The Tides Wharf Fish Market

We only went here because the fish market at the Fishetarian was closed. My wife and I thought it was over priced and the four scallops we bought did not taste fresh, and they were $ 22 a pound. When I tried to get a refund, they said that since I didn’t bring the scallops back (after we had cooked them and ate a bite or two) they would not give me a refund. The salmon and shrimp were good, but the spoiled scallops and no refund ruined the experience for us, hence the two stars.

After passing the Tides due to listening to Google map directions which sent us about ½ mile further down the road, we quickly got ourselves corrected and back to their parking lot. if we hadn’t been preoccupied with talking and listening to the directions ver batim, we would have easily found. our bad!
We were on our way to Hog’s Island Oysters to grill up some of those spectacular babies and knew I wanted to take advantage of the fire to widen our menu. Delia behind the counter helped me out with some HUGE prawns and diver scallops. She also convinced me to try the calamari steaks. I had never cooked these before (used to the little ringlets, fried), so was a bit unsure but went for it. So Glad I did.
Not so sure about all the other negative posts. At least from the Seafood and Bakery dept., the product and service was spot on.
After getting some of the essential items we needed back in Guerneville, this was a great place to get fresh seafood!

Boo! Next time I expect fish this bad I’ll shop at grocery outlet. It probably would be better. The star was for an OK boiled crab that rescued the dinner from total failure. Usually we shop at Costco so I’m used to getting pretty decent products.

The ATM machine did not correctly dispense funds to me. My bank texts me whenever a transaction goes through on my account. I asked for help sorting out why my bank said I was given and debited $ 40.00 plus the $ 3.00 ATM fee when the machine itself spit me out a receipt saying ERROR and showing no money was given. The general manager Carlo came out opened the machine and told me it was not his problem, I attempted to show him both my bank correspondence and the receipt. He said,” Nothing is stuck here. If you didn’t get money it’s probably because you have none. Talk to your bank. It’s not my problem.” I both live and own a business in Bodega Bay. If he treats a local this way, I’d be afraid to see how he treats a visitor to our lovely little town.

I stopped by for a crab cocktail to take to the beach and it was awful. Really fishy but even the parts that were definitely crab didn’t taste fresh and good.

This review is for the fish market. My wife and I are locals. I won’t go anywhere else to buy fish in the village. The staff are very friendly and helpful. I always ask what’s locally caught, but most items are well identified as to source and freshness. The prices are very reasonable if you compare to the good markets in Petaluma or Santa Rosa and the quality is top notch. Going earlier in the day is better than later. And the bread that they get from town is always excellent.
One thing that this shop is not — it is not a grocery store. I’ve seen reviews here from people complaining that they don’t have this and they don’t have that. What they do have is plenty of gourmet stuff that they sell to the tourists and visitors. If you needed something that you forgot from home and they don’t have it, deal with it. You’re 30 miles from civilization. What do you expect to find out here, a Safeway?

I’ve seen some poor reviews, in the past and have been remiss in not sharing our experience. We live in the SF Bay Area and head up to Jenner, Timber Cover, Bodega Bay a few times a year to spend a long weekend. We always stop at the Tides Wharf Fish Market to pick up fresh seafood, preferably fresh crab. It is amazing stuff. Usually we stop on the way up, for crab or seafood to prepare at the rental home we stay in, and on our way back to our residence, stop again for more! I would say 90% of the time we have had great service at the Fish Market. You know, a smile goes a long way (to the patrons)…I’ve seen some interesting patrons come in and bark orders at the helpk behind the counter. Well, if I were treated that way, may not always provide the best service. Try a smile. Try being friendly to others, and maybe you will receive it in return? Works for us at the market. :)
I think the prices are on the higher side, but choose to buy cracked and cleaned crab. Honestly, the food never disappoints!

