Isaacson & Stein Fish Company

If you want fresh and affordable fish come here. I always ask what is sashimi grade and they always point me in the right direction. I have used their fish for tuna tartar, ceviche, grilling, sushi, ect and I have never had a single complaint about the quality. It does smell a bit when you walk in but the fish is definitely super fresh and affordable. If you are looking for a specific cut you should call ahead as I have been let down twice when looking for ahi tuna.

I do like this place if I’m in the area. They always have something I want. You can ask them for cut your fish up a little or descale it after you’ve paid for it.

The best damn fresh fish in the city. They have everything except live crabs, which you could easily get in Chinatown. The selection & service is always worth it. If you have ever eaten at a fancy seafood restaurant in Chicago, chances are they bought your meal here before they prepared it for you. Check out the seasonal shellfish and fresh fish specials.

Wow, what an awesome place!
We needed some Chilean sea bass for our Christmas dinner and due to questionable quality and general unavailability at our supermarkets, a cousin recommended we make the trek up to the West Loop to check out Isaacson’s.
This, friends, is a real-​deal no-​BS fishmonger. Put the gloves on, grab a bag, and help yourself. Then, weigh and price everything at the scale, receive a ticket, pay at the window, and you’re on your way!
The selection is vast. Everything from frozen to as fresh as can be. They have fish from all over the world, some you may have never heard of before. We were not only able to find the exact fish we needed, but watched as it was filleted moments before being put out for sale.
The entire process you really have to appreciate. It seems like today’s consumers are separated from the sourcing and suppliers of their foodstuffs, but Isaacson’s bridges the gap between the two, creating a no-​nonsense fish market that people like myself come all the way from the suburbs for.
Not to mention, the employees are friendly, helpful and patient. The prices are also pretty good, just from some quick price comparisons we did while we were inside.
There needs to be more places like Isaacson’s!

Still great, still fresh, like me!
Since my last review, I have been eating more fish. There are fewer places to buy fish (the other big chain place that starts with M).
Selection, cuts, service, freshness, all downtown — this is what I like and prefer. See my other earlier review — it pretty much sums it up.

Great selection of fresh seafood and fish. I will definitely be going back. Got the Chilean Sea Bass and Colossal Shrimp, can’t wait to cook them up today.

Great place, picked up some sashimi grade Tuna here, $ 19.99/lb. Made an incredle tar tar dish with it. The place is pretty standard. Walk in, huge tubs of fish in an assembly line, grab your gloves and a bag, walk up, pick out the piece (s) that you like, bag it, then take it to the counter to price, then to the register to cash out. I mean if you want to have samples of wheat grass shooters, someone in a hemp skirt and dreadlocks assisting you and walking you through the sustainability and foot print of each fish, which by the way there’s nothing wrong with, I’d like that lol, but you’d be better served at whole foods, this place is just fish and shellfish, ZERO frills, but it was really good stuff in my opinion, do yourself a favor…

Freshiest Fishiest place around. Fab selection of everything. A gem, will be going back for sure!

I’d best describe my first visit to Isaacson & Stein’s fishery akin to my first time pumping gas in New Jersey. Oh wait– that’s right, you DON’T pump your own gas in New Jersey. It’s ILLEGAL. You park there with your window slightly drawn as you mutter what you want and the attendant dutifully scrambles to and fro from the pump machine to your car. If he/she’s in a pleasant mood, they’ll maybe go the extra mile and wipe your windshield and crack a smile as you hand them your monies. While I’m not going to get into the politics, it was that experience which left me with a bigger apprecation for self service. Here at Isaacson & Stein’s, I… was…liberated. At first I didn’t know what to do with myself, staring into the rows upon rows of fish piles. I looked around to see if there was someone cloaked in an apron to assist with the handling. Nope, based on social cues I was to glove-​up and grab a bag. There’s a station if you need further «primping», a station for weighing, and then a window for paying. I ended up getting a large fish head for less than $ 2 and a halibut filet. The total cost was less than the usual filets of wild caught B.S. I’d usually shell out for at «Whole Paycheck». While there are certain things I’ll still get at Whole Foods, I’m leaving the seafaring to Isaacson & Stein!

