Like seafood and like to eat at Texas Roadhouse? If so, you may have been wondering if their salmon comes from farms or from the wild.
With concerns about sustainability and health benefits, it’s important to know where your food comes from.
You can read about the history of Texas Roadhouse salmon in this article. It will give you all the information you need to choose what to order.
As a salmon lover one of my favorite casual dining spots is Texas Roadhouse. Their Salmon entree has been a go-to order of mine for years. The fish is always fresh flavorful and cooked to tender perfection.
But as someone who also aims to make ocean-friendly seafood choices, a question has long lingered in my mind – is Texas Roadhouse salmon wild caught? Or is it farmed? Understanding the sourcing matters for assessing sustainability.
So I set out on a mission to uncover the facts. As a frequenter of my local Texas Roadhouse here in Omaha, I had a hunch their salmon was not wild based on taste and texture. But I wanted to dig into the details to be certain.
Here is what my investigation into Texas Roadhouse salmon unearthed. Read on to have your own questions answered!
Why the Wild vs Farmed Question Matters
Before we get into the sourcing details, it’s worth understanding why the wild vs farmed question is an important one when it comes to seafood.
In a nutshell, wild caught seafood refers to fish and shellfish caught in their natural ocean habitats. Farmed or aquaculture refers to raising fish under controlled conditions.
There are pros and cons to both sources:
Wild catch pros: Better omega 3s, no antibiotics/chemicals, natural diet
Wild catch cons: Overfishing concerns, bycatch issues, limits on supply
Farming pros: Reliable supply, no bycatch, better managed
Farming cons: More pollutants, antibiotics use, artificial diet
There are grey areas too. Overall, I personally aim for a mix of sustainable wild and Responsibly farmed seafood. So the details on Texas Roadhouse’s salmon help inform my order choices.
Investigating Texas Roadhouse Salmon Sourcing
I took a multi-pronged approach to get to the bottom of the salmon’s origin at Texas Roadhouse.
First I scoured their website for any indications of salmon being wild caught. Their online menu lists “Salmon” with no other indicators. Not a promising start!
Next I checked their FAQs and nutrition information. Again, no details on sourcing, just nutritional data.
Finally, on my next visit to Texas Roadhouse, I decided to just ask my server directly where they source their salmon.
She kindly checked with the kitchen and returned with an answer – the salmon is 100% farmed Atlantic salmon, raised in offshore pens in Norway.
This aligned with my suspicion based on taste and texture. Wild salmon has a deeper orange hue and richer flavor compared to milder farmed salmon.
While I hoped for a wild source, I appreciate the transparency on sourcing. Norway has high standards for aquaculture, so responsibly farmed salmon can be a good choice.
Digging Into Texas Roadhouse’s Salmon Supplier
With the origin of the salmon confirmed as farmed in Norway, I wanted to learn a bit more about their specific supplier.
According to their website, Texas Roadhouse partners with Trident Seafoods for their salmon. Trident is one of the largest seafood suppliers in North America.
On Trident’s website, I was able to confirm they supply Texas Roadhouse with Atlantic salmon farmed in Norway. Their standards include:
- No antibiotics
- Vegetable-based feed
- Low density pens with room to swim
- Careful fish handling
This aligns with more sustainable salmon farming practices. Trident also has several certifications related to environmental standards and responsible sourcing.
Of course, there is still room for improvement. But the farming methods used for Texas Roadhouse salmon seem a decent option.
My Takeaway on Texas Roadhouse Salmon
After getting to the bottom of Texas Roadhouse’s salmon sourcing, here is my takeaway:
While not wild caught, their farmed salmon from Norway appears to be reasonably responsibly raised with policies addressing major sustainability issues like antibiotics and numbers of fish per pen.
I will continue to enjoy Texas Roadhouse salmon as one of my go-to farmed salmon options when dining out. And I appreciate having transparency on their supply chain when making dining decisions.
If sourcing ever changes, I hope they will update their website and menus so guests can stay informed on the origin of this popular menu item. In a world of shifting seafood supplies, transparency is valuable.
Is Texas Roadhouse Salmon Wild Caught?
Texas Roadhouse salmon is not wild caught. It gets its salmon from Nordic Group, a business that has been giving Texas Roadhouse salmon for more than 20 years. Nordic Group, in turn, sources its salmon from Norway, where it is farm-raised.
Some seafood lovers may prefer wild-caught salmon because they think it tastes better and is better for the environment, but farm-raised salmon can also be healthy and tasty. In fact, according to Dr. Sanjay Gupta, there isn’t a significant difference in Omega-3 levels between wild-caught and farm-raised salmon.
The hand-breaded fish and chips dish at Texas Roadhouse has more fat and calories than the grilled salmon on their menu. The 5 oz Grilled Salmon contains 320 calories, while the 8 oz Grilled Salmon contains 480 calories.
The Importance Of Sustainable Seafood Sourcing
Sustainable seafood sourcing is crucial for the health of our oceans and the future of the fishing industry. Overfishing and destructive fishing practices can lead to the depletion of fish populations and damage to marine ecosystems. Therefore, it is important to choose seafood that has been caught or farmed with sustainability in mind.
Sustainable seafood is seafood that was caught or grown in a way that doesn’t hurt the environment or kill off fish populations. When deciding if a seafood option is sustainable, things like how it was caught, what chemicals were used, and what the fish were fed are all taken into account. Seafood Watch at the Monterey Bay Aquarium is a reliable source that gives consumers guides based on country and region to help them make smart decisions about sustainable seafood options.
People can support local economies and ease the strain on wild fisheries by choosing seafood that is sustainable. Sustainable seafood can also be better for our health because many types of sustainable fish are high in protein, vitamins, minerals, and heart-healthy omega-3s while low in chemicals that are bad for us.
Nordic Group and the Norwegian Seafood Council have worked together to promote Norwegian salmon that is farmed in a way that doesn’t harm the environment. People who choose sustainably farmed salmon over wild-caught salmon can raise the demand for fish that is raised in a responsible way and help local economies.
Wild-Caught Salmon Isn’t So Wild After All – Newsy
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