Sinju offering the very rare and endangered Atlantic Bluefin tuna
From Slashfood, an article on Sinju Restaurant in the Pearl District.
A restaurant regular, Guido Rahr, who happens to be president of the Wild Salmon Center in Portland, has noticed Sinju recently began offering the very rare and endangered Atlantic Bluefin tuna on the menu.
Rahr had been eating at Sinju for nearly a decade. The headquarters for his environmental group is located in the Ecotrust Natural Capital Center, across the street from the restaurant, and is home to several other conservation and sustainable development groups who share similar concerns about endangered species.
Rahr didn’t just mention that bluefin was overfished, he took the time to come back with printed materials detailing the seriousness of their plight in the hopes that at the very least, the team at Sinju would think twice before putting the fish on the menu again.
What did the restaurant do? Why they banned Mr. Rahr from their restaurant.
I wouldn’t have gone there anyway because I think the restaurant is lousy, but I definitely won’t ever go there again.
You can read more, including a response from the restaurant here.
CO says
can I ask, whom is going to be the first person to actual stop and see this situation for what it is? I mean, instead of taking this guys heavily massaged version of the story(and completely devoid of Sinju’s side of the story)at face value, how about we look at it critically. He is in ANOTHER PERSONS BUSINESS, espousing his political beliefs about basic elements of their business with paying customers within earshot. Does that sound like a “very nice” thing to do, regardless of how you feel about a LEGAL business? Yeah, me either…..sounds like a twit.
come to think of it, do you know who this guy actually sounds like?….Foie Gras Protesters. If my memory serves me correctly, I believe the same people that are falling on this guys side in this were the same people saying how crappy and ill informed the FG douches are(to which I would agree). So how about we all drop the arrogant cheerleading of “sustainability” for a second and be less hypocritical, mkay?
one swell foop says
While you’re making accusations about not getting both sides of the story, you should consider that you’re making the probably unwarranted assumptions that Rahr was discussing this with the staff/owner a) within earshot of ANY customer, of which you have no proof or basis for assumption and b) that he did it loudly enough for ANY OTHER paying customer that might have been present to hear, for which you, again, have no proof or basis for assumption.
This also has nothing to do with the foie gras protesters, nor does it share any roots in its cause. Ducks reared for foie are not in danger of being wiped out in any way, shape, or form. There is, to my knowledge, currently no protest going on at Sinju regarding their sale of the fish, though they might ought to have one to highlight the fact that the owner is an asshole (something I know from personal experience).
You ought to be a little more careful next time. This round it looks like the jerk you’re pointing your finger at is the guy in the mirror.
CO says
“There were two other customers at the bar who overheard the discussion but went back to their meals with no apparent loss of appetite.”
http://politicsoftheplate.com/?p=606
furthermore….”You ought to be a little more careful next time”
Food Dude says
It should be noted that sentence was not included in the Slashdot story.
However, it doesn’t change my opinion at all. I’m glad I can bring more attention to this story. Just because it’s legal, doesn’t make it right.
CO says
yeah but that link was there!? were we all so busy that we couldn’t toggle our mouse over it, right click and read the poopy head’s own words?
perhaps people shouldn’t be so lazy before spouting off. just a thought….
also, if you are against a legal business, maybe you should focus your attention on the lawmakers that keep such practices legal. Get the law changed, do not attempt backdoor/vigilante social engineering.
Food Dude says
I’m lost – have been through the whole post and don’t see that link. Where is it?
Pam says
‘Poopy heads’?? I’m with O S Foop: ‘it looks like the jerk you’re pointing your finger at is the guy in the mirror’. Just because you have a point of view doesn’t mean you should be rude in your expression of it.
CO says
rude? you mean like the guy at Sinju originally?
Food Dude says
CO, it’s time to let it go. You are arguing for the sake of arguing. Let’s just agree to disagree
CO says
Dude, I would/will gladly do that, except it seems that others want to hurl condemnations and insults at me on this board, while I have done nothing of the sort towards any of the other commenters. It seems a bit incongruous to point the finger at me here, as I am merely defending my position/self.
