John Yi Fish Market

My favorite fish market in the terminal. Extra fresh… and their crab claws are loaded with flavor I stop there every time!

Learning how to college in the east coast has been challenging for this California kid. I’m probably the person you’re laughing at with my puffy bright pink jacket on in 50 degree weather #NoShame (not that I’m trying to reinforce the stereotype… I just get cold easily). Besides the weather, the food is a whole other adjustment. Being raised by the sea and with cheap organic produce, I guess you could say I have pretty high standards for food. Now that winter is coming, I’ve been starting to feel a bit homesick and have turned to cooking my mom’s famous fish dishes to eat as I ‘Amazon Prime and chill’ alone all while simultaneously watching the Californian coastline via Surfline.
Enter John Yi Fish Market. Yes, I love the fish! I bought some salmon and cooked it right after purchasing. Sure, I overcooked the salmon a bit, BUT the fish tasted fresh and delicious! I loved how clean the shop front was and loved how fast the service was. The only thing is the price. I paid by credit card and remember distinctly the employee asking for a price under $ 15. However, while attempting to adult and pay off my credit card, I was surprised to see a charge for more than $ 17. Because I was in a hurry to catch the train, I didn’t ask for a receipt, so while I do feel I was overcharged, there is no way of proving it.
Would I come back? Probably. It is partly my fault for not asking for a receipt. I would just pay with cash instead. Despite the price issue, I will say that the fish is fresh and delicious – Just be wary if you are paying via credit card and ask for a receipt!

I walked around after eating looking for the place where many of my wonderful fellow Unilocalers marveled about. I wondered aimlessly from one fish place to another before I finally found this place. At each stop, I’d look at their fillets, the eyes of the fishes and smell the place. If I can smell you, I’m otta here.
As I mentioned, I finally came here and looked at the fillets. Oooohhh, nice and moist with a very nice sheen to them. «Look deeply into my eyes!» Oooooooo, clear! Very nice and healthy. Red eyes indicate the fish didn’t suffer trauma when dying. Sssssssnnnnnnniiiiffffffff, hmmmmm, no smell. Score! Took a look at where I was checked in at Unilocal and realized I’m standing at The Famous Johnny Yi’s fish. Eureka, I found it! Thank you my fellow Unilocalers. You were right. They do have the best fish! And now I have some squid!!! Score!!!

Anyone who knows me, no — Knows ME — knows I love seafood!
I made a bee-​line for John Yi when I got into Philly. This is a must! Rows and rows of fresh fish and all the seafood. LOVE!
Got some prawns, fish and crab for a bbq I was going to and I was not disappointed. I think I bit my own fingers scoffing the lot! Mmmm, mmmm, mmmm!
The nicest staff and they will filet your fish while you go off to shop around the Terminal… don’t worry, you’ll get a ticket to claim your delights on your return.
Treat yourself here!

Great selection of fish, but slightly disappointed (hence the 1 star down) that they only have salmon and tuna for sushi grade. Technically they also have tilapia, but who wants tilapia in their sushi? That being said, the sushi-​grade tuna and salmon are wonderful. The best deal here is by far and away the $ 4.99/lb chilean sea bass chunks, which are PERFECT for ceviche. The guys behind the counter are very nice and helpful. They answer all of your questions and don’t mind you being indecisive. They also remembered who I was and what I got 10 days before. Great place!

Since I’m a huge fan of this market I always make sure to stop here while in Philly. I was happy eating my fried mac & cheese ball when my boyfriend noticed someone eating a lobster. We were both intrigue by it and right away asked them where they got it. They pointed us to John Yi Fish, he made his way there and got us one. The lobster are $ 11.99 a lb, he asked for a small one that came out to $ 20. The lobster was delicious and really fresh if it wasn’t that we live so far I would have brought some home with me.

This is the only place that I buy my seafood from while I am in the Terminal. Their prices are always really good and they have a very nice clean looking set up, service is fast and friendly. I have never had any issues with the seafood that I have bought from here, I highly recommend it.

It’s true. Best fish at the Market. More expensive than the others, but so far, worth it. I’m down. $ 20 for three salmon fillets, only a few more bones than its competitors, but fresh and delicious.

I had bad luck with John Yi Fish Market. After reading some reviews, I thought it was a safe bet and ordered a cooked lobster to go. They told me it would take 20 minutes, but I thought it was because I was in a queue. I didn’t realize that they were going to bake it for 20 minutes. Seriously, it was the toughest lobster I have ever had. The claws were tough and dry like cardboard and I am not exaggerating. What a $ 21 disappointment! The raw fish looks good, so I think the only issue is their lobster abuse.

FRESH FISH, sugar dates and Pistachios! You want john yi’s to be a scene from Disney’s Aladdin, however a more subdued approach far from Pike Place Markets salmon slinging, this down home samuel and son’s purveyor provides quality if not at a bit of a price. I frequent their selection of whole fish ready to be cleaned and pan dressed, among my usuals are Porgy, Perch, wild Striped Bass, Bluefish, and Spanish/​King Mackerel. All local, but they do carry a wide range of pacific, north atlantic and Farm varieties. I cant rate this establishment 5 stars only because, a vast majority of their stock seems to be «Seconds». For the Fresh face of fish i will still make the Journey to Dickenson and 13^th for Ippolitos, the retail vestment of Samuels and Son.

