“AN EXPERIENCE I WOULD GLADLY REPEAT”
SINGAPORE’S STRAITS TIMES REVIEWS THE MANDURAH WILD SEAFOOD EXPERIENCE
Published 19th September 2026
Singapore’s national newspaper, The Straits Times, has published a full-page feature on our Wild Seafood Experience.
Journalist Yeo Sam Jo joined a March cruise and wrote it up for the Life section on 23 June 2026, across 931 words.
He describes boarding Reel Affair II, the safety brief, and amberjack ceviche handed round as we leave Stingray Point. Then out to the pots, each marked by a buoy and baited the day before with hoki heads.
The hauling is done by hand with the boat’s pulley system, guests working in pairs. On his cruise the group brought up fifteen Western Rock Lobster and one blue swimmer crab that made it back over the side.
This is the part our crew care most about. Every lobster is measured across the carapace with callipers, and anything under 76mm goes back. Guests then check the underside to sex each one, since a female carrying eggs is released whatever her size. Our pots also carry escape gaps so undersized lobsters can leave on their own.
That is how the Western Rock Lobster fishery became the first in the world certified by the Marine Stewardship Council, back in 2000.
Then lunch. Lobster sashimi cut in the shell and served with wasabi and lemon. Seared Abrolhos Island scallops in their shells. Blue swimmer crab, Fremantle octopus and Shark Bay tiger prawns. Executive Chef Tony Howell finishes the lobsters in garlic butter on the grill and blowtorches the tops before they reach the table.
Yeo notes the cruise costs more than a typical seafood meal, and that what you get for it is adrenaline and the satisfaction of catching your own. Learning about sustainable fishing while eating lobster he caught himself was, in his words, “a privilege I would gladly repeat”.
Yeo Sam Jo, The Straits Times, 23 June 2026
The Wild Seafood Experience
3.5 hours aboard Reel Affair II from Stingray Point Jetty, Mandurah. Lobster served three ways. Howard Park wines and WA craft beer included. $379 adult, $150 child. Maximum 30 guests.