Irene says
No, you cannot ask whom is going to be the first person, however you can ask who is going to be the first person.
sustainability_is_not_hype says
unbelievable: http://www.sinjurestaurant.com/picturemenu_1.pdf
eating blue fin is like eating sea turtle soup. please do not give sinju your business.
and eating farmed domestic duck is NOTHING like eating a soon to be extinct species (the northern blue fin subspecies is now extinct).
i wonder if there is anything that CO would not defend a business for serving?
CO says
nothing that is legal, no. I may not like it, agree with it or endorse it, but I will defend your right to sell it.
Food Dude says
I love my readers. They always say what I think, albeit more eloquently.
CO says
aww, thanks! ;-)
One Swell Foop says
You keep harping on what a Legal Business is doing, and I’m not exactly sure wtf your point with that is. They got a permit and comply with codes, pretty much like every other business out there that hasn’t been shut down does. That gives them what sort of validity? It seems like you think that every time you say “legal business!” you drive home a point thats going to make you look better. Quite obviously, I’m missing the point (on the very generous assumption that there is actually one).
Re: doing things Legally;
There are a number of states where I can shoot to kill if you are on my property, and in quite a few of them I needn’t wait for an explanation or address you beforehand. That’s legal, but it doesn’t make it right. Perhaps you of the camp that equates legality and illegality with inherent right and wrong. I’m not quite so one dimensional in my thinking.
CO says
using the term ‘legal business’ twice is hardly harping.
btw, is this your apology for your intial half-cocked reply to me??
One Swell Foop says
The first time you used it like this, “regardless of how you feel about a LEGAL business?”.
You kept on with it, even if in a limited sense. You seem to think it lends your argument some sort of validity, but neglect to explain in what way it might do so. Maybe that’s because it doesn’t…
The only thing half cocked in this thread is your argument.
In other news, I saw the slashfood article linked on huffpost’s food page. Sinju, meet an entire internet of bad press, internet of bad press, meet Sinju.
CO says
you keep side stepping the “in front of other customers” part. Now that we have, in fact proven that at least 2 customers heard this, can we agree that Rahr was over the line? Furthermore the fact that a waitress/hostess remembered him right away A MONTH later and knew to go call the GM, should lead you to question exactly how cordial he really was in his initial confrontation at the sushi bar.
My argument does not hinge on legality. You seem, to be missing(perhaps on purpose)my actual argument. Sinju selling Bluefin is not the point, the point is this guy was a tool for going about it in the manner in which he did. Then he tried to spin it on his blog and Slashfood(in addition to a few other sites)took the email that HE VOLUNTARILY SENT THEM at face value. Shame on Slashfood and shame on this low life for his behavior.
Now, if you’ll excuse me I have to go find some lunch….perhaps some Bluefin and a side of shark fin soup. Tasty, tasty extinction.
One Swell Foop says
No, we may not agree that Rahr was “over the line”. We do not know the exact content of the conversation that was had, but given Rahr’s considerate, measured and generally respectful tone AFTER being banned, I feel justified in assuming that he wasn’t bashing the place in front of customers, rather trying to explain the cons of serving a particular species of fish.
Recognizing someone after not seeing them for a “MONTH” is indicative of nothing in particular. I have customers that I see on the same day each week, or fairly regularly over a long period of time. I remember who they are, what they like to drink, any particulars of food orders they typically make and any pertinent details about the person. My clientele sometimes heads to Europe for a couple months during the summer. Does this mean I forget who they are? It’s also entirely likely that the person that “knew to call the GM” was rather instructed to call the GM the next time Rahr came in.
I’m not missing you’re point, I’m saying that it is wrong. Perhaps you missed my point when, in my first reply, I said that Rahr was NOT a tool and suggested you might be for calling him one.
MSalsgiver says
A petition to list a species does not constitute an actual listing of a species. Let the US Fish & Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service do their job.
One Swell Foop says
Not to seem needlessly quarrelsome, but which ship of state do you know of does not steer so slowly that a species can be all but wiped out before they finish the first of many studies and evaluations?
sustainability_is_not_hype says
“Let the US Fish & Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service do their job.”
I was not aware the US has jurisdiction over the Black sea (where the Northern species is now extinct) or the Mediterranean.
