You can have the hat, the whip, the rugged leather jacket, the dramatic John Williams score, and the adventurous life of a globetrotting archeologist, but those things will never equal the siren song of seafood. Ed MacGregor of the Year of the Fish food cart found that siren song so irresistible that he gave up his chosen profession of archeology to return to the family restaurant business.

A photo of the Year of the Fish food cart

Once the seductive allure of fulfillment had pulled him back into the restaurant business, Ed followed that call to what is now Year of the Fish. And to what is one of the longest lived and most successful food carts in The Rose City.

In fact, in food-cart years (a non-standard form of measurement akin to dog years), Ed’s been preparing fish in the food cart for something like 72 years. Two mere humans like us that amounts to five years of cart life. By any account that’s a successful run. Not only that but Ed recently moved to the Carts On Foster food cart pod located on the northeast corner of SE 52nd and Foster following the closing of his previous pod.

A photo of some of the menu items offered at the Year of the Fish food cart

A significant contributor to Ed’s success with Year of the Fish is that he does it all. Each element of the menu is made at the cart (except the fish and the prawns, they make themselves). The tartar sauce, the cocktail sauce, the breading for the fish, the French fries, and even the clam chowder are all created at the cart. It’s this commitment to a quality food experience for YOTF’s customers that has won Ed a loyal following.

A photo of the wild-caught, Texas gulf prawns offered at the Year of the Fish food cart

Ed’s signature dish is his clam chowder. Made with real butter and heavy cream, a special blend of herbs, this chowder is not for those who are afraid of calories. The clams are wild-caught on the Atlantic shoreline. All the fish that Ed uses at YOTF is wild-caught. The cod and halibut are from Alaska, the Red Snapper from Oregon, the salmon from the Copper River, and the prawns from the Texas gulf. Even the potatoes for the fries and chowder are wild-caught.

A photo of clam chowder offered at the Year of the Fish food cart

The Year of the Fish menu also includes a seasonal smoked Rainbow Trout salad, oyster shooters made with oysters from Willapa Bay in Washington, squid skewers, clam strips, both a tuna salad sandwich and a tuna melt, and servings available specifically for kids.

Year of the Fish is located in the Carts On Foster food cart pod at SE 52nd and Foster. Hours for the cart are 12 PM – 8 PM, Tuesday–Saturday. The cart is closed Sunday and Monday.

Listen now as Steven Shomler and Ken Wilson talk with Ed MacGregor of Year of the Fish about the siren song of seafood.

PRP
Latest posts by PRP (see all)