most expensive fish in the world?

i'm not a connoisseur of fine fish, but i would think one would pay an exorbitant price for an exotic fish dish at a downtown restaurant in paris or tokyo, like the way beluga from the baltic could be considered staple for the rich & famous, by virtue of its price.

but i now beg to differ.

this 5 year old girl accidentally swallowed an ikan kembong bone the other day & came to hospital to have it removed. she had a general anaesthetic which effectively put her to sleep while her throat was examined.

there, lodged at the side of the throat, was the cause of her discomfort. everything was completed in less than 5 mins.

if this little bone, measuring about 1cm in length, is generously estimated to weigh about half a gram & matched with the hospital bill of.....

....RM1572.88, then by simple maths, the cost of eating this particular common & previously cheap fish, which will probably never find its way into the menu of the world's top chefs, would come up to a whopping RM3,145,760 per kg or USD415,666 per pound!!! even so, i doubt if Anthony Bourdain would be in a hurry to have his fish meal here.

for the record, the world's most expensive fish (read here), a bluefin tuna, costs a mere USD391 per pound, while the most expensive chocolate (read here) is sold by Knipschildt at USD2600 per pound. for burger aficianados, The Star recently reported (read here) that the matsusaka beef burger is sold at a Bangkok hotel for USD184 each. even gold in the open market is only USD666 per oz or USD10,656 per pound.

i think if i really want a simple, convenient, boneless, & therefore safer, fish meal, i'd go for that filet-o-fish at the neighbourhood fastfood joint. after all, you also get a super-sized potato side-dish & drink, all for a princely sum of RM8.00.

**this is meant as a cautionary reminder to all fish lovers, this medic included, to exercise due care while savouring our favourite dish**