No Dungeness for Thanksgiving?

What’s on the menu for Thanksgiving? Not crab, California fishermen say.

With no deal on prices in hand and a storm expected to arrive Wednesday, fishermen at Pillar Point Harbor are pessimistic about catching any Dungeness crab in time for the holiday. Fishermen from Bodega Bay to Santa Cruz remain in a standoff with seafood wholesalers. The fishermen want USD 2.50 a pound, but the major seafood buyers are offering USD 2.

“I’d say right now it’s probably close to 100 percent that Thanksgiving’s out,” fisherman Duncan MacLean said Monday aboard his boat, the Barbare Faye.

The harbor was quiet Monday morning. Most fishermen have headed home, MacLean said. Some live in the area, while others reside as far away as Sacramento.

Dungeness crab is a holiday tradition for many Bay Area families who serve it on Thanksgiving or use it to break up the monotony of leftover turkey sandwiches.
Melodie Madsen, manager of Barbara’s Fishtrap in Princeton by the Sea, was dismayed to learn that crab likely won't arrive in time for Thanksgiving. Servers at the restaurant already have had to notify crab-hungry customers that the local specialty wasn’t on the menu. Since the crab season for Northern California, Oregon and Washington won’t start until mid-December at the earliest, Barbara’s may not be able to find another place to buy the popular crustacean - which means more disappointed customers.

Click here to read the rest of the story from the San Jose Mercury News > 

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