A Touch of Nostalgia and Red's Best Seafood

During the second half of the Spring semester, I developed content for Red’s Best in my Creative Writing /Story Creation class. It was both a challenging and fun experience to create stories about a seafood company with fishermen at the heart of the brand. Originally, however, Red’s Best was never on my radar. So how did I end up picking them as a client? It involves a touch of nostalgia.

It was the first day of class after Spring Break. My professor had organized a tour of the Boston Public Market to give us a first-hand introduction to all the vendors. Prior to the tour, I was prepared to select either Crescent Ridge, Finesse Pastries or Noodle Lab as a client. I had read about Crescent Ridge’s rich history and delicious ice cream. Finesse Pastries reminded me of one of my favorite pastry shops in India called ‘Theobroma’ because of their colorful macaroons. Plus, I have a big sweet tooth, so the opportunity to write about ice cream and macaroons sounded tempting. Finally, the Noodle Lab was third on my list because I enjoy a good bowl of ramen in a flavorsome broth.

We arrived at the market and Jen Bailey, the Assistant Market Manager, detailed the background of each vendor. After we had visited a few stalls, we arrived at Red’s Best. My family is originally from the Indian state of Kerala, where spicy, red fish curry is a specialty. I have grown up eating a variety of fish curry and fried mackerel, salmon, Bombay duck, prawns, pomfret and more. So, obviously, I love seafood.

As a child, I enjoyed going to the fish market with my parents. A typical fish market in Mumbai is loud and crowded. From the moment you walk in, all you see and smell is fresh fish. Fisherwomen will encourage you to look at their catch of the day, and often, you will find customers bargaining with them. The atmosphere is very different to Red’s Best’s quiet and unassuming presence. I loved watching the fisherwomen display the day’s catch while I stood near my parents to touch the fish, learn how to judge whether the fish is fresh and make my preferences known. So, standing in front of a stall with fresh seafood for the first time in Boston was exciting and evoked a certain nostalgia. Jen told us a little about Red’s Best’s traceability system and pointed to the cards near each fish that named the fisherman who caught it, which I thought was a nice touch.

Finally, the tour ended, and it was decision time. Our professor began to call out the names of each vendor, and we had to raise our hands to pick one as a client. I started to feel a little nervous because I was conflicted between Red’s Best and Finesse Pastries. After calling out a few vendors, he named Finesse and paused. I felt my palms turn sweaty, but I did not act. Finally, he called out Red’s Best, and immediately, I raised my hand. Almost impulsively, I had made a decision. Before the tour, I hadn’t paid much attention to Red’s Best. But, somehow, seeing the stall, the fish and the fishermen’s names evoked many memories and helped me think about the stories I could write. And, so, just like that, Red’s Best became my client.