Our Year-round Commitment to Sustainably Sourced Seafood

At Truluck’s, Sustainable Seafood is a Passion and a Promise

When you dine at Truluck’s, you can expect every item on the menu to be expertly prepared and artfully plated. Plus, you can trust that our seafood is sustainably sourced, Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified, and fresh from the ocean to your table.

“We make choices that honor the plate, the palate, and the planet by maintaining an unwavering commitment to serving the highest-quality sustainable seafood,” says Truluck’s Chef Samir Canaan, Director of Culinary Operations. “We will never serve endangered, overfished species, and we always source from a responsible and sustainable lens. Our Florida Stone Crab claws are harvested by our team of professional crabbers, only during Stone Crab season, and produce is sourced from local growers whenever possible.”

Truluck’s Corporate Executive Chef, Thomas Dritsas, agrees.

“Seafood restaurants like Truluck’s share in the responsibility in ensuring seafood supply and species population for our future generations to enjoy,” he says. “Sustainability and its practices focus the attention on the species being grown, harvested, and consumed specifically, versus irresponsible practices pulled from nature by way of bycatch. Bycatch is a sacrifice, and therefore wasteful, in pursuit of primary species of fish, and is not used at Truluck’s.”

This Earth Day, and every day, Truluck’s honors the planet and acts on our promise to provide a responsible fine dining experience by bringing guests the freshest, most environmentally friendly seafood. From the ocean to your table, this is how some of your Truluck’s seafood favorites are sustainably sourced and respectfully prepared.

Florida Stone Crab: The Crown Jewel of the Truluck’s Menu

For three generations, Truluck’s has maintained unwavering dedication to humanely harvesting and sustainably sourcing Florida Stone Crab claws.

Every day during stone crab season, October 15 through May 1, our crabbers’ boats venture out into the waters surrounding the Florida Keys. There, they capture the stone crab in humanely designed wooden traps and haul them onboard. The crabbers then delicately remove a single claw and gently return the crab to their ocean habitat. The crab will regenerate the claw over the following months, ensuring the health and sustainability of the species.

“The crabbers in Florida are incredibly protective of the species, and only the claws are harvested, preserving the life of the crab,” Chef Samir says. “Their claws pop off and regrow, like a lizard’s tail. Stone Crab have two killer claws, allowing them to both feed and protect themselves while the missing claw grows back.”

“At Truluck’s, we consider the oceans of the world our ‘blue acre’ or farm for all species of fish and seafood,” Chef Thomas says. “And like farming, it is imperative that we provide the opportunity for those resources to regenerate and the ecosystems to correct itself, like soil to a plant.”

By committing to responsible harvesting practices, Truluck’s is helping preserve the health of the species and ensure that Florida Stone Crab remains a seasonal fine dining tradition for generations to come.

Seabass: A Perennial Favorite 

At Truluck’s, you’ll find only MSC-certified seabass. This means that every seabass served is sourced from sustainable fish stocks, where enough fish are left in the sea to reproduce indefinitely.

MSC-certified sustainable seafood also ensures that the seafood is fished with minimal environmental impact and by a fishery with effective management that will adjust as the tides, fish populations, and other factors change. Strict adherence to these sustainability standards, in partnership with our expert purveyors, has made Miso-Glazed Seabass a quintessential Truluck’s dish.

MSC-certified sustainable seafood also ensures that the seafood is fished with minimal environmental impact and by a fishery with effective management that will adjust as the tides, fish populations and more change.

Sea Scallops: All Natural, No Compromises

Our commitment to sustainable seafood also compels us to treat everything we source with the utmost respect.

“A lot of producers will soak their scallops in a sodium-based solution that allows them to take on water weight, appear bigger, and sell for more,” Chef Samir says.

But that is never the case at Truluck’s. “Our New Bedford scallops are all natural and never treated in any way other than nature intended,” he says. “No one wants harsh chemicals in their food. And the water weight absorbed is pushed out when cooked, so the scallops shrink. This compromises the cell structure, so the muscle itself becomes flabby and mushy.”

Truluck’s scallops come from New Bedford, Massachusetts, one of the largest natural scallop producers in the United States, and they are fished by multi-generational fisherman who are protective of the sea and the scallops within it. This results in scallops with terrific taste, texture, and size.

“Good fish and caring producers are a winning combination for sustainability, something Truluck’s always keeps in mind,” Chef Samir says.

Ōra King Salmon: “The Wagyu of the Sea”

Few ingredients embody the Truluck’s commitment to sustainability and quality quite like Ōra King Salmon, which is often referred to as “the Wagyu of the Sea.”

Unlike conventional aquaculture, these farm-raised salmon are nurtured in the pristine, flowing environments of New Zealand’s Marlborough Sounds, which emulate the lifecycle of wild king salmon. They enjoy strong tidal exchange and cool waters with low pathogen levels, all of which ensures the local ecosystem remains healthy and productive.

The result of these uncompromising farm-to-plate techniques is salmon with extraordinary marbling, buttery richness, delicate flavor, and melt-in-the-mouth texture.

Katz Coffee: Ethically Sourced and Full of Flavor

At Truluck’s, our commitment to sustainable practices and responsible sourcing continues on land. We’re proud to partner with Houston-based Katz Coffee, a small-batch, specialty roaster.

For their custom blends and stunning single origin coffees, they’ve cultivated relationships with small farms around the world who share our commitment to quality and environmental responsibility. Through this partnership, we can help preserve the health of these coffee-producing ecosystems, while also helping farmers maintain a stable income and sustainable businesses.

Explore our menu of sustainably sourced seafood and taste the difference. Make a reservation at Truluck’s today. Your table is waiting.