Massachusetts flounder is having a fin-tastic moment. Through Sept. 30, 10 chefs across the state are serving limited-time dishes for “Flat Is Back,” a new campaign from the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries celebrating the local catch. From Boston to Nantucket, diners can reel in flounder prepared as crudo, croquettes, lettuce wraps, and more.
A statewide flounder feast
The menu lineup gives seafood fans plenty to bite on. Comfort Kitchen in Dorchester has cassava flounder croquettes with shito aioli, while Row 34 in Boston and Cambridge serves Black Back Flounder with blue crab, lentil-and-rice pilaf, tomato and caper butter.
At Bistro du Midi in Boston, chef Robert Sisca is serving kombu-cured fluke crudo with hearts of palm, jalapeño, avocado and green gazpacho. Davio’s locations offer crab-stuffed local flounder, and Puritan Oyster Bar in Cambridge is making coconut-and-sesame-crusted sole lettuce wraps. This is one local food trend worth getting hooked on.
All participating restaurants with flounder-featured dishes are:
- Boston: Comfort Kitchen, Davio’s, Row 34, and Bistro du Midi
- Cambridge: Puritan Oyster Bar, Catalyst and Row 34
- Lynnfield: Davio’s
- Foxborough: Davio’s
- Chatham: Chatham Bars Inn
- New Bedford: The Black Whale
- Nantucket: Straight Wharf Fish
- Lenox: Sloane’s Tavern at Miraval Berkshires
Catch, the flounder-centric dishes through the end of September.
Fresh catch
Massachusetts fishermen harvest flounder year-round, but imported seafood and uneven demand can leave part of the local catch unsold. The campaign aims to turn the tide by connecting diners with the fish, fishermen and coastal communities behind it.
Flounder is mild, slightly sweet and versatile—whether it arrives roasted, fried or raw. Don’t let the many names throw you off the scent: fluke, blackback, yellowtail sole and American plaice are all varieties of locally harvested flounder.
Enjoy this statewide special now through September 30.
