Meet Our Fishmongers
The Fulton Fish Market is a co-op made up of over 25 companies that have been in the seafood business for generations. The full list of vendors can be found here. With tens of thousands of years of combined experience, it's no wonder we are the go-to destination for seafood! Meet some of our fishmongers and learn more about the men and women that make it all happen...
Blue Ribbon Fish Company
Blue Ribbon, led by Bobby Weiss and David Samuels, is a renowned wholesaler at Fulton Fish Market that has been in business for over 100 years, supplying top chefs in the Northeast. Their no-nonsense, high-integrity approach to business earned them respect, and they gained their "fame" after supporting Gilbert Le Coze, founder of Le Bernardin, in achieving success by supplying him with the highest quality seafood. Today, famous chefs continue to visit the market to visit David, showcasing the lasting impact of Blue Ribbon's commitment to quality fish.
Caleb Haley & Co., LLC
Caleb Haley has been in the Fulton Fish Market since 1859, importing seafood from all over the world to bring us the best fish available. We work directly with their specialist, Patty Dukes, who has been in the market since 1977, to buy seafood all sourced locally, directly from boats on Long Island. The fish are so fresh, that they are still in rigor mortis when they arrive!
Emerald Seafood
Emerald Seafood was started in 1989 by brothers Tom and John Flanigan. The idea that two Irish brothers had the courage to start a wholesale business in the Fulton Fish Market at a time when competition was as plentiful as the fish being sold is something right out of a Hollywood movie. The quality of the fish that Emerald sells is something to be seen. Tom has a seat on the Portland Fish Exchange and has an endless supply of the freshest seafood on earth. Tom is your quintessential Fulton Fish Market character. Let's just say you don't want to get on his bad side. One of the most fair and honest people in the Market, Tom demands respect at all times. His dedication to building his business to what it is today is realized throughout the industry. Tom's work ethic and dedication are nothing short of spectacular. He demands the best out of his employees and treats them as equals. On any given day at Emerald, it's like a television show; until recently, you'd have Joey Tuna telling questionable fictitious stories of days gone by. Joey Tuna recently retired after 50 years of talking about retiring. The Donohue family also work at Emerald and are always good for a laugh or to talk about what fish they had for dinner. Joe Halibut, who I'm sure you can guess what he sells, is another fixture who loves catching up and talking about all different creative recipes.
Frank W. Wilkisson Inc.
Started in the early 1900s, Frank W. Wilkisson is one of the oldest family-run vendors in the Market. Frank began working in the Market at a very young age and worked closely with future New York Governor and Presidential hopeful, Al Smith. For more than a century, the business has been selling everything the ocean has to offer. They were some of the earliest importers of Japanese products, as well as being one of the first companies to introduce gulf shrimp into the NY Market. Today, Jamie and her brother Keith Wilkisson run the family business. Keith, who is a master at selling large quantities of fish quickly, is a man of few words when you first meet him, but over time, he softens up and is always good for a laugh. If Keith didn’t get into the family business he could have made a living as a Bruce Willis impersonator. Jamie runs the books and isn't your typical Market character. She takes excellent care of herself and travels the world often. She's one of the most amazing people and always tells it like it is. Frank W. Wilkisson Inc. has been, and continues to be, one of the most fair and respected seafood suppliers.
Montauk Seafood Co., Inc.
Dennis Scheider is a great guy with a heart of gold. Dennis, whose dad "Tiny" started the business way back when, are salt of the earth people. Don't let the Tiny nickname fool you. They are both giant people pushing 7ft tall. They specialize in selling shellfish and run a great business serving the most prestigious restaurants with the highest quality products. Montauk is also known to sell several unique products like live uni, Florida Stone Crab Claws, Nantucket, and Peconic Bay Scallops, to name a few. Tiny retired years ago but comes to the Market around Christmas to see his old friends and brings homemade cookies for everyone. Dennis had an older brother, Ricky, who passed away a few years ago. Ricky was one of the kindest characters in the Market and was always good for a laugh. It was a rough time for everyone in the Market when Ricky passed, and even today, years later, it's not the same when stopping by Montauk for breakfast oysters. The two brothers were as close as could be and did everything together.
Mt. Sinai Fish Inc.
As the profile of the modern-day consumer continues to morph at lightning speeds, it is rare to have the pleasure of doing business with a company that has six generations of hard work and testimony under its belt. We are happy to have the ability to offer our customers the products that come from a tried-and-true business that is, in fact, in its 6th generation of success and growth - Meet Mt. Sinai Fish, Inc. The company was started in 1992 with a boat named Jim Buoy, an appreciation for local fish, and a passion for getting it fresh to its customers. Generation after generation, the Sciabarra family spent their days fishing the cool Montauk, NY waters, which are robust with squid, fluke, whiting, porgy, striped bass, black sea bass, monkfish, and more.
