Buy Seafood Online: Giovanni’s Fish Delivery Review
Buy Seafood Online: Giovanni’s Overnight Delivery Review
A few weeks ago, one of our community members inquired if we could recommend a seafood delivery company after reading our produce box delivery reviews. I thought it was a good idea, especially during the current pandemic. What once was a quick trip to the grocery store now comes with its own list of hurdles. Food deliveries have helped families stay safer these days, and if you choose to shop locally, you can simultaneously support small businesses.
Grocers have remained open, but the disruption to our meat and seafood supply chain has created a real problem for a lot of people, fueling a renewed interest in hunting and fishing.The shortages in many of my essential items this year made me more focused than ever on eating, shopping, and growing local. I want my food and services nearby.
I have dreams of small-scale farming one day beyond our modest vegetable and herb garden we have growing on the terrace. Until that day, I’ll continue to be thankful to live in a Shangri-la of year-round harvests, deep oceans, and thriving wilderness that allow me to source directly from families who pride themselves in sustainability. I often get game from a forage-raised livestock from our local farmers markets but seafood almost always need to be sourced from the coast.
HEALTH BENEFITS OF SEAFOOD
Fresh seafood is one of the best ways to consume EPA and DHA Omega 3 fatty acids that offer a whole slew of health benefits for the human body. These include lowering blood pressure and improving triglycerides. The protein is more bioavailable than that of plants and their collagen is one of the most useful to humans for their hair, skin, and joints. The shorter the time from line-to-fork, the more nutrition is preserved. This is why it is so important for seafood coming from far away to be flash frozen as soon as possible.
Wild-caught deepwater fish that have relatively short lifespans not only contain the most nutrients but also the fewest contaminants. Mercury levels build up in fish in dirty environments that live long enough to consume a lot of heavy metal-laden small plants and animals. Hence it’s important to limit your intake of big swimmers like shark, swordfish, and blue fin tuna.
I decided to do a review for Giovanni’s Fish Market, which you can think of like a seafood CSA. This Morro Bay fish market is famous for local catch year-round, and their delivery service continues that tradition. The menu is always changing, and the premium cuts included in their delivery boxes showcase the best the Pacific Ocean has to offer.
ABOUT GIOVANNI’S FISH MARKET
If you live on the California coast or have visited Morro Bay, perhaps you have stopped by Giovanni’s restaurant, a family-owned restaurant and online seafood distributor operating from the waterfront for the past 30 years. They work with over 100 local fishermen to provide premium catch that they then ship overnight across the US. If your order totals over $300, then shipping is free. Each item is flash frozen and ships with dry ice to lock in the flavor and nutrition.
THE SHOP
Giovanni’s online marketplace is straightforward and user-friendly. The most time-consuming part of the entire experience may just be narrowing down which seafood items you want to include in your next order. Since Giovanni’s fillets come in vacuum-sealed portions, they can be quickly frozen to use at a later date if in case you want to order in bulk or take advantage of the free shipping with large orders.
As you browse the website, you’ll come across a ton of choices: from oysters to shrimp, crab legs, halibut, wild salmon, abalone steaks, and more. There are also smoked fish options, salads, sauces, gift cards, and spices to choose from.
FISH SPECIALS
If you need help navigating or narrowing down the fresh seafood selections, visit their weekly specials to locate some good deals. Giovanni suggests their combo box, the Dock 2 Door box, which includes pounds of local line-caught Sablefish (Black Cod), California Halibut, Wild California King Salmon, local Pacific Red Snapper, and local trap caught cooked Rock Crab Claws. This impressive selection is made up of all wild, locally caught seafood unloaded directly onto Giovanni’s dock. I absolutely love the variety because that means more new recipes and taste profiles to create at home!
ORDER FRESH SEAFOOD ONLINE
I want this review to remove any uncertainty about ordering seafood online. Remember almost all of grocer’s seafood is frozen and then re-thawed for sale, so by getting a distributor delivery you are avoiding that extra and probably quality-diminishing step. Furthermore, Giovanni stands by his product and delivery: they operate under a 100% Customer Satisfaction Guarantee. After taking advantage of overnight shipping, I received a well-organized box containing an insulated Styrofoam cooler that was packed tightly with frozen gel packs and vacuum-sealed fillets.
