Giovanni's Fish Market

02/24/09

Over Promise, Under Deliver

by maxcoyote

The problem with great expectations are great disappointments. We recently moved to the central coast from SLC Utah, and were morning the loss of the Market Street Grill. You could buy great fresh seafood (from Utah-go figure), and prime cuts of beef. When we moved here, my wife needed to get her fresh seafood fix, so we started searching for local markets. After going to their website, we were sold and anticipated greatness from Giovannis. What we found was sub-par. Frozen fries? C'mon, shame on you guys! My wife was disappointed as to the skimpy portions of the fish and chips, as well as to the blandness of everything. I think they probably were on top at one point in the game, but are now probably resting lazily on past glory. On the bright side, great location, views and service.

• Pros: Views, Ambience, Service, and Speed
• Cons: Food is only par. Frozen fries- tasted frost burn

02/23/09

Are We All Talking About The Same Restaurant?

by melsamel

Since, there is only one review that is even fairly recent I'm thinking things have changed at Giovanni's. One thing that HAS changed seem to be the wait. We didn't wait at all. But it was 3pm on Monday so that probably is a factor. However, if we HAD waited for this food I would have little else positive to say as the service was prompt and friendly. The food was so below average. Especially for a place that is on prime water front property on the Central Coast of California! My fish and chips were hot nothing. Everything was bland and had little flavor. The few things that did have flavor had BAD flavor. The tartar sauce tasted like something from a jar and I could have sworn there was cinnamon in the cocktail sauce. The fish was fresh but was completely bland. The shrimp and scallops were overcooked. The fries are a joke--more hot nothing and freeze dried to boot. All for 10 bucks and the portions were skimpy. My husband said his burger was ok but Carl's Jr. was better-not a rave review. We did buy some shrimp from the store which is very nice and had a great selection but the shrimp smelled "shrimpy" and not so fresh but tasted fine....still. This was such a disappointment! We had heard such great things--even the glass of wine I had was bad and we ended up spending almost $30. Completely uninspired food. Go for the atmosphere and view but this wasn't just a chef's "bad day"--I think Giovanni's has gone downhill.

• Pros: Beautiful view, great patio, good ambience.
• Cons: Below average food, uninspired and overpriced.

02/18/09

Fresh Fish

by scottjohnson24

Excellent fish dinner and the service was very good especially since it was real busy. they were extra nice to my kids.

12/05/07

Best fresh fish-local, not farmed!

by annwride

Giovanni's is the best location to buy fresh fish. They have real salmon, not arme with color added! They will special order anything for you and pack on ice for free!

Great place

11/20/07

Walk the line

by pulibear

The lines are long here to order food to go, but on my last visit there, the fish and chips were perfectly cooked--moist and not dry. While they're a bit pricey, the portion was generous, the fries were perfect and the tartar sauce was excellent. I could see many ways they could improve the efficiency of the order and pick up process but I see they're working on fixing the problem. An expanded kitchen will hopefully make the whole process faster and less frustrating for the customers. Overall I am a local customer and enjoy the fish and chips better than even some of the restaurants in the area.

• Pros: Delicious food
• Cons: Poor take-out service--too slow

07/25/07

A very frustrating experience

by bdmeyer

It is one thing to wait a long time because the place is packed... it is yet another to wait because the staff members are incompetent. There were only six or so parties in front of us in line and it took us just under an hour to get to the order window. As we waited we watched 6-8 additional parties give up and leave. We waited because I had read the "worth the wait" reviews on citysearch. I disagree. We passed the time in line discussing how we would streamline the ridiculous ordering process at Giovanni's. The woman at the counter paused every 15-20 minutes to advertise beverages and clam chowder over the PA system.They only have one window for orders and pick-ups. This makes the process completely inefficient as the person taking the orders has to pause every two minutes to call out orders, pass out food and retrieve tarter sauce, malt vinager and what have you.

We also purchased fish from inside. I will say that the halibut, swordfish and scallops were excellent but the clams tasted old (even though we had only purchased closed ones). As one additional point of savings grace I will say that the gentleman who helped us with out fish purchase was very helpful and efficient.

I also felt sorry for the new employee at the fish counter. Apparently it was her second day and no one had bothered to train her. She looked very uncomfortable and the woman who she asked to help her only made her feel worse by telling her that she was doing it all wrong.

To sum it all up... the service is horrific and the food is just okay--not at all the amazing fare I expected it to be. Find a table at one of the other seafood restaurants in town and rejoice in the fact that you won't want to strangle anyone when you finally get to order.

• Pros: The view is nice...and you get to look at it for a LONG TIME while you wait in line
• Cons: The service is slow, slow, slow, slow, slow

03/27/07

Worth a long drive

by mrdeccs

We live in Nipomo, about a 90 minute roundtrip to Morro Bay.

The fish at Giovanni's is so much better than we have found anywhere else that we have been happily taking this trip two or three times a month for the past year or so.

We are convinced that the superior quality of anything you buy there will make your trip worthwhile even if you don't browse some of the nice shops around there.

They also have very good great clam chowder, fish and chips, etc. which you can eat at picnic-style tables overlooking the bay.

Editorial Review

by Contributor

A local landmark, this fish and seafood stop offers an array of just-caught carryout or on-site tacos and gourmet delicacies.

03/14/07

Clean! Fresh! Fun!

by susannieland

Okay so my friend John invites me over for halibut dinner with his family. The only "catch" is - I have to pick up the fish and bring it to his house. He makes a quick call to Giovanni's and places the order. I'm only about 2 blocks away - but decide to drive on down right away. The order was already ready! The staff were exceedingly friendly - my eyes couldn't leave the fish and shellfish display - all my favorites!! I hear people talking about "their" fish, about sushi, about crabs, about Pacific Oysters, about local pink shrimp.....and on and on! I left feeling exhilerated - they even had fresh sourdough and artisan breads, fresh lemons and Old Bay seasoning - even wine and beverages. Good wine selections too!

Okay I've lived here at this point just one year and am just cringing I never found this gem and drive to my friends house. He unwraps the Halibut (local) and slaps it down on the cutting board. I HAVE NEVER SEEN FISH THIS FRESH! I could've sworn it was still moving.....I just kept staring at it! John's lovely wife Lynn made the fish by a family recipe and I was in a celestial cloud! Ahhhhhhh.....Perfection. Beyond perfection.

Since that time I shop weekly at Giovanni's. They are like family to me. Always quick service, tailored to your needs at all times. Special orders, cooking and boiling and cracking crabs for you, teaching - they are so knowledgeable - with a plethora of wonder recipes offered free to shoppers.

I have not allowed myself to be spoiled by their good food prepared on the premesis - YET. The lines move fast and are full - the smell is heavenly. People grinning all the time - taking culinary treasures on the scenic deck for dining.

This is Morro Bay. This is love. This is Giovanni's!!! You will not be disappointed :-) !!!

01/27/07

good fresh fish

by kyoko

bought fresh ahi and salmon for homemade sushi yesterday - delicious will buy more soon because we have been happy with the quality for many years