I LOVE THIS PLACE! We’ve gone there quite a few times and I never leave disappointed. The staff is very helpful, the prices are good, and the seafood… oh, the seafood! If you like the sea creatures, do yourself a favor and go here ASAP!

This is the best fish market in Chicago and it’s not even close.
Grabbed a 3 pound bag of the peeled and deveined 12 count shrimp and a pound of the Chilean Sea Bass.
The shrimp were awesome and the Sea Bass was one of the best cuts of fish I’ve ever had.
Can’t wait to go back.

This place has the best sea food in Chicago — uncontested. The sea bass and cod there are incredible, and prices are very reasonable. The sea bass here is better than anywhere I’ve ordered in the city. Definitely a fun time to throw on some gloves and pick out some fresh fish!

Luv the place. Trust me, walk into this place on a Saturday morning before having a Cup of Coffee, take a deep breath and once you get a solid whiff of that Fish Market Aroma — WHEW, you won’t need a cup of coffee or anything at all. :)
The place is GREAT. Came here a few times with my mom as a kid and now in my mid 40’s continue to shop here when I’m looking for Freshest and or Hard to find Seafood in town. Arguably the largest selection in the Chicago area. Want Nigerian Shrimp (PRAWNS), Baby Octopus, Calamari, Chilean Sea Bass and more this place has it and the price are very reasonable. Definitely worth the trip. Yes, they’ll clean your fish after you’ve purchased and will answer questions you have about your selection. These are the guys supplying many of the top restaurants in and around Chicago and have been for decades. Give them your business and you won’t be disappointed.

Really a nice place! I am just sad that it took me 4 years in Chicago to find out this place. There is a lot of variety of fish and seafood. You are definitely going to find something that you like as long as you eat fish.
The prices are decent especially given that we are quite far from the coast.

Love this place. I go in here and want to BUY ALL THE FISH!!! I don’t but it’s something that has a strong potential to happen.
Anyhow, got some scallops from here and they were super fresh. I still needed to rinse them and they still had a slight metallic taste but for the price they were great.
Last time I got baby octopus. Two small ones were five bucks and I consider this an absolute steal since one at a restaurant is usually $ 15 or more. Really fresh tasting and tasted amazing cooked.
I also got some black cod — If you haven’t had black cod you have no idea what you’re missing. It’s a tad expensive ($ 23/​pound) but it’s so worth it. They have bigger pieces here and you will think you won’t need it but trust me, you do. Get it and cook it and then let it melt in your mouth and realize you did need those bigger pieces and you’ll probably get 2 pounds next time!
I love this fish store and the prices are A-​OK considering the quality and selection you get.

Went here for our NY eve dinner prep.
WHOA, its busy… like really, really busy.
They have a HUGE selection of seafood. Be prepared to reek of fish.duh.
They have plastic gloves to be able to scoop up whatever you want.
Two separate lines… one to weigh and one to pay.
Have to spend over $ 100 for credit card… however, its pretty easy to do here.
Parking…plan on getting lucky and getting one of the 5 spots in front… OR slap on your hazards in the street like every other Chicagoan.

Fresh fish, great prices!
I went last Saturday with my family to check the place out.
You put on plastic gloves and get to pick out your own fish. No more glancing behind display glass checking out if the fish’s eyes are fresh or not.
We bought a whole pound of Chilean Sea bass, 5 mackerels, 1 huge Spanish mackerel, squid and oysters. All for the very reasonable price of 67 dollars.
I am definitely coming back here again!

