Catch your own fish at this NJ seafood restaurant

You know how at some restaurants when you order lobster you can pick the one you want live right out of a tank on display? When I lived in Michigan there was a bar/restaurant that carried this even further. There they had a tank with an arcade-like claw over it that you could lower until you caught your live lobster with it. Animal lovers were not amused.

They may not be amused by this story, either.

There’s now a place in New Jersey where you can catch your own live fish. You are handed a net and you catch your fish. They take it in the back to kill it, cook it, and you’re eating it minutes later. Fun?

Lauren Musni with nj.com wrote about her experience sampling this interesting twist at a new place called Wu’s Fish House in Edison. Here’s how she described it:

“My server guided me to the tank with about five or so fishes inside and handed me a large net, which was a bit unwieldy since it was nearly as wide as the tank. Fortunately, a fish swam right into it. Unsurprisingly, the fish wasn’t thrilled about being netted and splashed water all over me as it flopped around. The net was taken by the server and I returned to my table.”

Okay, maybe some don’t want to see their food alive. Maybe they want a sanitized conscience. But I think this is awesome. Even if you’re a little squeamish about it, if you love seafood, you already know what you are dealing with. And imagine how great an icebreaker this could be on a first date!

“I was extremely cautious at first thinking people wouldn’t like, but so far everyone has loved the experience with no complaints,” said Homer Wu, the owner. He went on to explain it is a true Chinese tradition to use live fish. It has to be fresh, not killed hours beforehand.

Musni loved everything she tried there. And you don’t have to opt for the live fish catch, it’s only optional. You can go the more American way if you choose to.

Wu says he dreams of one day having Wu’s Fish House go the way of Red Lobster across the nation. If you’d like to give this a whirl and are up for the fish catch challenge, Wu’s Fish House is at 1783 Lincoln Hwy in Edison, New Jersey.