Apparently the major appeal is actually the toxin, rather than the taste. The tingly numb feeling that comes with a noticeable but not neccisarily dangerous dose is what people are after.
I’ve had Japanese people, including a sushi chef tell me the ones we eat locally tastes exactly like fugu, but without the tingles. They’re a pretty mild, flakey white fish. But far from flavorless. It’s similar to striped bass, but milder. Like flounder by more savory. Monkfish is a decent comparison point, but monk fish is oilier and slightly fishier. In part because it’s almost always cooked on the bone it’s got that great sticky texture that good fish cooked on the bone tends to get. And a subtle but noticeable savory/umami thing that’s unusual in very mild, light fish. A lot of people compare them to chicken wings, mostly because the format they’re served in is kinda chicken wingy. But it’s an apt description.
But then I imagine they’d be pretty bland raw.
