Talking seafood with the Gold brothers

Here is Zocalo's report on last night's panel we told you about, on the future of seafood as a culinary offering. The outlook is bleak, of course, but the participants had some lighter moments. Swati Pandey captured part of the exchange between the brothers Gold and chef Michael Cimarusti. There's also video over at the Zocalo site.

"Are you going to talk to us about eating live octopus now?” Mark Gold asked his brother.

“I’ve had it,” Cimarusti said. “I liked it.”

“Have you had it braised for a long time til it gets really soft?” Jonathan asked of sea cucumber.

“See what I have to live with?” Mark said. Cimarusti and Jonathan recalled eating sea squirts and sea worms, which Jonathan described as “sickly long wagging pink penises.” Cimarusti said the worms had the texture of a garden hose; Jonathan described squirts as something like “hard rubber."

Photo: Aaron Salcido