FIVE POUND Fried Catfish! SEAFOOD Tour of SEATTLE

Hey, good morning from cloudy, probably later rainy Seattle. And I say that with all the happiness in my heart because if you do know me, I love rain. I haven't been in the city for probably close to six years and I'm heading over to Vancouver so I thought I'd make a pit stop and see what kind of seafood this town has to offer. So, you guys ready for a little seafood adventure? Let's go. I just want to say, this is really pretty. It's so pretty. Of course, when in Seattle, I gotta check that place out. But first, I need some food. Ah, I think we need some donuts. I smell donuts. Woo, oh, this is the famous stall where they throw the fish. Pike's Place Fish Company. It's really nostalgic because, I don't know if you guys know what I'm talking about, but when I was in college, we would be shown this video called Fish. The title would be called Fish and it's about teamwork and it's featuring the Pike Place Fish Company. So, this is like, man, this is taking me back. But first, let's go get some donuts and we'll come back. Ooh. Oh, is that bacon bits on the donut? That's bacon bits on the donut. That's six kinds of donut. Perfect, I got one of each. I'm so excited about this. Ah, fresh out of the fryer. Crispy, crispy. I love it when donuts are nice and crispy on the outside and just by touching it, this is like a little pillow on the inside. Look at it doing a little donut jiggle right here. That is some airy donut, shall we? I feel like I need some coffee or something. I don't eat donuts often, so I kind of forget why. Because this, am I just really, really hungry or was this just this good? I mean, just like I thought. The donut was crispy, you get a little crisp on the outside and this inside, it's just sweet, misty air. Is it weird that my first day in Seattle and a donut is blowing my mind right now? Texture is just heavenly. Right? Good morning. Have a donut, please. Oh, no, no, no. I heart. Have a donut. Good morning, everybody. My friend Randy, we just met over donuts. So where are you visiting from? I'm from New York. I'm local. You're local? How's the donut? I've been eating these damn things for 30 years. Are these some of the best donuts you ever had? They're only donut seven. Wow. Testament from a true local. I've known the owner for many, many, many years. Oh, lucky you. I wish I'd been eating this for the last 30 years of my life. Oh, oh, oh, look at my belly. It's all donuts. Nice talking to you. Amazing donut. The bacon one, the bacon is crispy. Sitting on that bed of caramel. It's like caramel quicksand is engulfing the crispy bacon and that's all on top of this pillowy donut. It's slightly toasted on the outside, slightly crispy on the outside. I know this is supposed to be a seafood video. We're getting to it. I could just pop these. Let's go eat some seafood. A little about this market. It started over a hundred years ago. This is the original farmer's market and it's still operating farmer's market in Seattle. Also, it's haunted. Seriously. There's a ghost roaming around here. I think his name is Frank. Not even making this up. Freshly smoked salmon. Oh. Somebody should put a smoking sign in my mouth. Oh, that's ridiculous. This market has way more than just fish and meats and grills. It's got everything. I just met a couple of fans that are eating some that look really good. And he told me it's this, a Pro Ski. The original Starbucks. Post Alley. That's where my chowder is. When I used to live in Boston, there was a period of time where all I ate was chowder. I sought out the best clam chow... Chowder. Deep obsession with clam chowder. Heard this one's the best. Place is not even open. Already a line. It's a long line, too. So they actually got like eight different types of chowder here, but they recommend the sampler of four. I think those are gonna be the most iconic chowders. Let's start with the basics. Most popular, iconic, the regular New England clam chowder. On a cold day, hot bowl of chowder. It's exactly what you need. Oh, that's amazing. Have I said that already? Sorry, my brain is like, it's skipping a beat because it's too delicious right here. I'm a chowder schnob. I really am. I went to all the best places in Boston. This is melting my soul away right now. Now I just realized I made a huge mistake. This is not enough for me. First of all, huge chunks of clams in here. And the potato, incredibly soft. I hate it when I take a bite of chowder and I have to like, and the potato's like almost borderline crunchy. Like what's up with that? Not here. Little sized potatoes pairs perfectly with the smooth, creamy, oh-so-creamy chowder broth. Need to dip some bread in there. Good chowder deserves a nice dipping. I'm sitting outside eating chowder. And it's raining. Yeah, you know what? Comes with the territory. I can fit in. I love rain. Little sprinkle in your chowder. Won't dilute it too much. This is a crab and oyster chowder. Oh, that is crabby. Oh, a little spicy too. Bits of corn to give it a slight crunch. A little breakaway from the smooth texture. Oh my God. Still love the original chowder more. Absolutely. But this has a little bite to