Conservation
Right Bite Partners
Shedd is proud to partner with Chicago-area restaurants, retailers, caterers, purveyors and culinary schools to build demand for sustainable seafood in our marketplace. Right Bite partners receive staff training on seafood issues provided by Shedd experts. They also pledge to offer at least two sustainable seafood options at all times and, if applicable, to permanently remove at least one unsustainable choice from their menus or product inventories. Shedd is committed to helping our partners find and promote the highest quality and most environmentally friendly seafood available. Our partners know that we mean business when it comes to sustainable seafood, but equally as important, our partners know that we care about their business.
Are you a chef, retailer, or culinary instructor interested in joining our Right Bite program? E-mail rightbite@sheddaquarium.org for more information.
Restaurants
Big Jones
In the mood for Southern cuisine? Check out Big Jones, where executive chef Paul Fehribach delights diners with domestic crawfish boudin fritters and sustainably harvested American red snapper and grouper from the Gulf of Mexico. Being total food lovers at heart, the Right Bite team also loves the heirloom peas.
The Cape Cod Room
Since 1933, this classic Chicago restaurant located in the Drake Hotel has seen the likes of Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe. The famous duo carved their initials on the bar, making it a city landmark. Make your legacy by choosing Cape Cod’s sustainable seafood menu. For classy ocean-friendly eats, Shedd recommends Oysters Rockefeller.
FishBar
From the same team that brought us MK Restaurant and DMK Burger comes this cozy new seafood joint in Lakeview. The menu offerings range from steamed mussels to Maine lobster rolls, and the staff is one of the friendliest in the city. Check out Fish Bar's website, which provides a list of sustainable wild-caught and farmed offerings.
Luxbar
Luxbar’s stunning two-story restaurant and bar in the Gold Coast neighborhood is well-known for a culinary oxymoron, elegance and bar food. The Right Bite team loves meeting friends at Luxbar for a cocktail, good conversation and macadamia-crusted tilapia. Mmm!
Oceanique
ZAGAT ranks Oceanique as the premier seafood restaurant in the Chicago area. Lucky for us and our oceans, owner and executive chef Mark Grosz is just as passionate about healthy fisheries as his tasty entrees. Try one of Oceanique’s sustainable recipes at home: crispy fish ’n chips with parsley aioli.
Park Grill
Obviously one of the Right Bite team’s favorite activities is eating sustainable seafood, but we especially love eating it outdoors! The Plaza at Park Grill is one of Chicago’s largest alfresco dining areas. We love noshing on the restaurant’s ale-steamed mussels while taking in the sights of Millennium Park.
Prairie Grass Cafe
Sarah Stegner, the James Beard Award-winning chef and owner of Prairie Grass Cafe, learned firsthand about sustainable seafood after spending time with fishermen on Kodiak Island, Alaska. Her passion for education inspired her to team up with Right Bite to teach kids how to cook ocean-friendly seafood. Click here to read an Edible Chicago article that features Chef Sarah and the Right Bite team discussing sustainable seafood.
Reel Club
This Michelin-recommended restaurant in Oakbrook is yet another Lettuce Entertain You hit, with a casual yet classy atmosphere. The staff is welcoming and always seeking out the highest-quality, sustainably sourced seafood to serve you.
Shaw's Crab House (in Chicago and Schaumburg)
Right Bite has many fond memories of Shaw’s Crab House. It’s where Kassia Perpich, sustainable seafood manager, learned how to slurp oysters. It’s also where Michelle Parker, vice president of Great Lakes & sustainability, goes to enjoy a bowl of her favorite clam chowder. Ask your server to see Shaw’s sustainable seafood menu!
Soundings Café
Shedd’s Soundings Café proudly features daily sustainable seafood specials. Aquarium guests and Shedd staff alike enjoy barramundi in ginger cream sauce, mussels with linguine and other delicious dishes. The Right Bite team works closely with Soundings staff to answer any guest’s sustainability questions in a friendly, informative way.
Trattoria No. 10
For sustainable seafood with an Italian twist, look no farther than Trattoria No. 10. Chef Laura Piper delights diners with panko-crusted rainbow trout and grilled Alaskan halibut with fresh veggies. The restaurant’s crab and scallop dishes are good choices as well.
Uncommon Ground (on North Clark Street and West Devon Avenue)
Uncommon Ground is a favorite hangout of the Right Bite team and was voted as the “Greenest Restaurant in America” in 2011. We love relaxing on the rooftop garden whenever we can! Plus, with offerings like crispy catfish tacos and grilled Rushing Waters trout, we recommend that a visit is not an uncommon occurrence.
Retailers
Dirk's Fish & Gourmet Shop
Dirk Fucik, owner of Dirk’s Fish & Gourmet Shop, is one of the friendliest fishmongers in Chicago. When visiting, you’ll find the Right Bite team’s favorite scallop and roasted tomato soup, but you won’t find shark, eel, bluefin tuna, or orange roughy. Dirk no longer sells them due to environmental concerns.
Lemon Tree Grocer
If you are dashing to the train in Downers Grove, stop by Lemon Tree Grocer. Not only do they offer local, sustainable produce, meat and cheese, but they recently partnered with Shedd to add more sustainable seafood choices. If the train is delayed, sit down at Lemon Tree’s Zest Café for seared Alaskan halibut or yummy roasted beets!
Peapod LLC
Shopping for sustainable seafood is a breeze thanks to Shedd’s partnership with Peapod LLC, the country’s leading online grocer. Shoppers can type “Shedd approved” into Peapod’s search field to be taken to a virtual grocery “aisle” featuring sustainable seafood products selected by the Right Bite team.
Purveyors
Fortune Fish Company
In 2007, Fortune Fish Company launched its sustainability initiative in partnership with Shedd. The company highlights a sustainable seafood every two months. For every pound of that fish sold, Fortune donates a portion of the revenue to not-for-profit conservation organizations. Fortune is also a Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)-certified purveyor.
Supreme Lobster
Kassia Perpich, assistant director of Great Lakes & sustainability, insists her workday isn’t complete without a call from Supreme Lobster sales rep Carl Galvan (a.k.a. Chicago Fish Dude), who is full of great ideas for promoting sustainability. Check out Carl and the Right Bite team in this podcast about seafood in Chicago.
Culinary Schools
Chicago Public Schools – Culinary and Hospitality Arts Program
College of Lake County
Illinois Institute of Art
Illinois Restaurant Association’s ProStart Program
Kendall College
Greater Chicago Food Depository – Chicago’s Community Kitchens
Lexington College
Robert Morris University
Other Friends
61st Street Farmers Market, Andersonville Farmers Market, Aquaranch, Big Fish Farms, Chefs Collaborative, Common Threads, Conservation Alliance for Seafood Solutions, FishChoice, Glenview Farmers Market, Green Chicago Restaurant Coalition, Green City Market, Growing Power, Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Shareholders Alliance, Humboldt Park Farmers Market, Minnesota Zoo’s Fish Smart, Notre Dame Food Services, Purple Asparagus, Rushing Waters Trout Farm, Slow Food Chicago, Wisconsin Restaurant Association
