Fishy dishy on platey for Haiti

IT IS a five-foot long monster from the deep, weighing in at over 50 kilos and is so big it takes three men to lift it.

Now the giant catfish has been shipped from Bangladesh to the Capital to help raise money for victims of the Haiti disaster.

City takeaway Cinnamon plans to sell off the 53kg (8.5 stone) fish to help raise funds for the Evening News-backed Help Haiti appeal launched by local charity Mercy Corps and the City Council.

The freshwater monster – known in its home country as a tiger goonch, or giant river catfish – is currently taking up room at the restaurant's freezer. It took three staff to haul the beast on to the premises at Portobello High Street, and it is so big they now plan to take it to a local butcher to be sliced up with a bandsaw.

The flesh will then be filleted and sold in a special curry, with more than half of all the money raised being donated to the Mercy Corps appeal.

Tiger goonches are rarely sold in the UK, due their high price, and it will be the first time it has been sold at Cinnamon. Head chef and owner Foyzol Islam hopes to raise over 500 for the charity from the sale.

He said: "We were pretty shocked by its size to be honest, as it took so many people just to get it into the freezer.

"This is one of the most prized fish in Bangladesh, and we had to get it shipped to London and then transported from there.

"We want to raise as much money as we can to help the survivors of the Haiti earthquake.."

The fish is expected to go on sale at Cinnamon from Monday.

The earthquake on 12 January killed more than 200,000 people and left more than a million homeless, and since the disaster struck, Mercy Corps have had staff on the ground trying to help provide vital supplies of food and clean water.

John Cunningham, Director of Fundraising said: "The appeal has raised over 280,000 in just over a month, a major achievement for the people of Edinburgh. On Sunday, 28 February, Carol Ann Duffy is hosting a poetry evening in aid of the appeal at the Queens Hall, and on Sunday, 7 March, some of Edinburgh's top live music performers will give a one-off benefit concert.

"All proceeds from both events will go straight to our appeal."

Tickets for Poets for Haiti on 28 February at 6pm and Edinburgh Bands Together on 7 March at 6:30pm are available from The Queens Hall box office.