San Diego: Fish Market (July 2018)



My spouse and I visited The Fish Market for drinks and dessert on a Friday afternoon in early July 2018. The Fish Market is open daily from 11:00 am until 9:30 pm (with extended closing hours of 10:00 pm on weekends). You can make a reservation using the online Open Table system.

The Fish Market (and Top of the Market) opened in 1989 on the Embarcadero near Seaport Village. The restaurant is located on a small piece of land in Tuna Harbor, near the Bob Hope memorial and the statue of the WWII soldier and nurse kissing and adjacent to the USS Midway. With such a position, the restaurant offers great views of the San Diego Bay. Other California locations of the restaurant exist (Palo Alto, Santa Clara, San Mateo, San Jose, Del Mar), but the flagship site is in Downtown San Diego. In addition, two locations (San Diego and San Mateo) offer an additional on-site fine-dining option called Top of the Market, with white tablecloths, china, and crystal. At the San Diego location, the Top of the Market offers stunning views from its upper/top floor location atop the Fish Market. 

The Fish Market space is expansive, offering seating in several locations. In the main dining room, you can sit indoors on the main floor at tables and booths, or you can dine at other tables a step down from the main level and closer to the large panoramic windows. You can also dine at the oyster/sushi bar (however, you cannot just order drinks there without ordering food). In addition, the Fish Market space includes a retail counter where you can purchase seafood to take home. Smaller parties can dine outdoors on the deck that overlooks the bay. Décor is classic: wood floors, molding, and furniture, with neutral coordinating walls, ceiling, and fabrics, plus a few tasteful nautical touches. (The restaurant was most recently renovated in 2015 after a fire closed it for a few months. An interesting fact is that the restaurant owners continued to pay their employees during that closure in order to retain their staff.)

We enjoyed our happy hour on the deck of the Fish Market; the view was memorable and our server was friendly, helpful, and pleasant.












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