I grabbed the banana out of his hand, threw it overboard, and started berating my buddy, a guy who obviously didn’t spend much time on boats. Some people have no idea what is appropriate boat food – not only are bananas taboo, it takes time to peel and eat them. Proper fishing snacks are eaten in seconds, thereby minimizing the fishing time lost to consumption. Here are my favorites.
ROAST BEEF BOAT SANDWICH: Step A: Grab one handful rare roast beef. Step B: Put in mouth. Step C: Chew and let your line back out.
BREAKFAST BARS: It’s a 10-second investment. Rip off the packaging and shovel the bar down. Hunger is abated for at least an hour.
EELS: Take one out of the livewell, pop it in the micro, and a minute later you have a beef-jerky look-alike with a seagoing edge. (Note: Choose eels thinner than your thumb, because their bones turn soft in the nuker.)
ENTENMANN’S CHOCOLATE DOUGHNUTS: Every time my wife bites one, she gets a strike. There’s no logical explanation, and it doesn’t work for me. But maybe it will for you.
CATCH OF THE DAY: Restaurants often use this term to describe week-old fish. Why not have the real thing? Tuna, salmon, mahi-mahi, and wahoo are prime examples of slice it and eat it now.
If you return to the dock famished, don’t overlook your bait. Shrimp and clams can be boiled in just about anything (including a hotel room coffeepot or a pan sitting on the exhaust risers or engine block); butterfish are good breaded and fried; and you already know what to do with leftover eels.