Steve says
With the exception of certain legally-protected groups (environmentalists not included last time I checked), Sinju management has the right to Refuse service to whomever they want. That they would choose to exercise that right in this instance says something. It is something that patrons can consider when deciding whether to patronize Sinju in the future. On that point, I’m with FoodDude. But I gotta say that I’m equally turned off by the comments made by Bamboo’s Lofgren. To wit,
“When you’re the head of an environmental organization devoted to the preservation of one of the most important species economically and culturally to the Northwest, and you eat at a place that doesn’t serve wild salmon, that was surprising to me. I’m surprised that Ecotrust, or any members of Ecotrust, would support or align themselves with any organization that doesn’t directly support their initiative and mission back,” says Lofgren.”
Setting aside the fact that IMHO Bamboo is overrated, tone deaf comments such as these makes me equally unlikely to patronize Bamboo.
sustainability_is_not_hype says
“tone deaf comments such as these”
I personally thought that Lofgren was right on target.
And after slamming Bamboo you fail to explain why the comment is tone deaf. I thought most people understood that salmon farming is unsafe and environmentally toxic practice. And I completely fail to understand why a northwesterner would not want to support a local sustainable fishery.
It is ironic that Lofgren’s restaurant serves yellow tail, which is the Asian equivalent of farmed salmon in terms of chemical and drug-laden “feed”, parasites, and coastal estuary destruction.
Steve says
I’m happy to further flesh out why I thought Lofgren’s comments were tone deaf.
Mr. Rahr and his colleagues at Ecotrust appear to fall squarely within Lofgren’s target demographic and are precisely the type of customers that Lofgren would want to cultivate. To the average reader, Rahr also comes across in the article as a sympathetic character who is genuinely aggrieved to discover a new, non-sustainable item on the menu at one of his local lunchspots and makes a reasonable and measured effort to educate the owner regarding the issue. The punishment for his efforts? He’s banned for the temerity of speaking out against the owner’s orthodoxy.
In this situation you would expect Lofgren to align himself with Rahr by (1) expressing the importance of continuing to educate both consumers and others in the industry about sustainable practices, just as Rahr attempted to do; (2) label as unfortunate the fact that some in the industry–such as Sinju’s management–showed such disregard for sustainable practices and the sustainability concerns of their customers; and (3) invite Rahr and everyone else to dine at Bamboo where sustainability is viewed as serious business.
Lofgren, however, doesn’t do that. Rather, Lofgren suggests that environmentalists have to be more discerning in selecting the restaurants they chose to patronize at the outset. He then goes on to essentially call Rahr’s bona fides and judgment into question, suggesting that Rahr, “Ecotrust, or any members of Ecotrust” are hypocrites if they “support or align themselves with any organization that doesn’t directly support their initiative and mission back.”
In short, Lofgren attacks the guy he should be siding with for apparently not being sufficiently discerning and conscientious as Lofgren presents himself to be. In the context of the article, that is tone deaf.
By the way, I’m not sure of the basis for your suggestion that I “slammed” Bamboo. What I said was that in my humble opinion (“IMHO”) Bamboo is overrated, i.e., not as good as many people make it out to be. I didn’t say it was the worst sushi. Heck, I didn’t even say it was bad sushi. I just don’t agree that it is the best sushi in Portland, as some have suggested.
sustainability_is_not_hype says
Steve, Thanks for clarifying. I agree with you that Lofgren missed an opportunity to educate the public.
jae Woo says
Though the response is late, I thought it was better late than never to respond to the attention that Sinju has been getting regarding this issue. We are as you know, a family owned business without a dedicated marketing or PR arm so perhaps my parents, who are immigrants and busily working 7 days a week to run their business didn’t respond in sophisticated and/or timely manner the way they could have. So as the daughter of the owner, I wanted to take a quick minute to address the concerns of Sinju’s followers. I am not an employee of the restaurant (though I used to be) and was not there when the incident happened as I am in graduate school in Chicago. I’m just an insider giving Sinju’s perspective after speaking to my parents and the employees.
First, Blue Fin is no longer on the menu. We understand that we will continue to face sustainability issues and navigating that will be difficult for all restaurant owners. My parents, as with all business owners cannot deny the sentiments of the local community and the customers that they serve and want to conduct their business ethically. However, we believe that if people want to bring up the issue, that is a conversation/debate to be had out of a public space that is not intrusive to our employees and our customers. As business owners, my parents stand by their decision to protect our business and all of the people in it, including themselves.