Italian-American Families Preparing For Annual Feast Of Seven Fishes
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Many folks are spending their week preparing for a big feast this weekend.
Lydia Susanti of Johnny Seafood at Reading Terminal Market says each year they order in special fish for their customers preparing their traditional Feast of the Seven Fishes.
"When they start to count like three items, they start to move to shellfish and then oysters and clams, I can tell, 'okay, is it for Seven Fishes?' Yeah," Susanti said.
Jennifer Quinn of North Philadelphia says it's an Italian-American tradition to cook lots of fish on Christmas Eve.
"I always learned it growing up, taught by my mom and my aunt," Quinn said. "In my family it's been since I was born. We keep it going and now it's my turn to do it."
Susanti says this feast takes a while to prepare and that is reflected in how her customers purchase their fish.
"A week before Christmas they get the bakala first and they get the squid and tentacles," she said. "They use the squid to stuff it and then like scallops, shrimp, they get it a day or two before Christmas."
Susanti says perhaps this is the reason their biggest sales are during Christmas, not Thanksgiving.
"Fish for Christmas," she said, "it's the biggest day, yeah!"
So what's the significance of this tradition?
"I really don't know why, I just know we do it," said Quinn. "We eat it and we love it!"