Great Lakes Cities

[the urban politician]

In all my years living in Michigan I never made it up to Traverse City. Definitely need to head out there some time

[Chef]

Originally Posted by Shawn

Silly as it sounds, sometimes it's all about the food. Seafood is just better than lakefood, period. I want mekajiki/swordfish, wild salmon, cod, halibut etc. over rainbow trout or whatever else passes as a freshwater steak fish. Same deal with shellfish. Growing up in coastal New England and then living in Tokyo instills high standards for seafood. So when I see what my eyes are telling me is an ocean - no horizon in sight - but the food coming out of the water isn't seafood, I'm slightly disappointed?

(it's a reach, I know)

The best Great Lakes fish are whitefish and walleye. Walleye in particular is excellent if it is the right age and prepared correctly (if they are too big they get fishy, the younger ones are more mild). If the French had walleye it would be an internationally famous delicacy as it is one of the best fish on the planet. Whitefish is less well known because it was almost wiped out by the sea lamprey when the Welland Canal was opened. Prior to that it was the most economically important fishery in the Great Lakes. The Whitefish fishery was completely shut down in the '60s. Commercial fishing for it didn't resume until about 15 years ago. Lake Superior is also now the worlds largest source of lojrom which is herring roe (which comes from the alewife, even though it isn't a true herring). Most of the lojrom produced in the US is exported to Sweden.

[Centropolis]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

In all my years living in Michigan I never made it up to Traverse City. Definitely need to head out there some time

that's a basic midwestern rite of passage, dude.

[LMich]

Originally Posted by Centropolis

that's a basic midwestern rite of passage, dude.

Making it up the Mackinac may be, and maybe then only for Michiganders. Traverse City is still a bit out-of-the-way. It's certainly and area nicer than the straits, but it's certainly not seen as a rite-of-passage, not even here in the state. I still haven't been. Rites are places like the island or Sleeping Bear, heck, even Grand Haven if you don't have the time or money. Traverse City has really branded itself more the Park City destination of the state.

[Steely Dan]

my favorite memory regarding an outsider's surprise at the size and scale of the great lakes:


my british friend's parents were visiting chicago (and the US midwest) for the first time. i took the family up to milwaukee for a little day-trip. upon arriving at the milwaukee art museum, my friend's dad looked out across the vast blue expanse of lake michigan and remarked:


friend's dad: "my god, another unfathomably large lake just like the one down in chicago. these great lakes truly are remarkable, we've nothing like them back in blighty."

me: "oh no, this is still the same lake as the one down in chicago, it's all lake michigan."

friend's dad: "you mean we've just been traveling for a couple of hours on the motorway and we're still along the shore of the same lake? unbelievable! exactly how large is this lake?"

me: "about 300 miles long in the north-south direction."

friend's dad: "— hell! 300 miles long! that's almost the length of england itself! and you yanks call this vast sea a mere lake?"

me: "well, it's all freshwater....... and there are 4 more of them to boot."

friend's dad: "unbelievable." <shaking his head in disbelief>


he had some prior awareness that the great lakes were big, but when we traveled from chicago up to milwaukee, he assumed that we had traveled from a city on one great lake to another city on a different great lake, his mind had come nowhere close to wrapping itself around the true size and scale of the great lakes, because back home in britain, what he knew as "lakes" were simply small puddles in comparison to a body of water like lake michigan.

[the urban politician]

^ You did a good job in capturing his British-ness

"Back in Blighty"
"— hell!"
"Traveling on the motorway"

[Buckeye Native 001]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

my favorite memory regarding outsider's surprise at the size and scale of the great lakes:


my british friend's parents were visiting chicago (and the US midwest) for the first time. i took the family up to milwaukee for a little day-trip. upon arriving at the milwaukee art museum, my friend's dad looked out across the vast blue expanse of lake michigan and remarked:


friend's dad: "my god, another unfathomably large lake just like the one down in chicago. these great lakes truly are remarkable, we've nothing like them back in blighty."

