Municipal Fish Market at The Wharf

Lively environment. They now have standing tables to eat at, which is convenient due its environment and location Seafood is a hit or miss.Service is also a hit or missI like it when it had more vendors.

Came here to the Municipal Fish Market at The Wharf -- AKA the DC Fish market, on Saturday afternoon.First time here. There's short term parking right outside for $8 for half an hour, which is crazy expensive, don't do that. I talked to the guy outside, he said there's a parking garage in two traffic lights for the Wharf where they validate parking, and it's ends up being $2, a lot cheaper. Thanked him and went straight, and then took a right at the sign (see attached photo). The garage rates say $6 for an hour, but ignore that price as that is w/o validation. Went inside and parked in a fuel efficient only / low emission spot, because I drive an EV which does not even take fuel, so it seemed to check all the boxes. Anyway you can walk and take the elevator where the sign says it goes up to The Fish Market at Wharf. There once you are done with shopping, the person sitting behind a desk will validate your parking, and it will be $2 for a max limit of an hour. So, don't dally too long.I have also included photos of the fresh fish they have. They have a wide selection and most seem decently priced. Be aware that lot of fish such as Mackerel seem to be boned, but boneless is only available as filets which is on the right side, near shrimp and crab section. These are not shown in the photos, but the filets are at the bottom shelf, easy to miss if you are just skimming it.I ended up getting the rainbow trout and sockeye salmon filets after much deliberation. They were pretty decently priced. I think around $9/LB for the trout and $23/LB for the salmon, or something like that. I got 0.7 LB of the trout and 0.9 LB of the salmon, for a little under $30. Not too shabby.So anyway, I got the fish and checked out w/ Apple Pay. I made sure they packed ice and double wrapped it, as I was driving an hour back home. I will adjust the rating once I try the fish and taste it. As it is, I'm rating down due to a little confusion on my part, trouble deciding, and also the parking which was a stressful factor and which was not free. Street parking was free and was suggested, but the one right outside the Wharf is illegal parking and tickets can be given. So overall for my first time experience at the Wharf, $2 for parking w/ validation is not bad, however as mentioned rating down due to stress involved, and will adjust review once I have tasted the fish (filets) that I got.

Still a great fish market! I always make the drive to come here. This time picked up some snow crab legs! If you're getting close to 5lbs of snow crab legs, it's better to buy the lb box for $69. Cooked them myself at home since I heard negative reviews about the other side swapping out peoples food. If you are cooking at home, they give you a huge seasoning packet for the crabs! But a little goes a long way lol.

Don't get the lobster! It's overcooked and they sell you a butter sauce that tastes like plastic. I thought "hey cheap seafood shouldn't be that bad". I was wrong..Maybe if you dress it up at home the food might be decent but for eating on the go, I wouldn't recommend this place.

Fresh fresh fresh fresh fresh fresh, ohhh ah I buy from the left side if I wanna eat now. I got to the left side fresh fresh fresh fresh guess I pick this fresh fresh and the other fresh. They take boil, steam, or fry. Bend reach take. Bend reach pay. Walk sit open eat yummmmmmmmm. Very dirty hands, walk to bathroom while avoiding hands with anything. Clean clean and another great experience at the wharf

We ordered: 1. fried fish (redsnapper) platter with coleslaw and sweet potato fries, 2. fried oysters with coleslaw and fries, 3. spicy large shrimp (steamed), 4. non-spicy medium shrimp (steamed).The sides were all delicious, and in fact, the best part of the meal. The redsnapper was chewy and tasted overcooked (or fried multiple times). The oysters tasted like it had too much flour. Steamed shrimp was alright. But all of the dishes were too salty for our palate. I recommend skipping the deep fried stuff.

Was a great experience got the crab steamed fresh. It was recommended from someone standing out there! I'm from New York so this made me very happy!!!! My daughter and I chowed down she had a lemonade and I had a strawberry daiquiri from near by spots!!! Sooooo amazing

Loved the Clam Chowder, highly recommended. Didn't like the taste of shrimp but they were fresh. Wished it was cooked simply with butter and garlic. The scallops were fried to perfection but lacked taste. We had to bring the cooked food to our hotel. Think it'll help if the place has a roofed area with tables and benches where you can dine comfortably..... similar to San Pedro fresh market in Los Angeles.

Pro: Fresh, variety selections, fast purchase services, one of the stands do offer steam service, area is very open, and they tried to keep the place as clean as they can; a beautiful area to walk around. Con: no more benches for customers to sit and eat, long line for steamed seafood service, limited parking options and not cheap.

We ordered the fried fish (whiting) sandwiches. $40 for two of the worst fish sandwiches we've ever had. Two VERY overcooked, dried out fillets, served with two slices of bread and an anemic slice of tomato. Barely edible.