Extreme dining on live sea animals

[sweet and sexy]

So, I open the LA Times Entertainment section last night and read an article about "Extreme Dining" which is where people go out to eat sea-animals that are still alive. The animals are kept alive in a tank in the middle of the restaurant. The author went to Ma San, a Korean restaurant in LA, and sampled a Korean dish called san-nag-jik, which is live baby octopus which is eaten while the tentacles are still moving, just after removing its head. This is described in the article as a legitimate Korean meal that is often eaten in Seoul or Pusan. You can supposedly see a clip of the author eating this at latimes.com/extremedining. I did not want to click this link.

I think this should be outlawed (yes I am one of those annoying vegetarian bleeding-hearts-for-animals persons.) I don't understand why this is legal? It seems so heartless. Has any poster here tried extreme dining? Is there anyone here of Korean descent who might perhaps explain this a bit? What is the thrill, exactly? Also please don't feel I am trying to form a bias towards this culture, there is tons of stuff that goes down in my culture that I am not cool with, so I understand.

[Chilly Willy]

Oysters die in the stomach. They are alive when eaten, too. Lobsters live until they throw them in the boiling water, just like shrimps. I find all this very sick, but most people don't.

[sweet and sexy]

^ I didn't even know that. I am such a sheltered vegetarian.

This is all so cruel though.

[Ravenna]

I saw on the news a couple of months ago about a chef who learned to fry a fish without killing it, and they showed someone eating it while its mouth was still moving. It did seem pretty sick to me. Imagine someone eating your leg while you are alive and powerless to stop it.

[KrisNine]

I passed by an episode of Iron Chef and it turned my stomach. They put the octopus in flour or some breading while it was still alive and threw it in the pan.

I'm not saying everyone has to be a vegetarian, but I think there should be some humane process involved with the animals that are eaten.

[VenusInFauxFurs]

That makes me want to vomit.

[Sweetie]

I eat seafood but mine is cooked prior.
I couldn't eat anything that was moving around in my mouth. ughh.

[McJag]

Dist-gus-ting!!!! Omg!

[Grimmlok]

Well, in the wild animals are eaten while still alive all the time.. still, since we have the capacity to be benevolent on our kill we should probably use it.

Frying a fish and having it still alive on your plate? Sick.

Frying octopus while it's still alive? More sick, considering octopi have the emotional range of a 5 year old.

[PaintTheTownRed]

There's a show with this gross chef who travels the world and does this type of extreme eating. One time he went to an asian restaurant and a frog had its heart ripped out so the chef could eat it while it was still beating. He didn't even look like he enjoyed it. I think people are doing this because its some kind of fad, not because it tastes good. It's so sick.

[Icepik]

Truly vile.

[PaperDoll]

The poor octopus/octopi

[ConstanceSpry]

Torturing a living creature is abnormal and should be portrayed as such, not shown on TV as though it's normal and acceptable. People who do that shit suck and should drop dead.

[sweet and sexy]

Frying octopus while it's still alive? More sick, considering octopi have the emotional range of a 5 year old.

Yes Grimm however at this restaurant they don't fry it, just bring it out after removing the head and then it is eaten with tentacles moving as it dies.

It is so brutal.

[sweetrebel]

Just another reason I am glad that I don't eat seafood...