it. Really enjoy that. Oh, and this is so crabby. The seared scallop chowder. Little bigger sized potatoes. Wow. This is even creamier because the scallops are really, really, really soft too. I might like this more than the clam. You can see all the herbs in here, which makes this chowder just really, really fragrant. Actually, there's something that says these chowders are better than all the other chowders I had. These are definitely the most fragrant, aromatic chowders I've ever had. This keeps getting better and better. Finally, this is the seafood bisque. Every one of these things. Good dish if you want something a little more acidic, a little more tomatoey. All the four different types of chowders, the flavors are really, really distinct. But like I said, they do have a common fragrant herby taste to them that really sets these apart from anything else I've had. Smoothest, definitely the scallop. But the original, you never forget the first bite loves of your life, right? You never do. This place, I can see why there's a line every single day, because if I lived here, I'd be lining up basically every single day. And this is the Dungeness crab roll. I mean, it's just overflowing with Dungeness crab. You're on the West Coast, you gotta go for Dungeness crab roll. Wow. Oh God. Hang on. You know what made this better? I just put a big old smile on my face. I love what they did with the outside of this roll. Crispy, buttery, and the inside is just all sweet bliss. This is good, but I think it's a little overshadowed by how amazingly delicious the chowder is. But pair these up, you're in good company. Well, you know what they say, for good chowders, is there's a good piroshki. Shall we? This is the famous, oh, it looks like a fish. It looks like a fish. And I got this. This is the apple cinnamon roll, because the lady next to me in line, she says she comes to the bakery almost every single day, and she always gets this and it's her favorite. So had to listen to her. This is the smoked salmon pate piroshki. Anyway, if you didn't know what a piroshki was, like I didn't, it's a Russian pastry, and it's stuffed with all sorts of stuff. And of course, ah, the salmon just fell. Since I'm in Seattle, of course, had to get the smoked salmon pate. Let's cut open this fish, shall we? There it is, the smoked salmon pate. Looks like some herbs in there, little bits of onions. Oh, that's nice. Mm, love the filling. Really smoky. Love the salmon flavor. This bread is actually really amazing. I feel like it'd be better if it just came out of the oven right away. Where I took it home, I toasted my oven a little bit, so this has a little more of a crunch, but still, really good. This is actually really, really soft. Basically melts together with the smoked salmon. My one regret is I should have kept one of the chowders around for this to dip in, because the salmon piroshki swimming around in that chowder, then swimming into my mouth, that would have been the ultimate. This is a crazy apple cinnamon roll. You can see the bits of apples stuffed into every crevice. I think I like the fish better. Not just because I prefer fish over apples. Oh, it's so good. A little chew, don't we? Mm, I'm still chewing it. I almost feel like I need to catch some rain, wash it down. Couple more places I found. Seafood, amazing. And words, can't talk. Let's go. Also, this market, it's really sticky. And I'm not just talking about the ground. So, they have a gum wall. This, again, takes me back to college, because my school, Truman State University, used to have a gum tree. But I feel like this is more gross. All right, let's go find something that's actually yummy. Next stop. I heard a lot of good things about this place. You want a whole grilled fish? I know I want a whole grilled fish. And this place has it. Joyfish, I found this on a Chinese blog, supposed to be amazing. So this place, this is known for their grilled fish, and they told me the weaver is the most popular. I'm gonna get that. And then they told me to get this sauce, grilled Citroen fish. So you pick your fish, you pick your sauce, and then I got my vegetables. I'm gonna do the enoki, I'm gonna do the napa cabbage, and then I'm gonna do the seaweed, and maybe a little tofu skin, just for good measure. I'm ready to go. They grill all the fish in that massive electric oven over there. Oh, that is fantastic looking. Oh my gosh, I could swim in that. This looks insane. Now, I've had whole fish grilled pots like this before, but this is definitely the prettiest. You can see the char marks on the fish. There's sesame on top, scallions, tons of chilies, of course. Seaweed knots, napa cabbage, and of course, enoki mushrooms. Let's shift away the spicy chilies. Oh, they're crispy too. Oh, this is gonna be good to eat as well. And then the peppercorn, and you get to the fish. This is when food archeology comes really in handy, because you gotta dig deep a little bit. Oh, that is tender. And oh, you guys see how juicy this piece of fish is? Oh yeah, whoa. Oh, that fish just bit me on my tongue. I think that's the perfect amount of spice. Anything spicier than that, you won't be able to taste the fish. I love