As a lifelong coastal resident, I have high expectations for seafood. I’ve been mostly sorely disappointed by the seafood selections and prices in the Midwest, but Isaacson and Stein is a bright spot in the otherwise lackluster seascape. I heard a rumor they supply some local sushi restaurants, though I admit I have no idea if that’s true. However I will say I have attended a sushi party made from fish purchased here and no one got sick (if you know what you’re doing with sushi, of course).
Prices here are pretty good; fish can be pricey, but it’s definitely a better deal than the grocery store or Eataly, and at least half of what you’d pay for it prepared in a restaurant, which would be the only other places I can think of that you could get similar products.
I’ve purchased: mussels, rainbow trout, salmon, shrimp, scallops, swordfish, catfish, red fish, blue fish, one fish, two fish. One time I woefully did not notice that the bass I purchased was not already gutted like some of the others and mangled it trying to do it at home, but if you pay attention, once you pay for your fish you can ask to have it cleaned and gutted for you I believe, or do it yourself there if you have the skill, which, sadly, I don’t…yet…
There are also lots of other fishies I haven’t yet had the opportunity or sense of adventure to try: snapper, octopus, clams, unrecognizeable fish, many fish, suffice to say. I wish they had slightly longer hours and were open on Sundays; it leaves me trying to schedule a Saturday morning fish market trip in all the time, but it’s worth making my schedule work to go here. Plus, in the nicer weather, there’s a farmer’s market in the lot across the street — 2 birds one stone!

Before I dive (HA!) on into what is Isaacson’s, I’ll start by explaining why it’s a 4 and not a 5. I bought mussels and clams… which are alive. I was not given any ice and they wrapped my products up and tied it so when I got home they were suffocated and not on ice so they started opening. Many of them were «dying» by the time I got home which pretty much sucked considering I took the subway and made the trip all of the way out here FOR the mussels. Maybe that’s my fault for assuming my bag was heavy due to the ice and I should have checked, but other reviewers mentioned ice in their bags so I didn’t think twice.
This is super close to the Grand blue line, now if you’re like me and you were considering the subway, yes it’s totally safe. I wasn’t familiar with the area, Google Maps says its just over a quarter of a mile and it was just that. You walk under the overpass, cross the bridge, and boom it’s right there to the right.
When you walk in, it’s very fishy. If you were me and just walked in was attacked by the smell and yielded right, you missed the bags and gloves. I read about the gloves, but I realized «hey. where the f are the gloves?» so I made a glove out of another bag and turns out the gloves are by the cash register near the shopping baskets. You’re welcome, I just saved you from looking as stupid as I did.
It’s about 3 rows of fresh seafood. For those who were interested in prices here are some I roughly remember:
No Chemical Scallops: 15.95/ lb
Shrimp: 19.95 or 9.95 the lb can’t remember the «Type» sorry!
Crab Legs: 12/​lb
Clams the HUGE scary ones are 50 cents a piece and the Golden Neck Ones are $ 3.95/lb
Mussels 3.95/lb
Buffalo Fish 1.85/lb
Baby Octopus from Spain was $ 7.95/lb
The «full grown» octopus is $ 4.50/lb
Squid $ 3.95/ lb
The floors were soaked in water, kind of tight in here and there’s guys running around with hoses and mops so it can get kind of tight and awkward. Make sure you ask for ice with your purchase. The people otherwise are nice. And yes, my mussels I purchased from here were far superior than the ones I had been getting at my grocer.

Can you spell FISH? Well this is the place where you can smell it, and not in a bad way. So much fresh fish and seafood you can eat something different every day. It all is so fresh you can still smell the ocean. Giant tank with lobster and a huge freezer with frozen varieties of crab, shrimp and almost anything else you could think of. There’s people to clean and cut your fish however you want it. They even have bones and heads for a stock or soup. Reasonable pricing with a helpful staff. According to one of the attendants the variety is constantly rotating dependant on what’s in season. They carry farmed and wild varieties. The even had mussles, clams, and oysters.
Highly recommended unless your squimish.