Mermaid's Garden Seafood Market / Bon Appétit

I have a few photographs included in this Bon Appétit article about The Feast of Seven Fishes, featuring Mermaid's Garden. You can read the entire article by clicking here. 

I had photographed Bianca Piccillo and Mark Usewicz of Mermaid's Garden in the past  when they were operating as a CSF (Community Supported Fishery) but they have now opened the city's first fully sustainable seafood market in Brooklyn. Maybe you would like to serve oysters for New Year's Eve or pick up some prepared octopus salad or tuna meatballs or you might just be like me and have waited forever for a really great seafood market to open in your neighborhood so you can eat more fish. Well it's here and it's beautiful! Below are some other photos I took of the new shop at 644 Vanderbilt Ave, Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. 718-638-1910. 

All images © Valery Rizzo

Mermaid's garden also offers cooking classes, if you would like to learn more about cooking seafood. Wondering how to prepare sea urchins, why not make Sea Urchin Butter which they also sell housemade in the shop and they suggest using as a finishing touch on pasta, vegetables, eggs or toast.

Sea Urchin Butter

You'll need 2 parts unsalted butter : 1 part fresh sea urchin roe by weight for this compound butter.

Allow the butter to soften at room temperature. Place the butter and sea urchin roe in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the two are combined. You may need to stop and scrap down the sides of the bowl while processing. When combined add salt to taste. Put the butter into a container with a tightly sealing lid and store in the freezer. Allow the butter to soften for a few hours in the refrigerator before using. It's fine to do this repeatedly as you use the butter bit by bit.