Sydney Fish Market (Sydney, Australia)

A visit to the Sydney Fish Market (SFM) is a definite must for all tourists and locals who consider themselves seafood lovers.  Aubergine can agree with me that I went crazy over the Sydney Fish Market.  It was one of my favourite places; been there 5 times during my 2 weeks’ stay there.  I must admit though, once I stepped into the vicinity, my eyes went straight to the food, without really noticing what’s around there.  It is not until now that I realized they offered seafood cooking classes as well as tours of the market.  I would have loved to go behind the scenes and explored its operations.

There are over 15 retails/restaurants at SFM.  You have the option of buying seafood home or enjoying it there.  However, I do find that sharing a table with complete strangers, digging into the food with your hands, and making a huge mess are part of the wholesome experience.  If you are looking for a fine dining experience, this certainly isn’t the place for you.  It might be a bit exaggerated to say this, but they probably sell every living eatable creature you would find in the sea – lobsters, prawns, crabs, oysters, mussels, scallops, abalones, squids, and octopus, etc.  You name it, they probably have it, maybe with the exception of shark fin.  Regardless, you would be engulfed with the large selection of seafood.

It would be difficult to try every single kiosk, but if you are there at the right timing, you would be able to sample some goodies here and there.  Among the varieties, I would recommend Christie’s Kitchen (which is now called Christie's Seafood Excellence).  If you like your seafood fried or grilled, they offer a great selection including snapper fillet, barramundi fillet, salmon fillet, tuna steak, calamari, etc., all served with chips.  If you prefer your seafood raw, they also have a great variety of freshly shucked oysters and sashimi grade tuna, prawns, scallops, sea urchin and abalone.  You might think, this is pretty normal, don’t other kiosks offer the same?  What sets Christie’s apart from other kiosks is the opportunity for customers to pick out anything from their live tanks, and have it freshly cooked any way you like.  Steamed mussels? Too easy.  Lobster mornay? No problem!  Salt and pepper mud crab?  Consider that done! 

It was a bit of a pity that I was not able the try the live abalone.  They were huge, about the size of a personal size pan pizza, still in its shell.  It simply was too big for me to finish alone.  If I had a sixth visit, I’m willing to take that challenge.      

Address: Bank St, Pyrmont New South Wales 2009, Australia

Website: www.sydneyfishmarket.com.au