People often talk about fresh seafood like it's the holy grail of foods.  Even I'm guilty of assigning a little too much significance to it.  Is there really a difference between fresh seafood and non-fresh seafood?  Does lobster eaten in Nebraska taste any different from lobster eaten in Maine?  The immediate answer from a typical food pundit is a snide "yes".  But is it a difference that's observable to the average joe?  Or is it more of a fine wine type of thing? 

I went to Red Lobster last week, and it was surprisingly better than I expected.  I always think of Red Lobster as the ... well, the Red Lobster of seafood restaurants.  It's a definition in itself.  I guess it's like the Pizza Hut of pizza places, the Taco Bell of Mexican food.  But I had a great meal there, thus raising my opinion of the place altogether.  And why was my lobster-shrimp-pasta dish so good?  Because of how it was cooked and how it was seasoned.  I highly doubt I'd be able tell the difference between freshly-caught seafood and 3-month-old, frozen seafood.  But as long as it's cooked well and tastes good, it doesn't much matter. 

Here's to non-fresh seafood.