me: "oh no, this is still the same lake as the one down in chicago, it's all lake michigan."

friend's dad: "you mean we've just been traveling for a couple of hours on the motorway and we're still along the shore of the same lake? unbelievable! exactly how large is this lake?"

me: "about 300 miles long in the north-south direction."

friend's dad: "— hell! 300 miles long! that's almost the length of england itself! and you yanks call this vast sea a mere lake?"

me: "well, it's all freshwater....... and there are 4 more of them to boot."

friend's dad: "unbelievable." <shaking his head in disbelief>


he had some prior awareness that the great lakes were big, but when we traveled from chicago up to milwaukee, he assumed that we had traveled from a city on one great lake to another city on a different great lake, his mind had come nowhere close to wrapping itself around the true size and scale of the great lakes, because back home in britain, what he knew as "lakes" were simply small puddles in comparison to a body of water like lake michigan.

This kind of reminds me of when some German relatives visited Cincinnati in 1995 and didn't quite grasp why we couldn't just hop in a car and drive to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon for the weekend...

[suburbanite]

People underestimate just how large and powerful the Great Lakes are. I've always been fascinated by shipwrecks, but freshwater especially. That ships so large travel across what is essentially an inland sea, and that there are storms large enough to produce rogue waves capable of breaking a ship like the Edmund Fitzgerald in half (if that's the way she went down).

I've been out on Georgian Bay in a 20 foot boat when the weather turned sour, and it surely is a humbling and frightening experience racing back to shore against the clock.



from: https://symonsez.wordpress.com/tag/lake-superior-weather-edmund-fitzgerald/


from:http://www.boatnerd.com/pictures/fleet/spruceglen.htm



from:https://www.shipwreckmuseum.com/edmund-fitzgerald/the-fateful-journey/

[Crawford]

Originally Posted by Buckeye Native 001

This kind of reminds me of when some German relatives visited Cincinnati in 1995 and didn't quite grasp why we couldn't just hop in a car and drive to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon for the weekend...

I think I have the same relatives. Elderly German relatives visiting Michigan in my youth and asking to see the "Wild West" and "Hollywood celebrities".

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by suburbanite

People underestimate just how large and powerful the Great Lakes are. I've always been fascinated by shipwrecks, but freshwater especially. That ships so large travel across what is essentially an inland sea, and that there are storms large enough to produce rogue waves capable of breaking a ship like the Edmund Fitzgerald in half (if that's the way she went down).

due to improvements in weather forecasting, satellite navigation, ship safety, and other advances, commercial shipping on the great lakes has gotten RADICALLY safer.

the edmund fitzgerald (immortalized in the gordon lightfoot song) was the last major freighter to sink on the great lakes, and that was over 40 years ago!

prior to that, freighters were routinely lost on north america's vast and sometimes treacherous inland seas. the improvement in the safety record of great lakes shipping has been quite dramatic.

from ships lost at "sea" being a regular occurrence, to zero major freighters lost in 4 over decades.

[Capsicum]

Originally Posted by Chef

If the French had walleye it would be an internationally famous delicacy as it is one of the best fish on the planet.

They sort of do... not walleye, but a closely related species to it, called zander, found in the cuisine of European nations including France.

The zander is the European relative of the North American walleye, and apparently very close in taste too.


From the Wikipedia page:

"In 2004, it was revealed that some restaurants in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area of Minnesota in the United States were serving imported zander instead of the closely related North American walleye (the state fish, and a popular food in the region). While zander and walleye are almost indistinguishable by taste, the restaurants were selling the European fish under the name "walleye", which is an illegal practice. An investigation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration followed."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zander#Use_by_humans

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Capsicum

They sort of do... not walleye, but a closely related species to it, called zander, found in the cuisine of European nations including France.

The zander is the European relative of the North American walleye, and apparently very close in taste too.