BAD OYSTERS!!! I can’t express enough how upset I am with this fish market. It’s a tourist trap. 3 out of 4 times oysters were open and had cracked shells with a horrible smell. I picked up a couple dozen and got them home to my surprise were bad. Called the manager to complain and he was less than helpful, had an attitude. Drove the oysters all the way back for refund and he wouldn’t give me my money back because I lost my receipt. With the label with price and date right on the package. I was leaving to go out of town that day so took a «oyster credit» for when I get back. NOW I HAVE TO DRIVE BACK A THIRD TIME to get my $ 30 worth of skunky oysters. It would be best if the manager took pride in his product and not argue. He needs to train his young and inexperienced staff how to tell if their products are fresh and edible. FRESH FISH DOESN’T SMELL LIKE $#!T! WHAT A WASTE OF MY TIME AND MONEY. CHECK YOUR FISH BEFORE YOU DRIVE IT HOME OR YOUR WASTING YOUR MONEY!

Thanks to Unilocal,I knew that the Fish and Chips was a generous plate. A cup of Chowder, Fish and Chips, and a single beer left me satisfied. It was difficult to tell the waiter «no thanks» when he offered Apple Pie. But I had to. Great time. Can’t believe the negative reviews. Where the hell were you?

Hard to believe you can’t get good local fish at Bodega Bay. My theory is that tourist towns (like where I live) don’t expect repeat business and are not motivated to provide a good consistent product. They just want to get you in the door, make a sale, and if you are not happy it doesn’t matter, you wouldn’t be coming back anyway.
Same here. Only three items were locally caught. We bought the rock fish, weren’t ask which filets we wanted, and once I stopped ordering the gal behind the counter went back to talking in Spanish to here coworkers. No thank you, goodbye, or even buzz off. The fish was ok. The smoked salmon, which we have purchased here before was pricey $ 20/​lb, but excellent. Skip the restaurant (which is overpriced with poor service) and stick with the smoke salmon. Try Spuds accross the bay for fresh crab cook live in front of you for a buck less a pound. You won’t get a smile there either, but at least the crab is worth suffering the indifferent service!

The BF & I took the dogs out to Doran & decided to stop by & pick up some crab & mussels… bad idea! We got home & out of the pound of mussells we bought, only 5 were good. The rest were all spoiled & opened. We called & of course the rude bitch that answered the phone (was probably the same rude bitch that helped us while we were there) said we could bring them back, «but only if you have the receipt». FU Tides Wharf Fish Market!!! Why can’t you give negative stars on this thing???

Made a stop here while staying in Bodega Bay for the week. We wanted to pick up some brews, but when we saw some of the prices we opted to go elsewhere. There is a deli here, but be aware that the items here are a bit pricey (they looked good and locally harvested, but were pricey). If you don’t feel like traveling a bit, this market is an option for provisions.

We were looking for a place to grab a drink and some apps while camping at Bodega Bay. We walked in, sat down, then decided to leave. The bar area was enclosed in a weird space… the place had a cafeteria feel.
Didn’t try the food. Rating is based on atmosphere only. Blech.

What’s with the weiner dude attitude? I have no idea, but they always seemed a little freaked that me and my pinoy posse would roll through begging for oysters.
The oysters, well, they seemed good enough for my peeps. The store carries rather limited supplies of everything, to be honest, but if you’re hankering for some vino, if you were left with this choice, you’d be okay.
It’s a ghetto dean and de luca’s wannabe in BFBodega Bay, but it serves its purpose. I’d rather go to Diekmanns!

We had to stop here a couple of times this weekend as we were staying in the area.
1. needed parmesan for alfredo sauce. The Tides didn’t have it. But had every other type of cheese you can think of.
2. Needed lots of ice. I walked in and asked how much they charge for a bag of ice. They said, ‘$ 1.75′. I asked for 15 bags, they said they prefer to only to sell 2 – 3 at a time per customer because they hand scoop every bag. They ended up hand scooping 15 bags for me. I guess my ‘WTF?!?’ expression lead them to the ice machine The staff began saying some not so nice things about me in Spanish… come on, I’m not an idiot. I do understand some Spanish. When I was obviously listening to them… they stopped. After I paid, I said, ‘muchas gracias’.
There aren’t too many stores in Bodega Bay so you have to choose wisely. I brought home some really good smoked salmon from the Tides. It was a very clean shop. Very nice selection of wines. But no parmesan. 3 stars. But the whole language thing ticked me off. Minus one star for that.