the parts where it's kind of touching the flames, where the heat source, and it's slightly chewier and smokier. That is an amazing fish rib. And some parts of the fish, I feel like the parts that are submerged, the parts right here that are like closer to the head, this is really, really, really tender. And I think each has its merits. The roasted part is a little chewier, a little smokier, but this, this is just pure delight. The fish is good, but I feel like my favorite part of this is the gnocchi. I love the spicy broth. Oh, tofu skin in this broth. I know this is gonna be amazing. Tofu's good, fish is good. I feel like maybe I had to spice it up a lot. I feel like the roasted fish I had in New York, my favorite place, I feel like that's still a little better. Not as spicy as this, this is definitely spicier. I love the broth, but I do feel like that one is stronger, but still delicious. And I got one more, one more fish coming up. And this one, this one's a monster. A lot of locals recommend I come here. And this is a place that Anthony Bourdain actually came and visited as well. And they, they have a monster fish in there. You'll see. You ready for this? I'm not even sure if I'm ready for this. I feel like I'm in a fresh herb forest. This is like the sacrificial vegetable or noodle plate for the monster that is this catfish I'm about to feast on. This is the fried catfish. Look at that. This is going to be a great little thin cracker. The skin is just so incredibly crunchy. This, this is a monster right here. I mean, look at this teeth. It's like you're staring at a prehistoric shark right here. Oh, that thing could not be fun when it bites you. But luckily I'll be the one doing the biting today. That crunch is amazing. I never heard that crunch coming from a catfish before. Inside the crunchy shell of the catfish. Look at that. This is like cracking open a crispy wall and finding tender treasure inside. You guys see this glistening, right? I mean, that's all the juice that's been trapped inside the skin of this catfish. And this thing's got garlic on top, little scallions, little peanuts. And they cook this for eight hours. So they cure it first before they fry it. And they only have about 20 days a day. Wow. Oh my God. The skin of the fish, really crispy, obviously. But it's kind of crazy because it almost tastes like chicken skin, more like pork skin. Oh, seriously. Very crispy and then fatty too. If you gave me this skin to eat, I would never guess this is fish skin. I would think this is pork. In the inside, oh my God. Oh, that meat is so tender. Ho, ho, ho, ho, ho, ho. Definitely going on top of my ATM list. You know, the no teeth necessary list. One of the most unique fish dishes I've ever had. And of course, this is a Vietnamese restaurant. So I got to wrap this in a little rice wrap. Take your rice wrapper. Roll it around. So Alyssa, the manager, helped me with this. Look at it. Beautiful, neat, appetizing, sloppy mess, but still edible. Dip it in the anchovy sauce. Wow. Crunch from the veggies, from the fish skin. Sauce, a little citrusy, sweet, spicy. This is worth my trip to Seattle. Like I said, Anthony Bernini was here. So I got some of the dishes that he had on the show, just to give it a try. This is a watercress beef salad. I was told to get this from my friends who came here as well. It's beef, watercress, onions, some peanuts. Also comes with a little bit of anchovy sauce. Just drizzle a little bit on there. Oh, I like that a lot. Beef is actually really tender. And the overall flavor of this is very pickly. Really, really fresh. This is the spicy and sour soup. Prawns, okra, fish balls, pineapple. I think everything that can possibly grow or live in the ocean is here. Flavoring. It's kind of close to the salad. A little sweet, a little sour. All right, you guys want a fish cracker? Fish cracker. I love fish crackers. This place, for sure, one of the most unique fish dishes I've ever had. Come try this. This is so amazingly unique. I swear to you, the skin tastes like it's pork. I don't know how they do it. It tastes like that. But this is even on the smaller side. They have one that's 12 pounds. Oh yeah. This might be my favorite part right here. But today, really fun just going around Seattle, trying out the seafood. Loved the chowder, loved the donuts, loved this. Pretty much loved everything I had today. Maybe except for that apple cinnamon roll kind of thing. And definitely really fun to come to a place where one of my food idols ate and experienced some of the dishes that he experienced. Just an overall sensational experience. And I know there are a ton of other places to explore in Seattle. And I will for sure be back here. I might move here, actually. I told you guys. No, I didn't. Okay, now I'm good. I'm gonna move here. I love the rain. And yeah, I think that was all the excuse I need. As always, all the places I went to is listed for you in my description box below. And if you wanna get this fish, make sure you call an hour ahead of time. Otherwise, you might be waiting a while. But do come and get this. All right, guys, thank you all so much for watching. Until we eat again, see you later.