With generations of first-hand experience as fishermen, a consistently sought-after product, and a strong customer base, it was easy for the late Joe Sciabarra, 5th generation, to take Mt. Sinai to the next level and become a wholesaler within the Fulton Fish Market. With the new venture, the product they personally caught for so many years could now be offered directly to buyers from the Sciabarra family members themselves. The family's continued passion for the flavors of the Montauk waters and their dedication to offering their customers the freshest product gave way to unrivaled success in their wholesale efforts, and a 6th generation was born. Today Michael Sciabarra carries on his family’s business and still deals with the same suppliers from 30 years ago.
If you’re looking for a nice customer experience shopping the stand at Mt. Sinai you’re lost and should not take anything said to you personally. We’ve all heard of the Soup Nazi… well let me tell you, Michael makes him look like a teddy bear. Michael marches to the beat of his own drum. “Listen, kid, when you sell fish as fresh as mine, I can do or say anything I want. They’ll be back. Nobody has fresher fish than me!”
Whereas most of our seafood suppliers procure fish from all over the world, Mt. Sinai specializes in local fish caught within 100 miles of the Fulton Fish Market. The quality of the fish sold by Mt. Sinai is as clear as the freshness in the fish’s eyes. Even someone with zero seafood knowledge can walk by their fish on display and immediately know that they’re in the presence of some of the freshest fish in the world. Sadly, Joe Sciabarra passed away in 2020, but the standards he set for his quality will never disappear.
Third Generation Seafood
Forget about who's got milk, and let's talk about "Who's Got Tuna"! Third Generation Seafood, started 30 years ago by Richie Klein, is doing exactly what it started out to do! What's that you ask? By supplying some of the most renowned establishments in the Northeast with the best quality tuna sourced from all over the world. Richie was born into the fish business. For as long as he can remember, he's been selling fish in the iconic Fulton Fish Market. Richie began working in the Market at the age of 15 years old. In his early years, he got to learn the ins and outs of the seafood industry. Coming to work in the dead of night and not leaving until the sun began to creep up from under the Brooklyn Bridge. Richie honed his skills and learned the ins and outs of supply and demand.
Richie always knew that he would start his own business but wasn't sure when that might be. One day, Richie's wife informed him that he was to be a father for the first time. Upon hearing the news, Richie knew that now was the time for him to open up his own shop. Being that he was already a Third Generation Fulton Fish Market fishmonger, Richie decided to call his new venture Third Generation Seafood. His main goals were to specialize in sourcing and selling the world's best tuna and specialize in a full line of the highest quality Japanese specialty items to meet the ever-growing sushi market in the US.
Richie had some luck in those early days by surrounding himself with extremely knowledgeable, out-of-the-box thinkers who are still with him today. Richie and Tony (Japanese Specialty & Tuna expert) would regularly fly down to Central and South America to source their tuna straight from the boats, cutting out any middleman in their way. Third Generation grew fast and developed a reputation of being one of the best tuna suppliers in the country. In an ever-changing world, one thing that Richie is proud of is his staff. A little more than 50% of Third Generation’s staff has been with the company since its humble beginning. A testament to the family-like atmosphere Richie has developed within his company. Even to this day, Richie still deals with most of the original suppliers that he met upon launching his business.
Today's Third Generation operates like a well-oiled machine. A show of how much time has passed since Third Generation opened, Richie's son, Nicky, joined the family business a few years back and was thrown straight into the driver's seat. Third Generation came full circle in the past 30 years to the point where they now look to have the Fourth Generation lead them into the new frontier.
We caught up with Nicky and talked about business, family, what mom is cooking, and more. The amount of pride that Nicky has for the business that his father built can't be described in words. The reason for Richie to start his business is now the reason for him to sit back and take a breather and watch his boy Nicky take the reins. Nicky told me that today they're buying fish from 15 different US states and 25-30 different countries every day, a logistical feat, to say the least.
I asked Nicky why should people buy their fish from Fulton. (This made me smile) He said, “Look, there are companies out there touting that they have 30-50 years of combined experience in their industry, and that's great. Here in the Fulton Fish Market, if you add up everyone's combined experience, I'd bet we're hovering around 50,000 years!” We sell fish that are alive, dying, and dead. Nowhere on earth can you find a one-stop shop like ours. No one can compete with us; we are the best. We know that we're the best; everyone else knows that we're the best.
What's Momma Klein cooking? Nicky said his Mom's go-to dish is pasta with crab red sauce! Mrs. Klein makes her big pot of homemade red sauce and adds female Maryland crabmeat into it. She cuts the live female crabs in half and scoops all their meat into the sauce. She says the female Maryland crabs are the way to go for this because of their sweeter taste. She said that the females taste better because they're filled with little orange eggs that make the crabmeat more desirable. Although Mrs. Klein doesn't incorporate the eggs into her own sauce, she said that many Italians throw them in the sauce, but that's not for her. When she's not in the kitchen whipping up her sauce, she enjoys a nice simple fillet or two of branzino - a little oil, lemon, a few seasonings, and voilà!