Dining out sustainably: Tips from Lussmanns Sustainable Kitchen

Are you one of the 90% of the population worried about the state of the world’s oceans and one of the three quarters of us who, according to Changing Food Choices report 2022, know we have to consume seafood from sustainable sources if we want to save the oceans? 

If so, then you’re more than likely someone who’s also very particular about the fish you buy to eat at home. What happens though when you eat out? How do you navigate the murky waters of ambiguous and sometimes, frankly misleading menu language? 

It really can be hard to know for sure if fish described as “landed by day boats”, “line caught” or “responsibly sourced’’ really does live up to its description or whether, intentionally or not, the restaurant is fooling you hook, line and sinker. 

Almost 100,000 tonnes of seafood is served in British restaurants and pubs annually, according to Seafish. So, where can you go out for a meal safe in the knowledge that your chosen dish isn’t costing the earth, or the Ocean? 

One well-known restaurant critic recalls asking a waiter where the fish in his chosen dish came from. After a trip to the kitchen to check with the chef, the waiter returned and proudly announced it was from Tesco.  

Even the most conscious diner doesn’t really want to engage in a game of 20 questions when eating out. And why should they? 

With dozens of fish and chip shops, some of the UK’s largest pub chains and fast-food restaurants holding MSC chain of custody certification, there’s at least somewhere serving sustainably sources cod and haddock on most people’s doorstep. 

The latest MSC UK and Ireland Market Report highlighted that MSC foodservice sales grew by 43% in 2022/23, finally surpassing 2019/20 levels after three years of struggling with the impacts of the pandemic on trading. British consumers spent more than £39m on MSC certified fish and seafood in foodservice during the 2022/23 financial year, demonstrating that customers do value certified sustainable options in the restaurant sector. If you’re lucky to live in London, the South-West, or Hertfordshire, the net widens, so to speak, as Mexican street food-focused Wahaca, MSC Ambassador Mitch Tonks’ Rockfish and Lussmanns Sustainable Kitchen, offer a much more diverse selection of the 50 plus different MSC certified species. 

Andrei Lussmann, Managing Director of Lussmanns, has championed accessible and affordable sustainable dining since opening the first of his five restaurants 21 years ago. It’s now almost a decade since he completed the MSC certification process alongside the restaurants’ seafood supplier, Stickleback, and he’s proud of being the only small, independent restaurant group outside of London where customers can order seafood with a cast iron guarantee of sustainability. 

Even better, cod and haddock are just the starting point. The Lussmanns’ menu that changes four times a year, features dishes as varied as kipper pate, hake with peperonata, red bream puttanesca and ling with romesco sauce. In fact, two seafood dishes, including the MSC fishcake, served with spinach, capers and butter sauce, are among the three best sellers on the menu – even though Lussmanns isn’t a specialist seafood restaurant. 

The five restaurants do nevertheless source and serve six tonnes of seafood a year and customers keen to ensure they’re playing their part in protecting stocks can read the clear and transparent messaging on the menu. 

As Andrei says: “It makes eating out easy for seafood lovers; they don’t have to investigate the story behind every fish they order, rather they simply know that with MSC certification they’re contributing to a better future for our oceans. And for me as a restaurateur, it’s reassuring to know I’m part of a worldwide community ensuring the next generation can enjoy fish too.” 

For a full list of restaurants and supermarkets where you can enjoy MSC certified seafood dishes and products, click here.