At the brand new Green Fish Market in Walnut Creek, California, the fish is so fresh that it’s still alive when you order it.
That’s because Green Fish Market keeps many of its fish in giant tanks at the back of the store. Lobsters, catfish, crabs, and more are still swimming and crawling around their tanks right up until you take them home.
Likewise, live manilla clams, oysters, PEI mussels and other shellfish sit on ice, similarly fresh–still living–and waiting for your order.
Even the larger fish–from black bass to branzino–are displayed whole. An expert fishmonger will cut them up for you (or dispatch and then cut up the still-swimming ones) when you’re ready to order.
Fish are clearly the main focus at Green Fish Market. The store, which opened recently on Olympic Boulevard near Rossmoor in the older section of Walnut Creek, is built around its fish counter.
But there’s a lot more at Green Fish Market. The small store is also an Asian grocery provider, and walking around it feels very much like walking through a market in Japantown or Chinatown in the city.
You’ll find Japanese sweets and candies.
You’ll also find aisles of both familiar and exotic fruits and veggies, served in big open bins filling the middle of the store.
We at the Bay Area Telegraph stopped by to check the place out a few months after its opening. The grand opening banners were still on the facade.
We didn’t buy any fish, although we did oggle the delicious-looking display of iced fish that we could have taken home for a BBQ.
We did grab some tasty Japanese candies to take back. But again, the main focus here is fish. Yes, still-swimming catfish is a far cry from the fileted and shrink-wrapped fish that most people in the Bay Area are familiar with purchasing at Whole Foods.
But that’s kind of the point. If you want a new fish shopping experience–and the freshest possible catch–check Green Fish Market out.
We love that they’re buying locally, too. Here’s a very cool video of them picking up live crabs right off a boat.
Address: 2251 Olympic Blvd Walnut Creek, CA 94595
Other Great Fish Places
Speaking of fish, on the other side of Walnut Creek, a brand new fish place opened late last year. This one doesn’t have fish that are still swimming! But the fish is still awfully fresh.
It’s Poke House, a restaurant that serves raw fish Chipotle-style. You build a bowl of poke by selecting things like ahi tuna, raw salmon, crab, and more.
If you don’t want to have to do the cooking–but you still love seafood and Asian-inspired flavors–Poke House is a cool place to check out.
Who doesn’t want a new fish shopping experience