Claire, while you're correct in saying that IQF is good, and teh way to go for a lot of people, I have to disagree with your statement that even living on the coast, a lot of our seafood has been frozen and thawed. I live in Charleston, SC, and can go to 3 or 4 seafood markets and, during the season, buy shrimp that's fresh off the boat; crabs, flounder, grouper, snapper, mahi-mahi, and sometimes bass, all of which has been caught within a day or so of being put 'on the shelf'. Of course, during the off-season they either aren't available, or have been frozen. But the store owners are very quick to tell you what's been frozen and what hasn't. Of course, everyone who lives here knows that if you buy shrimp in the off-season, it's been frozen; even then, the quality of what they sell is so far superior to even the IQF shrimp, that it's worth the buy.
There's a huge movement here to support our local fishermen and shrimpers; even the restaurants are getting on board, and only serving fresh, local seafood. In a lot of restaurants here you won't see salmon, halibut, tiger shrimp, etc. on the menu at all. I think it's a wonderful idea; these folks have been making their living for centuries, and are being squeezed out by the big 'growers of seafood, who have the ability to IQF on board.
There's a real beauty to going to SHem Creek, and watching the shrimp boats come in, along with their entourage of gulls, pelicans and of course the dolphin escorts, and knowing that a few hours later when you go to the dock stores, you're buying food that was in the ocean a few hours ago.
Here's a pic:
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.1000plus.com/Imagic/8005ShemCreekMtPleasantSC01.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.1000plus.com/Imagic/8005ShemCreekMtPleasantSC01.htm&h=809&w=1200&sz=312&tbnid=lQMsj4SJxVYJ:&tbnh=101&tbnw=150&hl=en&start=5&prev=/images%3Fq%3D%2522Shem%2BCreek,%2BMt.%2BPleasant%2522%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3Dlang_en%26sa%3DG
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