In Season: Black Market Wild Bay Scallops

New York Times writer Melissa Clarkhas the right connections. She bypasses Citarella and Balducci's and goes right to the source (sort of) when it comes to in-season Peconic Bay scallops. Aficionados know the anemic farmed scallop is no match for it's robust and far-tastier wild cousin, which has been pulled from winter waters by generations of Long Island baymen.

There were two causes for Clark's excitement over the prospect of the black market bivalves arrival in NYC:

Eric [Lemonides], owner of the two Almond restaurants in Manhattan and Bridgehampton, N.Y., doesn’t generally traffic in scallops.

But once I heard that his partner and chef, Jason Weiner, was showcasing a Peconic Bay scallop hash on the menu, I called Eric up and begged. Bold move, I know. But we went to junior high school together, and back then I scored tickets to a David Bowie concert and invited him along. A pound of wild scallops seemed like an appropriate payback.

So the math here is simple: if you aren't planning a trip to the East End this weekend or you didn't bring Eric Lemonides to a Bowie concert in high school, you only have one choice—get to the Gramercy Almond post-haste.

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