John Yi has been my go-​to fish stop in Reading Terminal for years. They have a decent selection and good prices, but more importantly, they have a knowledgeable and friendly staff. Knowledgeable enough, for example, to prevent an innocent from serving large portions of escolar to dinner party guests.
I regularly cook a pretty wide variety of seafood (salmon, tilapia, basa, trout, scrod, sea bass, freshwater bass, shellfish, etc.), and have never been truly disappointed in the quality of anything from John Yi. They are not perfect — sometimes there are bones, sometimes they try to give you a sadly cut filet — so it is wise to keep an eye on which pieces are being selected for you. Fortunately, the staff does not seem to mind if customers are picky. Additionally, they always offer to pack things in ice, which is a nice touch.
One of my favorite item to keep an eye out for at John Yi are the Chilean sea bass chunks. Some days, these trimmings leftover from cutting the filets and steaks could count as filets themselves. They are an absolute steal at less than half the usual price, and help alleviate some of my seabass sustainability guilt since those particular bass had already been fished anyway…

Wow– very surprised by the quality of the seafood here!
As someone who grew up between Boston and SF– I am a certified seafood snob. They offer a wide variety of seafood and the prices are excellent (you never want cheap seafood!). Definitely a go-​to and a no-​brainer if you’re cookin’ up some seafood.

John Yi’s in Reading Terminal is without a doubt the best fish market in Center City, but I have reservations about calling it the best fish market in all of Philadelphia. They have a wide selection of wild caught fish, as well as live wild caught lobster, but the overwhelming selection of their fish is farm raised or frozen (which is to be expected I guess). Whenever I’m in Reading Terminal (2 – 3 times a week) I always stop by to see what specials they have going on, and what «seasonal catch» they have featured, and usually end up making a purchase about once a week. My favorite items to purchase are the wild caught large shrimp, wild live lobster, mussels, and tilapia. I shy away from purchasing salmon from here because it looks as if it’s been frozen for quite some time and may even have dyes added (fun fact: a lot of Salmon sold in America has dyes added to make it look more pink and «fresh»).
Prices are fair, the employees are all extremely knowledgeable, and the wait at the counter is very minimal even when they are busy. On a few occasions I have told them how I planned on preparing the fish and how many people I needed to serve and each time they were able to recommend the perfect type of fish and quantity to buy, a trait I definitely value in fish mongers.
If you find yourself in Reading Terminal stop by, it won’t take much time out of your day and you never know what you’ll find.

Holy Macakarel! John Yi’s Fish Market is my favorite fish monger in all of Reading Terminal Market. Great prices on incredibly fresh seafood and a selection that makes me weep– and I live in California! The close proximity to places like Maine and Maryland mean crab cakes and other such eastern delicacies are at the ready for prices we can only dream about on the West Coast. On my last particular visit, their 11.99/lb. baccala was on my mind. A staple in many European countries, and something that is just so luxurious and easy to work with– dry salted cod sounds simple, but is both easy to mess up (in terms of quality) and difficult to find. Two generous slabs ran just above a pound and travels well. A must-​try for seafood lovers.

Just OK. Sorry — folks — but I am not 100% sure of the sourcing here (much is farmed, and frozen — as with most fish in the US.)
They do have fair prices and a good selection, but aside from Shrimp — I rarely buy my fin-​fare here. I get salmon from a CSA and other fish from other places.
I would never get my salmon here. It is not from a sustainable source.
Sorry to rain on everyone’s parade.

This is hands down my favorite fish market in the city, and most definetly the best one inside the reading terminal.
The fish is always fresh, and they have a big selection. The service is fantastic as well, all of the staff is very friendly and helpful.
I go here to buy ahi tuna to make sushi with, and it has always been clean crisp and fresh, exactly what I am looking for in a piece of tuna.
They also have a nice selection of different sizes and kinds of shrimp. They even have those crab claws with the black tips, I forget what city they are from, but I haven’t seen them around to much.
If you’ve got a craving for some fish, then John Yi has the cure for you!

Made my first visit to John Yi last week based on Unilocal reviews. The shrimp I purchased was fantastic. I wish I could say the same for the salmon I purchased.
I was in line getting behind a couple who were taking quite a while to get their fish. I was getting a bit impatient with them because they kept asking the person behind the counter to get them another piece of salmon from the bottom of the pile. Now I know why! The piece I received — which unfortunately I didn’t notice until I took the fish out to cook it — was a tail piece, only about ²⁄₃ of which was actual meat. It was filleted so thin and so close to the end that a significant portion was just skin. In addition, there were a still a LOT of bones in it.
Based on the shrimp I purchased and other reviews here, I will definitely give them another try, but I will make sure I either choose my own piece or watch closely when they choose one.

A great fish place with an great selection, ok prices and nice service. I stop here usually once a week to grab fish for dinner. I often get the salmon and just spray it with oil and dip in a bath of panko and bake. On a few occasions I’ve picked up their Chilean sea bass chunks and pretty much do a similar method.
Of all the fish places in Reading Terminal, this is easily my favorite.

This is definitely the place to buy fish in the Reading Terminal Market. It’s very fresh and they have a nice selection. I bought some Escolar (butterfish) here one day, cooked it up with some garlic, herbs, and a little butter, and it was probably the best thing I’ve ever eaten. Even though they are a little on the pricey side, they are a ton more reasonable than, let’s say, Whole Foods, whose selection sucks and prices are out of this world.

Great fish mongers! They have some of the freshest fish around, but are a little pricey! Still, their scallops, orange roughy, haddock, and talipia are among my favorites. They’re also willing to share new recipes and ways to cook the fish!