SEAFOOD RECIPES AND PREPARATION
Giovanni has got you covered in terms of preparation options and delicious recipes. Even if you are not someone who cooks seafood frequently, Giovanni has collected a ton of recipes for all seafood types that are simple (sometimes!) to prepare, yet complex for the palette. There is some extra visual inspiration if you follow Giovanni on Instagram along with some shots of the food that he and his team prepare at his restaurant in Morro Bay.
Here are some of the ways we designed our Dock 2 Door seafood meals:
Halibut with Beurre Blanc Grapefruit Sauce, Mushrooms, Endives
I loved making this beurre blanc. It was so rich and decadent, and the zing of the fresh grapefruit elevated my other ingredients. I couldn’t find affordable endives, so I omitted that ingredient from the recipe. The small bones were easy to pick out of the flaky, delicious protein. I hadn’t tasted fish like this in months as I normally gravitate towards salmon, so I really appreciated the texture and luxurious butter sauce.
Crab Claws with Ratatouille and Fresh Corn on the Cob
Sometimes a day becomes all about the meal, and I love that! That’s how this brunch played out with our crab legs. I spent the morning preparing a ratatouille made with local tomatoes, garlic, zucchini, and onions. I paired it with sweet corn on the cob as a side dish. The star of the show was the Rock Crab claws. They were great dipped in melted grass-fed butter. We sat outside under a summer sky and had a daytime feast! The taste of fresh crabs brought Patrick and me back to our childhoods on the Chesapeake Bay.
Fried Snapper and Roasted Broccoli
We wanted to fry something from our haul and decided the snapper looked like the perfect candidate. Patrick breaded the fish with a gluten-free cornmeal base instead of flour and fried the snapper in a cast-iron skillet using grass-fed butter and coconut oil in place of vegetable oil. The fillets were pretty big, and I was able to eat the second half as leftovers the following day. The broccoli balanced the acidity of the meal and provided fiber to aid my digestion.
Asian Sablefish (Black Cod)
I wanted to riff off of Nobu’s Miso Black Cod, but I didn’t have any miso. During my pre-pandemic life, I would have just popped over to the grocer and grabbed some, but during quarantine, I had to weigh the importance of any trip rigorously. I chose to whip up a soy-sesame rub instead and baked the cod in the oven until flaky with a fork. We adored this meal. The fillet was 16 oz, and we split it into two. Once again, I couldn’t finish my half. It was a lot of fish. I think that 1 pound of fish can comfortably feed a group of 3, depending on what else is served at the meal.
Last but not least:
Pan-Seared Salmon
Pan-Seared Fresh Salmon
Well, I may be biased in this review because salmon is my absolute favorite fish. Giovanni’s fresh catch only reinforced my love. My version of pan-seared salmon inspired by Frank Prisinzano has become my favorite way to prepare it as of recent. Seasoned heavily with salt and pepper, then seared in a steaming hot pan with oil starting with the top of the fish. The taste is deep, unique, and satisfying with all of the healthy fats that salmon provides locked in.
I served the salmon with a few slices of veggies and an apple cider vinegar-based coleslaw on the side. I needed something light to balance the complexity of the fish.
FRESH FISH DELIVERY RECAP
If you are nervous about shipping seafood, don’t be. You are just skipping the middle man using Giovanni’s Fresh Market, so there are fewer chances of a processing problem. The package arrived on time, was completely cold, well-packaged, sealed, and tasted incredible. I am very impressed with the quality of each portion: really some good looking fillets. I also like the fact that their box encourages you to branch out from the regular old salmon and shrimp staples. Giovanni provides recipes that make trying something new easy. For most of us who have been cooking more than ever, their delivery of the gems of the Pacific Ocean is a perfect way to add more variety without doing a ton of research.
Whether you are ordering for one or 10, check out Giovanni’s Fish Market - and know that excellent health and convenience are only a few clicks away!
Use Coupon Code: INSTAGRAM to save 10% off your first order!
AHS was provided with complimentary products for testing and review purposes.
