Fishmonger

[Sugar Bear]

Anybody have a good suggestion for where to get great fresh fish? We're the Ocean State and the fishmongers seem very limited. I've tried the place next to Tito's in Seekonk (Tony's?) - decent but I think we can do better.

[Rich Lang]

There is a Portuguese guy who has been selling fresh fish out of the back of his pickup truck (has a scale hanging and all...) on Ives St, near the Portuguese bakery (a block or two north of East Transit). His name is Jose and he has been there 4 days per week (wed - sat) for the last 25 years. He typically sells mackerel, hake (chunks), scarp, red fish, whiting and squid, and has surprises from time to time. I was writing up a piece for the blog, which I'll still do, but those are the basics.

[Max]

It is a surreally bad situation--I'm consistently amazed that there aren't more options. Rich is probably right that the guy on Ives is one of the better ones. Does anyone know what happened to the place that was "coming soon" for a year or so on Atwells and then disappeared? I've long suspected that the answer to the head East to East Providence and beyond, but I have nothing to back that up with.

[Baruch]

The place on Atwells was a bust. Guy simply stopped paying his rent and never finished the renovation. The owner of that building lives in Boston, and does not have much incentive for filling it quickly.

[Lisa]

I shop at Whole Foods because it's clean and down the street from me, but when I want something special I head to Captain's Catch. It's located on Mineral Spring Avenue in North Providence. I was able to find octopus there for Christmas Eve as well as fresh smelts etc. Everything I needed for my feast of the 7 fishes.

[Steph]

I second the vote for Captain's Catch. Not too convenient for people in Providence, but it's a great place with large fresh selection of fish and shellfish!

[Lydia Walshin]

I second the props for Captain's Catch. The owner is great about taking orders for special parties or catering, and I often call ahead to order fish for my cooking classes. He is a licensed shellfish dealer, which is some guarantee of quality, and the store always smells fresh and clean.

[Steph]

I have consistently found better stuff at the North Providence location. But that might be simply because I go to that one more often, and not a true reflection of any difference.
They are both very good.

I just read in East Side Monthly that The Butcher Shop on Elmgrove carries seafood from Foley's in Boston. I plan to check it out today and hope to throw something on the grill tonight!

[alane spinney]

How did that work out, Steph?

[joyce dipippo]

hi brian,

i live in e.g.; do you know off hand where captain's catch is in warwick??? thanks..

[Pam]

it's in Appanoug, right on the corner of 117 & Post Rd..

[Alz]

It's amazing, isn't it? You'd think we'd have the most incredible seafood stores and we don't! It's all cod, clams and the occasional lobster. I go to Whole Foods as well, because they have fresh stuff and they'll even order something they don't always carry (like red snapper) if you ask a few days ahead of time. But even they seem to have a lot of farm-raised fish, not wild-caught, and that in my book is a no-no. And what ever happened to seeing the whole fish? So many places just have fillets...you don't know what you're getting when you buy it. I will have to try Captain's Catch since all of you are raving about it. Hands down, the best shellfish is at American Mussel Harvesters in North Kingstown. Yes, I make the journey from Providence and take it home to Tiverton! It's worth it! Check out: www.americanmussel.com They run the Newport Oyster Festival every year.

[Steph]

Yeah, I know what you mean! This is the Ocean State! Where's the seafood?
You can get great stuff off the docks at Point Judith, but what about Providence?

On the other hand, I actually have found beautiful whole red snapper at Whole Foods, but I wish whole fish were more easy to find. I've been to the Oyster Festival but had somehow forgotten about American Mussel Harvesters.

There's also a great little seafood shop in Tiverton where I found some of the best tuna steaks ever. They were a deep rich red, not the artificial pink that you find in so many markets.