Where Can You Get Your Catch Cooked in Marathon?
BY RYAN GOLOVERSIC, WITH MATT SEXTON, OWNER OF GRASSY FLATS RESORT AND BEACH CLUB
You just booked a charter and now you are wondering what happens to forty pounds of fish at two in the afternoon. Fair question. Most people figure it out on the drive back to the dock, which is late.
Hook and cook is the Keys tradition of catching your fish in the morning and having a kitchen prepare it for you that night. Some places in Marathon will do it. Some will not. A few will only do it if you show up with fillets already cut and bagged, which means you need to solve the cleaning part before you solve the cooking part. This page walks through how it actually works, what to ask before you book anything, and where it gets handled start to finish.
Matt Sexton owns Grassy Flats, which runs a market with a butcher and two restaurants, so we do this every week. Read it knowing that.
What is hook and cook in the Florida Keys?
You catch fish on a charter. A restaurant cooks it and serves it to you the same day.
That is the whole tradition and it is the best meal available in the Florida Keys. No restaurant can sell you fish that fresh because the freshness comes from you being on the water at sunrise. It is also usually cheaper than ordering off the menu, since you are paying for preparation rather than the fish.
The catch is that it takes three separate things to line up. Somebody has to clean and fillet the fish. Somebody has to keep it cold. And a kitchen has to be willing to cook something that did not come through their own supplier.
Who cleans your fish after a charter in Marathon?
Your captain, usually. Most private charter captains in Marathon fillet your catch at the dock as part of the trip, and they are fast at it because they do it three hundred days a year.
Ask when you book. It is a normal question and the answer tells you a lot about the operation.
If your captain does not clean, or you fished on your own, there are marinas and fish houses in town with cleaning tables and someone who will do it for a fee. At Grassy Flats the market has a full butcher and fish house, so the catch comes off the boat and gets broken down properly on property, including whatever you want portioned for the freezer. Mikey is one of Matt’s oldest friends. Friendly, and he knows his craft.
Do restaurants in Marathon cook your catch?
Some do and some don’t, it changes with the season and the staffing.
The places that say yes usually want your fish cleaned, filleted, bagged, and cold. They may charge a per person preparation fee. They may need a call ahead so the kitchen can plan for it. And they may say no on a Saturday night in March when the room is already full.
None of that is anybody being difficult. A kitchen running two hundred covers has a prep list built around what it ordered, and your cooler is not on it.
So the reliable version of this is to sort out the cooking before you leave the dock, not after.
Where can you get your catch cooked at Marathon?
At Grassy Flats the whole chain happens in one place, which is the reason we built it this way.
Dock in the afternoon. The market butcher breaks the catch down. The Rhum House kitchen cooks it that night while you are getting the salt off, and whatever the group does not eat goes home with you packed properly. Grilled, blackened, fried, sushi grade portions set aside if that is what you want.
The market provisions the boat on the front end too, starting at six in the morning. Food, water, ice, beer, lunch. So the same building that sends you out handles what you bring back.
Matt is in the seafood business, not just the hotel business, and he runs trips himself. That is why the fish side of the operation works the way it does. Our butcher Mikey who will talk to you about your catch like it matters, because to him it does.
What does it cost to have your catch cooked?
Expect a preparation charge per person or per pound, which is normal everywhere that offers it, and it will still land under what the same fish costs off the menu.
Sides, drinks, and anything else at the table price the way they always do. Ask when you make the reservation so there are no surprises with a group of ten.
Can you cook your own catch in the Keys?
Yes, and for some trips that is the better play.
If you are staying somewhere with a kitchen you can grill it yourself, which is a good night when the group is tired and nobody wants to sit in a dining room. The Conch House apartments at Grassy Flats have full kitchens and freezer space, which matters when a good offshore day gives you more fish than one dinner can absorb.
The market can sell you everything else you need for it, so you are not driving to the chain grocery with a cooler in the back.
What fish is worth cooking the same night?
Mahi, blackfin tuna, yellowtail snapper, grouper in season. Those all eat well within hours and they hold fine for a day or two after.
Blackfin is the one people underestimate. Get some of it set aside raw before anybody starts cooking.
If you got into something big and the cooler is full, portion it. One dinner, one lunch, and the rest vacuum packed for the flight home. A good day offshore can feed a group of sixteen for half a week, which for a family trip is a real line item off the food budget.
What should you ask before you book a charter?
Four things, and they take one phone call.
Does the captain clean and fillet the catch. Is ice included or do you bring your own cooler. Can the place you are staying cook it that night or point you to somewhere that will. And what is actually in season for your dates, since that determines what you come home with.
Our guide to what is biting month by month covers the last one. Our guide to the best charter captains in Marathon covers who to call, including the captains Matt sends people to when our own boats are full, which he does without taking a commission.
Who should skip hook and cook?
If your charter is a light tackle or flats trip, you are probably releasing what you catch, so plan on dinner off the menu.
If you booked a party boat, you may come back with a small amount of bottom fish, which is a fine snack and not a dinner for six.
And if the whole crew is wrecked by four in the afternoon, there is no shame in putting the fish in a freezer and eating it tomorrow. It will still be better than anything you order.
FAQ ABOUT Getting Your Catch Cooked in Marathon
Can a restaurant cook the fish I catch in Marathon?
Some restaurants will, usually if the fish is already cleaned, filleted, and cold, and often with a per person preparation fee and a call ahead. At Grassy Flats the market butcher breaks the catch down and the Rhum House kitchen cooks it that night, so the whole process happens in one place.
What is hook and cook in the Florida Keys?
Catching fish on a charter in the morning and having a kitchen prepare and serve it the same day. It is a long standing Keys tradition and the freshest meal available anywhere in the islands.
Who cleans your fish after a charter in the Keys?
Most private charter captains fillet the catch at the dock as part of the trip. Ask when you book. Marinas and fish houses will also clean it for a fee, and Grassy Flats has a butcher and fish house on property.
How much does it cost to have a restaurant cook your catch?
Expect a preparation fee per person or per pound, plus whatever else you order at the table. It generally comes in under the price of the same fish ordered off the menu.
What fish is best for hook and cook in the Florida Keys?
Mahi, blackfin tuna, yellowtail snapper, and grouper in season all eat extremely well the same day. Blackfin is worth setting aside raw before anything gets cooked.
Can you keep the fish you catch on a charter in Florida?
On most offshore trips, yes, within current size and bag limits. Flats and light tackle trips for tarpon, bonefish, and permit are typically catch and release. Check current FWC regulations for your dates and ask your captain.
Where can you store fish during a Keys vacation?
A room with a kitchen and freezer space is the simplest answer. The Conch House apartments at Grassy Flats have full kitchens, and the market can vacuum pack and portion what you are taking home.