From the Wikipedia page:

"In 2004, it was revealed that some restaurants in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area of Minnesota in the United States were serving imported zander instead of the closely related North American walleye (the state fish, and a popular food in the region). While zander and walleye are almost indistinguishable by taste, the restaurants were selling the European fish under the name "walleye", which is an illegal practice. An investigation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration followed."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zander#Use_by_humans

In Quebec the walleye is called "doré", which means golden.

I am not a fan but it is widely considered a delicacy here. Some people react to having it for dinner like others would react to lobster.

[llamaorama]

Beautiful water but nobody is actually in it. They are all standing on the beach or at best up to their knees.

Gee I wonder why?

[badrunner]

Sharks?

[benp]

Originally Posted by llamaorama

Beautiful water but nobody is actually in it. They are all standing on the beach or at best up to their knees.

Gee I wonder why?

It could be the freshwater sharks ... but I'm sure that the water's still (quite) chilly in late May.

[TownGuy]

Yeah not sure what he was trying to imply with that but being that it was taken in May the water would definitely be cold.

[The North One]

Originally Posted by llamaorama

Beautiful water but nobody is actually in it. They are all standing on the beach or at best up to their knees.

Gee I wonder why?

Gee I don't know why don't you tell us?

[Razor]

Originally Posted by Chef

The best Great Lakes fish are whitefish and walleye. Walleye in particular is excellent if it is the right age and prepared correctly (if they are too big they get fishy, the younger ones are more mild). If the French had walleye it would be an internationally famous delicacy as it is one of the best fish on the planet. Whitefish is less well known because it was almost wiped out by the sea lamprey when the Welland Canal was opened. Prior to that it was the most economically important fishery in the Great Lakes. The Whitefish fishery was completely shut down in the '60s. Commercial fishing for it didn't resume until about 15 years ago. Lake Superior is also now the worlds largest source of lojrom which is herring roe (which comes from the alewife, even though it isn't a true herring). Most of the lojrom produced in the US is exported to Sweden.

Agreed on the French having Walleye. Also some good factoids in your post..Thanks!
Another Great Lakes fish which I never had in a long time are Smelts.
Every year, I always knew somebody who made the trek for the annual run when they were in season. Pan fried in just butter, they are delish.There was a Polish fella in our neighborhood who used to go every year, and would usually give us a pail full...

[dc_denizen]

this thread makes me want to put the kids in the car and drive 23 hours so we can stand on a deserted lakeshore on manatoulin island or something.

[Chef]

Originally Posted by Capsicum

They sort of do... not walleye, but a closely related species to it, called zander, found in the cuisine of European nations including France.

The zander is the European relative of the North American walleye, and apparently very close in taste too.


From the Wikipedia page:

"In 2004, it was revealed that some restaurants in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area of Minnesota in the United States were serving imported zander instead of the closely related North American walleye (the state fish, and a popular food in the region). While zander and walleye are almost indistinguishable by taste, the restaurants were selling the European fish under the name "walleye", which is an illegal practice. An investigation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration followed."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zander#Use_by_humans

I was already a head chef in the Twin Cities when that story broke so I know it very well. Out of curiosity I did a side by side taste test. Zander is similar to walleye in look and texture but the taste, while similar, isn't as good. I was testing it against the frozen walleye that comes from Manitoba, the zander tasted like walleye that was a bit off. And that was compared to commodity frozen walleye. The best walleye I've ever had came from two sources, in both cases it had never been frozen - one source is a commercial fishery run by the Red Lake Ojibwe in northern Minnesota. The other came from Georgian Bay in Lake Huron and was caught and sold by Plitt Seafood which is a fine dining seafood wholesaler based in Chicago. In both cases that walleye, when pan seared (in 50/50 butter and grape seed oil) had the surface of the fish turn caramelized and savory/crusty even when cooked without being floured. That is the version of walleye that is a delicacy. It is insanely delicious like that but for some reason it won't cook like that if has been frozen. I think it is because frozen walleye purges liquid when it is cooked, probably because the freezing broke all the cell walls.