Sea Smarts

Ocean Wise programs helps Vancouver diners make smart, sustainable choices. By Masaji Takei

You’ve long known that choosing Chilean Seabass is as gauche as ordering up pan-fried panda for dinner, but not everything is black and white (or bluefin and yellowfin, in the case of tuna) when it comes to sustainable dining. Case in point: did you know to avoid all swordfish except for those from our U.S. neighbours? Or that wild sturgeon caviar is a no-no and farmed is perfectly acceptable, while wild salmon are far preferable to their colleagues in net cages? You need a chart these days to know which species are fair game.

Happily the Ocean Wise program, a conservation initiative of the Vancouver Aquarium, helps diners sort the good from the bad. The Ocean Wise logo marks sustainable seafood choices for discerning diners on menus of such leading restaurants as West, Raincity Grill and Chambar. Restaurants with full Ocean Wise certification have a completely sustainable fish menu.

Chef Robert Clark, of founding partner C Restaurant, has been pleased with the results of the program. “Together with the Vancouver Aquarium and the Ocean Wise program, we have accomplished more in the past year to move sustainability to the forefront of the restaurant industry’s concerns than all of C’s efforts in the past seven years working alone,” says Clark. The program now involves 28 restaurants from Whistler to White Rock. For more information, click here.

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Read more about Vancouver's culinary scene:

By the Bottle: Four B.C. wines to sample during your stay.
A City to Dine For: Vancouver's vibrant culinary scene in a nutshell.