Seafood dinner

Seafood dinner

Cover image of "Neptune's Table."

A man and his son visiting from Ohio try their luck at bridge fishing near Charleston, South Carolina. P. 7 of "Neptune's Table."

A dock in Port Aransas, Texas, mirror the thousands in the country that berth the massive U.S. recreational fleet. P. 9 of Neptune's Table."

A newly renamed trawler reflects the role of immigration in the development of American fisheries. P. 10 of "Neptune's Table."

A commercial fisherman voices his views on proposed management measures at a public hearing. P. 10 of "Neptune's Table."

As in ports everywhere, most of the New Bedford fleet operates under moratoriums against new vessels. P. 10 of "Neptune's Table."

Docks are increasingly displaced by more profitable facilities, such as Mississippi's immense gambling casinos. P. 12 of "Neptune's Table."

A series of wooden groins tries to halt erosion of the vanishing sands in Folly Beach, South Carolina. P. 13 of "Neptune's Table."

Offshore lobsters are taken by this Pt. Judith, Rhode Island, commercial fishery fleet. P. 14 of "Neptune's Table."

Only a few fishermen are allowed to work in the historic Newport Beach dory fleet fishery. P. 15 of "Neptune's Table."

This family fishing in the Laguna Madre in Texas is part of the vast U.S. recreational fishery. P. 15 of "Neptune's Table."

Once the ultimate luxury food, American lobster is today within reach of almost everyone's wallet. P. 15 of "Neptune's Table."

Even this off-the-beaten path warehouse in Biloxi, Mississippi, sports a proud bit of art announcing its trade. P. 18 of "Neptune's Table."

Many seafood markets, like this one in Madeira Beach, Florida, seem to work on the assumption that customers like to see what their next meal looked like when it was alive. P. 18 of "Neptune's Table."

The noble salmon which commands a place of honor as an artistic as well as a culinary icon, works admirably for this Seattle eatery. P. 18 of "Neptune's Table."

This Florida Keys motel has fancifully - and colorfully - recreated a reef scene in its front yard. P. 19 of "Neptune's Table."

A boardwalk cafe in Newport Beach promotes its name in T-shirt style well-suited to Southern California. P. 19 of "Neptune's Table."

A Folly Beach, South Carolina, legal firm advertises its services with a sense of humor. P. 19 of "Neptune's Table."

Neon-pink is unusual in outdoor art, but seems perfect for the queen conch adorning this Florida Keys Lodge. P. 19 of "Neptune's Table."

Not all commercial boats stay in the water. These Newport Beach, California, dories are trailered daily. P. 13 of "Neptune's Table."

On all coasts, harbors like Squalicum, Washington, are filled with more boats than are needed to harvest the stocks. P. 24 of "Neptune's Table."

The eye - and wallet - are dazzled by the array of equipment in specialty shops like this store in San Diego. P. 25 of "Neptune's Table."

A head boat filled with satisfied customers returns to its home port of Pt. Pleasant, New Jersey. P. 26 of "Neptune's Table."

Bait shacks, like this one in Pascagoula, Mississippi, often cater to both commercial and recreational fishermen. P. 26 of "Neptune's Table."

Larval clams (spat) are produced under tight control at this aquaculture operation in South Carolina. P. 27 of "Neptune's Table."

A South Carolina clam aquaculture operation raises both the spat (open tanks) and the green algae they eat (background cylinders). P. 27 of "Neptune's Table."

"Aquaculture has returned to a top spot on the American seafood buffet." P. 28 of "Neptune's Table."

Increasingly, processed clam products use resources supplied by aquaculture to supplement the wild stock harvest." P. 28 of "Neptune's Table."

A McLean, Virginia, seafood market employee tends live lobsters from New England . P. 29 of "Neptune's Table."

Most seafood is sold through markets, like Seattle's Pike Place Market, or directly to processors and purveyors. P. 29 of "Neptune's Table."

A large freighter discharges frozen albacore at a tuna cannery in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. P. 30 of "Neptune's Table."

Judy David, a commercial shrimp fisherwoman who operates her own fishing vessel as well as processing and marketing her catch. P. 31 of "Neptune's Table."

Outdoor fish market

Seafood cookbooks

Fish used for cat food

Fish products in Asian fish market

Seafood is transported worldwide as air cargo

Captain Ben's Fish Dock in Freeport, New York.

A Chesapeake Bay seafood market.

A Freeport, Long Island, seafood market.

A fast-food seafood restaurant.

A New Orleans seafood restaurant.

A seafood market in Mclean, Virginia.

A small seafood market in Washington, D.C.

A trained inspector at a Virginia scallop plant examines both the catch and its paper trail.

These packages of raw seafood at a Baltimore plant bear seals certifying they were packed under an approved HACCP program.

Origin tags are applied to every bag of cultured blue point oysters leaving this plant.

Labeled packages are boxed and inspected at a Baltimore plant before shipment to local markets.