Dozens of San Diegans lined up bright and early on Saturday morning for the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market at Seaport Village. Every Saturday morning from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., crowds walk along the dock to peruse the stalls of local, freshly caught fish.
This year, the open-air fish market is celebrating 10 years of being in San Diego.
John Glawson, who opened up a stall at the market about eight years ago under the name Johnny's Fish, is no stranger to the local waters. He's been a fisherman for 30 years.
"These are California sheepshead right here. That we're selling today. We catch these in a trap. I have a trap boat, and we trap these in the local kelp forest out there," Glawson said. "We used to sell directly to wholesaler, but it's been nice coming here, meeting the end consumer, keeping it here in San Diego."
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Keeping it in San Diego is exactly why Alex Bogdanov, who came to the market with his young daughter, has been purchasing fish there for the last four years.
"I like to avoid dealers in-between, so I give my money to someone who actually makes the product," Bogdanov said.
Rockfish isn't typically something you buy at a grocery store, although it is sold at some locations around San Diego County. Bogdanov bought some vermilion rockfish to fry it for dinner to eat with his family. As the president of the San Diego Fishermen's Working Group, Peter Halmay, will tell you, that's all part of the appeal of this fish market.
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"I think people are introduced to more local fish. Normally, people go to buy salmon, shrimp, three or four things. Be a little bit more experimental," Halmay said.
After 10 years of bustling success of the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market, Halmay reflected on what it took to get this market started.
"To start this took about three years. We were selling off the boats, and then we said go on land, and sell on land, and that started a three-year escapade," Halmay said.
Local fishermen, including Halmay, jumped through a few regulatory hoops along the way to establish the open-air fish market. Fast forward to today, the market draws in hundreds of people every Saturday, rain or shine.
To celebrate 10 years, there will be a Dockside Night Market at Seaport Village from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday. Attendees will need to purchase a ticket. All of the proceeds go toward the San Diego Fishermen's Working Group, which advocates for the local commercial fishing industry.
