Seafood Restaurant Fire Prompts PETA Offer

After Captain’s Table Burns to the Ground, Group Proposes All-Vegan Makeover—and Offers to Help With Menu Revamp

For Immediate Release:
January 23, 2018

Contact:
Audrey Shircliff 202-483-7382

Upon hearing that Captain’s Table burned down in a fire last week, PETA employee Sadie Buckles, a former server at the Moline restaurant, sent a letter today proposing that the longtime seafood staple create waves by reopening its doors as a brand-new, all-vegan hot spot—and offering PETA’s services in constructing the perfect cruelty-free menu.

In the letter, Buckles credits her time serving seafood at Captain’s Table with first inspiring her to go vegan and notes that vegan eating has skyrocketed by 600 percent over the last three years—Tyson has invested in Beyond Meat, Bareburger announced plans to open a vegan chain, and one in six universities offers an all-vegan dining station.

“Whether fish, fowl, or Fido, all animals are thinking, feeling individuals capable of fear and pain and value their lives,” says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. “PETA is excited about the possibility of helping Captain’s Table rise from the ashes into a compassionate café that serves up delicious vegan food that no animals have to die for.”

PETA’s motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat.” For more information, please visit PETA.org.

PETA’s letter to Captain’s Table owner Jeff Delf follows.

Jeff Delf

Owner

Captain’s Table

Dear Mr. Delf,

As a former employee of the Captain’s Table, I felt compelled to contact you after hearing about the recent fire at the restaurant. This establishment gave me one of my first jobs and also inspired me to go vegan and help animals in a career at PETA. I urge you to make the menu all-vegan when the restaurant reopens. Let me explain why I think you should do this.

While working at the restaurant, I was uncomfortable serving dead fish to customers as I walked by aquariums that contained live ones. I realized that the line between those we consider friends and those we consider food is arbitrary—there’s no difference between the fish in the tanks and those we served to patrons. They were all thinking, feeling individuals who deserved our compassion. Despite scientific evidence proving that fish and crustaceans are smart, sentient beings with the capacity to feel pain just like the cats and dogs who share our homes, they’re killed by the billions every year for humans’ dinner plates.

Not only would an all-vegan menu be good for fish, it’s also good for business: Vegan eating has skyrocketed, increasing by 600 percent over the last three years! That’s why Tyson has invested in vegan brand Beyond Meat, Bareburger just announced plans to open a vegan chain, IKEA added vegan meatballs, vegan fast-casual chain Veggie Grill is set for a massive expansion, and one in six universities has an all-vegan dining station.

PETA stands ready to help you incorporate dishes such as fish-free fillets, crabless cakes, vegan shrimp, and vegan scallops into your menu. I hope you’ll consider working with us to spare the lives of countless fish and crustaceans.

Kind regards,

Sadie Buckles

Campaigns Assistant

PETA