From Tide to Table: Experience San Diego’s Premier Sustainable Seafood Destinations
With its prominent place on the Pacific Ocean, it’s no surprise that the freshest seafood around is harvested daily from San Diego’s waters: meaty bigeye and yellowfin tuna, briny sea urchin, mahi-mahi, and prized California spiny lobster and spot prawns are just some of the fruits of the sea that can be found here. If you’re craving fresh seafood, San Diego is one of the best cities to experience sea-to-table dining while supporting local companies that fish with sustainable practices.
The Freshest Catch
Commercial fishing is firmly anchored in San Diego’s history, as the city was once home to the world’s largest tuna fishing fleet and known as the “Tuna Capital of the World” from the early 1900s until the 1970s. During the industry’s heyday, large canneries operated along the waterfront from Little Italy all the way to Barrio Logan, and immigrants from Italy, Portugal and Japan settled in the area to work in commercial fishing. Although the canneries are gone, fishing is still active and thriving today in San Diego, and many local fishers are part of family businesses that have been operating for generations.
Visitors can experience a working fishing harbor in action at Tuna Harbor Dockside Market on the Embarcadero. Every Saturday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., the pier is an open-air market where local fishers sell their catch of the day direct to consumers and chefs, and it’s just one of two commercial fishing ports in San Diego. While there, you can often see boats pull up to the dock and watch as workers unload the morning’s cargo of freshly caught fish. Depending on what’s in season, everything from whole fish and crabs on ice to wahoo (ono) filets, and live lobster and prawns, are all on display and waiting to be bought. If you aren't equipped to cook your own haul, don't worry, you don't have to leave the market hungry. Simply head to the end of the pier to Dockside Fish, a stand that prepares made-to-order fish and chips and grilled lobster (when in season), along with handrolls, poke and ceviche, all with locally caught seafood. In late summer, the dock transforms into an exciting night market for one night, featuring dishes crafted by the city’s top chefs and live music.
Driscoll’s Wharf in scenic Point Loma — in a neighborhood that was nicknamed “Tunaville” — is a private commercial port that is home to sportfishing and yacht charters, bait and tackle shops, and some of the city’s most popular seafood restaurants that are run by local fishing families. Point Loma Seafoods has a busy onsite market and restaurant where you can get a bowl of clam chowder, fried fish plates and seafood cocktails while enjoying views of the bay and passing boats. Mitch’s Seafood is a casual harborside eatery known for fish tacos and lobster served Puerto Nuevo-style (grilled and served with salsa, cabbage and Mexican corn). The newest addition to the wharf is Tunaville Market and Grocery, run by Tommy Gomes, a fourth-generation fisherman and star of the Outdoor Channel’s “The Fishmonger.” The market has a display board noting the seafood available that day and the name of the boat where it was caught, and there’s plenty of prepared foods — like poke, tuna salad and ceviche — available by the pound. There are also fun fish-themed housewares, canned seafood and seasonings for gift-giving.
Restaurants That Serve Locally Caught Seafood
In addition to buying your seafood right off the bay, several restaurants around San Diego — from award-winning fine-dining establishments to casual spots — source their seafood from local fishers. Some of these eateries even have their own seafood market onsite.
Sally’s Waterfront Dining is a short walk from Tuna Harbor Dockside Market in Seaport Village, and recently unveiled a newly renovated dining room and patio. Enjoy bayfront views and breezes while dining on chilled seafood towers, rock shrimp and scallop aguachile, and a Baja seafood Cobb salad. The Fishery in Pacific Beach has been an institution for 30 years and is owned by a family with connections to the fishing industry — try the grilled swordfish chop that serves 2-3 people or the ahi smashburger. Nico’s Fish Market is another reliable spot in Pacific Beach for local seafood, and the poke bowls and seafood burritos are bestsellers. At Serea Coastal Cuisine at the Hotel del Coronado — which has the James Beard Certified Smart Catch Leader designation — diners can order whole fish and watch as it’s deboned tableside after being grilled over an open fire.
There’s always a line at Blue Water Seafood (Mission Hills and Ocean Beach), but it’s worth the wait for freshly shucked oysters and tacos made from a variety of grilled seafood. In La Jolla, El Pescador Fish Market is known for the unique “burros,” burritos stuffed with grilled yellowtail and squid, shrimp or seabass topped with a tangy yogurt sauce and jalapeños. Mabel’s Gone Fishing, a restaurant in North Park that was awarded a Michelin Bib Gourmand, sources as much local seafood as possible for its popular entrees and apps with a Spanish spin. Over in Barrio Logan, Fish Guts has been praised for its Baja-style seafood classics and Chef Pablo Becker’s commitment to sourcing as much as 90 percent of his menu from local fishers; the Modelo beer-battered fish and coconut shrimp tacos are a must-try. The Fish Shop has four locations in San Diego County, including Pacific Beach and Point Loma, where diners can select their seafood, marinade and how they want it prepared: in a taco, salad or sandwich.
Celebrity chef and Top Chef alum Brian Malarkey's restaurants are highly dedicated to supporting San Diego's fishing industry. Tara Monsod, a James Beard Award finalist who oversees the kitchens at Animae and Le Coq, and Aidan Owens of Herb & Wood, often post videos of their hauls from the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market on Instagram, letting diners know about upcoming dinner specials featuring everything from spiny lobster and halibut to bluefin tuna. During bluefin tuna season (summer through early fall), both Le Coq and Herb & Wood offer a special three-course seafood dinner for $65. Exclusive to Herb & Wood is a dramatic live demonstration where Chef Owens breaks down an entire tuna in the dining room.
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