How to pick your banquet fish dish

We were offered pomfret fish as part of our menu and decided to upgrade to black garoupa or black grouper (I don't really know why menu states garoupa instead of how its actually spelled "grouper") at $20 nett per table. But during the food tasting, the fish turned out overcooked and parts of the flesh was stuck onto the bones (my in-law called it Lou2 Gou3). It wasn't that the chef's skills aren't good but more like, black grouper just has high chances of that happening.

Since elders and most people I know judge the value of your banquet based on whether there's roast pork and the fish grade of your menu, we thought we ought to feedback to the chef. Since the problem lies mostly with the fish itself, the chef kindly offered an upgrade at the same price offered to us for black grouper and we took it without any research on the kind of fish lol.

We went home and thought we should research on the grades of fish as there are really little information as to what fishes are regarded as superior to the elders. Here's what I managed to pull from the internet starting from the cheapest fish. Please correct me if I'm wrong though. :)


7. Tilapia
How it looks like alive

How it looks steamed



6. Sea bass
How it looks like alive

How it looks steamed



5. White pomfret
How it looks like alive

How it looks steamed



4. Black grouper
How it looks like alive

How it looks like steamed



3. Soon hock - I don't know what's the english name :(
How it looks like alive

How it looks like steamed



2. Cod fish
How it looks like alive

How it looks like steamed



1. Red grouper - They say fresh water ones are usually red like the next picture suggests. Whereas the good sea water ones are often pale red.
How it looks like alive

How it looks like steamed


Something to note about banquet served fishes - they are mostly bred, which means bred in fresh water. The poorer quality ones have this muddy taste which can be easily musked over by deep frying and serving in sweet and sour sauce etc. Therefore, to ensure the quality of your fish dish, opt for steamed fish as you'll be able to judge better if the fish is good.

I will be going for CoolSculpt by Zeltiq this coming Friday. I'm so excited! Will blog after the treatment on Friday. :) Stay tuned!