When it comes to long standing fishing heritage in the Monterey Bay, you'd be hard pressed to find a family more deeply rooted than the Aliottis. Adam Aliotti is a fourth generation fisherman making the Monterey Bay his home and livelihood. Originally from Italy, Adam's great grandfather, Salvatore Mirabella, made a living fishing seiners part of the year and fishing salmon in Bristol Bay Alaska. Adam's grandfather, Giuseppe Aliotti, fished albacore, salmon and octopus, the way his family did back in the Mediterranean. It was with wicker woven octopus traps that Giuseppe stumbled upon and pioneered the spot prawn fishery in California in the '50s and worked with Governor Brown Sr. to establish the fishery back in the '70s. 

Adam started fishing with his grandfather at just 6 years old, chasing king salmon. At 17 he was fishing full-time and hasn't stopped. On his boat, the FV Ocean Warrior, Adam fishes primarily spot prawns and is one of only a handful of boats permitted to catch this highly prized and sought after species. During the off season, Adam fishes king salmon, black cod, and albacore.

When it comes to his favorite fish to catch, without question it is king salmon. Not because they are exciting to catch or delicious to eat, but because of the nostalgia. He loves trolling and working up and down the coast, remembering his childhood and fishing with his grandfather. Ironically, king salmon is his least favorite fish to eat.

Adam's favorite fish to eat is white seabass on the bar-b-que, Italian style, with chopped tomatoes, garlic, fresh basil, olive oil, and a little red wine vinegar. 

Ron Farquhar started fishing around 2002. Originally from San Francisco, a love of scuba diving brought him south to Monterey and he gradually eased his way into work as a commercial fisherman. In Ron’s case, a long “career” of personal spearfishing was his entry point. Next, he started working on charter fishing boats and then started his own business, Westwind Charter Sport Fishing & Excursions. The Westwind is a 31′ Island Hopper that calls Moss Landing its home port.

Ron now fishes commercially when salmon, halibut, albacore tuna, and white seabass are in season – generally from May to November. Throughout his work in fishing, the intimate knowledge of underwater “structure” (topography) he gained during his spearfishing and diving days has helped him to understand where to look for fish. Ron particularly enjoys fishing for white seabass and albacore since there’s so much excitement involved. The closure of the salmon seasons in 2008 and 2009 were tough, and adjusting to the rapid increase in area closures for MPAs has been difficult as well. Other challenges include occasional flooding of the market (leading to price drops) and fuel costs.

Ron tries to take advantage of fish closer to shore when possible to keep fuel costs down. Being able to sell to local buyers is a highlight of fishing for him, and he likes to know his local community is enjoying his catch. One of the most rewarding aspects of spending time on the ocean is seeing whales and dolphins, and being able to track schools of fish by watching birds feeding – it’s a way of witnessing the entire environmental cycle.

When not fishing, Ron works for the City of Monterey as a security worker for Monterey Harbor. In the course of patrolling the marina and wharf areas and checking on boats and moorings, Ron enjoys the people and hearing their stories from around the world. He also is able to keep a close eye on the types of fish being brought in by other fishermen on a daily basis. We’re glad to have started buying fish from Ron and wish him continued success!

Wilson started fishing in 1968 with his father out of Santa Cruz. He's moved from harbor to harbor, like many fishermen on our coast, to find fish. From black cod, salmon, rockfish, and now spot prawns, Wilson is one of the fortunate fishermen in our community who fishes full time. Wilson's favorite fish to cook and eat is not surprising: spot prawns. And his favorite way to prepare them is simply marinated, with butter, garlic, white wine, and fresh herbs, then onto the grill for 2 minutes per side - nothing more - to avoid the risk of overcooking.

Jeff and Emily Stackhouse are life-long agriculturalists who recently found a shared love of fishing off the Northern California coast. Both raised on sheep farms, they have built a life around farming and wilderness. Prior to working on the water, Jeff worked for the University of California as a farm advisor. In 2014, after a few years running a guided hunting operation he thought it was only natural to start a charter fishing business on his boat the FV Gorilla fishing out of Humboldt Bay and Crescent City, California.

For many food producers, COVID was a turning point. For Jeff and Emily, it was an opportunity to turn "Stackhouse Guide Service" into a commercial fishing operation. Fishing with a rod and reel they target a variety of rockfish including, canary rockfish, yellowtail rockfish, and lingcod. In the fall they target albacore tuna. 

They pride themselves on the handling and resulting quality of their catch. Starting with day trips - the fastest way to get fish from the ocean to your plate - each fish is handled one by one, and bled immediately for the most humanely and high quality filets. 

From a sustainability standpoint their ocean ethics are as high as they come while also being grounded in the reality that diversity of fishing techniques is critical for feeding our communities. As Emily put it,  "It is an honor to be a small-scale, sustainable, hook and line fisherman/fisherwoman. The world has diverse demands and needs a diverse fishing fleet to provide high-quality protein to the people, so our high-end, sustainable fishing is not affordable to all, but we would like to see the harvested product be treated with the most care and respect as possible."

When it comes to preparing their catch, Jeff loves his canary rockfish in fish tacos with the "Thai-One-On" recipe using a creamy peanut sauce from the Field to Table Cookbook. Emily loves her albacore pan seared with teriyaki/sesame blend and wasabi.

Emily did a great job summarizing the essence of this amazing fishing partnership: "It goes without saying, the North Coast is an incredibly special place on earth. Being able to fish as a husband-wife team on such pristine reefs with jaw-dropping coastal views is a wonderful treat in itself! We love and cherish our time together on the water!"

Tuk caught his first rockfish with his dad when he was 8 years old. They fished together recreationally on their 15 ft. aluminum boat almost every weekend, and when Tuk turned 16, his father bought a bigger boat and they both began fishing commercially. Tuk is currently a part-time commercial fisherman who fishes three to seven days a week out of Monterey, Moss Landing, and Santa Cruz, depending on the season. His other part-time job is working as an auto mechanic, something he enjoys immensely and that allows him to pursue his hobby and passion racing cars.

Tuk loves being out on the water in the early morning and knowing that every day will be different. When asked about the challenges of commercial fishing, he mentions all the work involved with fishing beyond catching the fish: where to fish, weather, wind, currents and, ultimately, making the right decisions.

His favorite way to cook sand dabs is unusual: simply pan fry one side, then sprinkle bits of crispy bacon on the uncooked side and flip it and cook that side until done. Yum!