. Better than Aretha. (Not really. Nothing is better than Aretha. But: the fish DID feel like a natural fish.)
The third week it rained and there were no fish — but they were super cool about it with us, and are adding on a free week of fish later in the season.
Pickup (we pick up in Harvard Square, three blocks from our apartment) has been easy as pie. Fish pie. Ha ha ha. Ha ha. .. ok, enough jokes, time to go back to my plate of the greatest sole meuniere in the history of the planet.
(I’ll come back and change my review if by the end of the season we have serious logistical problems, as some of the seemingly-​cranky-​but-​maybe-​they-​just-​know-​more-​than-​I-​do one-​star reviewers have suggested, but until then. .. signing up for this CSF was the best idea ever.)

I’ll mirror the «great idea, horrible execution» review. When I was a member a year ago, there were awful lapses due to the understandable weather problems. But their handling of said problems was abhorrent. They eventually just dropped me from the program for asking if I could get a partial refund for weeks missed (you can’t) due to weather, and besides that, they never actually answered me – they dropped me seemingly because I kept asking every week they stiffed me…

great idea, terrible execution.
and i have to wonder about all the 5 star reviews that seem more like infomercials than reviews.

I’ve got a fish share from CAFC every season for a year now. The fish is super fresh, the variety is awesome and the service is great. Occasionally the weather will be bad, the boats can’t go out and I will not get, my share, but CAFC is always very apologetic (really, there is no need to apologize for the weather, but I suppose that’s customer service) and will make up for it with an extra share some week. Over the past year that variety and share types have improved which is a big plus. Tuesdays are one of the best days of the week, because I’m almost sure to get a fish surprise at the end of the day. Last week, I got monkfish, dabs the week before that and hake the week before that. I’ve also, got a good amount of cod, shrimp, haddock and they delivered blue fish once which was fantastic.

Great idea! I was really excited to join, but it’s been two weeks now and we haven’t gotten any fish! I’m hoping it will work out, but I’m starting to get a bit suspicious!

This is a «community supported fishery» or CSF. It’s like buying a subscription to fresh fish every week. Our share just started in May and runs for 13 weeks. So far we’ve had cod, pollock and flounder. The quality and freshness of the fish (it’s fresh, not frozen) are amazing. The fish in the stores – even the really expensive stores – isn’t even in the same league. Unless you’re fishing yourself and eating it in the boat, this is the freshest fish you’ll find in Boston.
They now have fillet shares (I think the first review was written back when they only did whole fish) which is great for people too busy or squeamish to cut up a fish themselves. Or clumsy people, like me, who would probably end up stabbing themselves if they tried. Price is reasonable – works out to about $ 6-​$ 12 per pound (depending on whether you do whole fish or fillets) which is pretty good for fresh, sustainably caught local fish. We have a fillet share and we get 2 pounds of fish per week. We eat some on pickup night and the rest we cut up into meal-​sized portions and freeze. We’re going to be eating this fish all winter.
They have a lot of pickup sites all over Boston (we currently collect our share at a farm in Lincoln, a 10 minute drive from where we live on the Waltham/​Weston line) and they’re open to adding new sites if you can get enough interest in your area.
One of the things I like about this is it helps to support small fishermen, who are small business people with day boats (boats that only fish for one day at a time, unlike the bigger company boats that are out at sea for days or weeks). These guys are really getting pressed out of the market by the big boats, which are harder on the environment and offer lower quality fish because of how long they’re at sea.
The «location» on this Unilocal listing is a bit misleading because even though they’ve located in Gloucester they do drop offs all over Boston and its suburbs.

Cape Ann Fresh Catch is the area community supported fishery program out of Gloucester. You sign up on their website for a share and pick up the fresh product once a week at the location you sign up for. In JP, they drop off over at the Community Serving parking lot on Tuesday afternoons.
As of this writing, the cost is I think $ 90 for a half share for 6 weeks. Me and the Mrs split a half share with another couple. Some weeks you might have a choice of fish, other weeks its strictly one type. Sometimes its Cod for weeks on end, which some have complained about. But in my opinion, this is best thing in seafood in New England. The fish is SUPER fresh. Yes, you have to fillet the fish and skin it. But hey, its a good opportunity to hone your knife skills. And then you use the carcass to make a nice fish stock. (and then your trash smells a few days later).
Getting back to the fish — the quality of your newly filleted cod or pollack or flounder is superior to anything you’ll get at your local grocery store, or for that matter fish monger. And the cost on a per week basis is $ 7.50 (splitting a half share). We’re getting 1 – 2 pounds of fish, which right there is CHEAPER than the grocery store. Plus, as mentioned before (and I cannot stress this enough), its a superior product.
I’ve done the CSA thing for a few years and that is neat. But menu planning is always a bit of a crap shoot as you don’t know if you’re going to get any starchy veg or if its going to be all salad greens and herbs. What do I do with 6 huge peppers this week!!! Sure, I can roast a few, maybe cut one up in a salad, add one to a marinara… but the bounty of a CSA can be a challenge to work with. The CSF is much more straightforward and in some respects better. If you know that on Tuesday you’re getting fish of some kind, you can plan your starch and veg and maybe be sure to have some lemon and herbs handy to simply dress the fish. You just have to cut up and cook the fish if not Tuesday than ideally weds.
Then of course, there is the whole community support dynamic here. Its a win for the fishermen (I hope), and its a win for the consumer when we cut out the middle man. The folks that are putting this together are my new heroes. I’ll be doing this CSF for a long time. Hope to see you at the pickup truck sometime soon!