ottawa foodies

$4 a fish seems criminal! I'll definitely have a look when I'm in and around and hankering to cook beast of the sea. Thanks.

Depends where you go - when I was in school and looking for whole fish to practice on, I found the cheapest place was 168 Market- I got 2 whole red snappers for less than $8 - everywhere else had them for much more than that - but it also depends on the season. That being said, I wasn't looking for freshness or quality at the time, I was looking for a whole fish to practice filleting. Generally speaking I find the asian stores are much cheaper than the "fish markets" around town. They are the only place I've found that offers whole sole for less than about $20 as well.

Ridiculous question of the day: how much does a whole fish go for, anyway? If I wanted to buy, say, a snapper that was enough for a dinner for two, what should I expect?

(I don't cook fish that much; does it show?)

I went to Lapointes in the market yesterday to pick up some fish for dinner. I hadn't been there in ages and I love fresh fish so I thought I'd stop by for a visit. The fish counter is now located on the left hand side of the store and there is now a refrigerated section on the right with prepared meals. I was there late afternoon so the only items they had left were a couple of sushi trays. Further down on the right is a selection of smoked fishes. They have some frozen fish as well including fish, shellfish, and sushi grade tuna. Lapointes is now focused on selling sustainable fish so it's priced accordingly but the fish is very fresh. I settled on a halibut steak which was sizeable enough I got two servings out of it. I ate half the steak last night and the other is going in a salad for dinner tonight. All in all I was really impressed with the selection and quality of fish however the cost will probit me from going there more frequently.

I used to go to Lapointe Fish to buy salmons, shrimps and other fresh seafood. But I have stopped going there for few years already. Their salmons are no longer fresh. I bought more then 2 days old salmon few times and I simply gave up going there. I still remember the smell that filled my kitchen and we ended up throwing away the cooked salmon after few bites. At 5:00 PM, the staff just put all the fishes in a big box and bring them back to sell the next day.

If you are looking for fresh fish, recommend that you try "Merivale Fish Market". They always have fresh fish.

Words of advice: Before you pick any salmon, ask the staff when the fish comes in to the store. The answer will give you a feeling of how fresh the fish is.

I am a regular customer of "Merivale Fish Market". I go there every week to buy Salmon fillet (need some omega-3) and am very pleased with the freshness of their fish.

At one time, I went there around 3:00 PM and the salmon is already sold out.

When you walk in to this shop, the first thing you notice is that there is no fish on display! Not even a price list.

To buy fish, you have to enter a walk-in fridge and look at beautiful piles of fishy products. Most have a hand-written paper sign indicating their price. The employees are more than willing to provide excellent advice, including how best to prepare any of the items.

I asked about the Black Cod and was told that they usually sell out by the end of Friday (I was there on Saturday). It arrives at the store on Wednesday, but they aren't open to the public until Friday.

[EDIT: They now seem to be open to the public Tuesday through Saturday.]

They almost always have wild salmon, sablefish (black cod, butterfish), pickerel (walleye), and halibut these days. All of it is amazingly fresh and delicious. Had some of their smoked tuna today - mindblowing. It's so melt in your mouth good, got a good portion of it for under $10. The guys here are very helpful & nice, can't recommend them enough!

Very nice.
Tilapia was shaped and carefully wrapped around rice and fresh veg.

This was the deep-fried fish. Very tasty!

A huge selection of exotic fish at great prices.