Sydney Fish Market Delight

They say you have not really sampled all that Sydney has to offer if you have not gone to Sydney Fish Market (SFM). Touted to be the largest of its kind in the southern hemisphere, and the world’s second largest in terms of variety outside of Japan, it is supposedly the place to see some interesting ‘fish’ scene and also to sample some of Mother Nature’s delicious creation. The Sydney Fish Market has a widest selection of fresh seafood, where one can find anything that you wish for from Sydney rock oysters to snappers, prawns, lobsters, mud crabs and even Canadian rainbow trout. For those who do not have strong stomach for fishy smell, it might need some getting adjusted to.

When my sister first asked me to go to the market with her, I thought, “No way! … I am not going to a stinky market…” But she said that we are meeting some friends and that we are going to have our lunch there, so I guess I have no choice but to actually go to the market. So my sister and I got up early Saturday morning and walked to the Sydney Fish Market, a 15 minutes walk from Darling Harbour. As they say, it is nothing like a walk in fresh air to work up your appetite.

The Auction

When we got there, the auction has already ended. Using the Dutch Auction system, the auction sees over 50 tonnes or over 2,700 crates of fresh seafood being auctioned off to an average of 150 buyers each weekday.

The Tour

So for those who would like to see some fast and furious bidding action going on, you can actually go for the guided tour of SFM. During which, you will be given the tour of the auction floor and a chance to view over 100 species of seafood, explanation on how the auction is carried out, the tour of the Sydney Seafood School, view the oysters shucking and also the retail area. For those who wish to go for a guided tour of the market, the meeting point would be outside of Doyles Seafood Café. Adults only have to pay $20 while children under 13 pay $10. The tour which will last approximately 1 1/2 hours, is conducted every Monday & Thursday, at 6.55 am and all participants are advised to wear enclosed shoes.

Seafood Galore

Apart from the auction, SFM is also host to several retailers who sells fresh seafood. Not only some of these retailers sell them fresh, for you to bring home, you can also choose the seafood and get them to cook it for you so you can sit outside on one of the benches at the wharf and enjoy good freshly cooked meal, good view and clean fresh air. You can get from the typical fish and chips, the seafood platter, sushi or even a dozen of oysters, whichever tickles your gastronomic delight. The place can get so packed that some days you might even have to sit on the ground. At the retail area, not only can you get fresh seafood, you can also get a bottle of wine from the bottle shop, fresh bread, vegetables and even fruits. So basically, you can actually have a complete meal and even have a picnic, if the benches are all booked up.

That was what we actually did. We each had a plate of freshly cooked meal, sat on the ground outside and had a picnic. My freshly cooked seafood platter has never tasted so good, what with the smell of the ocean and the sunshiny day.

Sydney Seafood School

For those who not only enjoy eating seafood, but would also love to learn how the seafood is prepared and how their favourite meal is cooked, there is also the Sydney Seafood School. Those who are interested can sign up for the cooking class which ranges from 2-hour lessons to 4-hour lessons and the lessons are priced between $75 to $135. The classes are conducted on most evening and also on weekends. In these classes, there will be demonstration on how the dishes are prepared and those who attend the classes are also given the chance to get down and dirty, by trying to recreate what they have just been taught. The last part is of course the best part of the lesson as you get to sample the food that you have just cooked. I am tempted to actually enrol in the class but before I can do that, I think I should perhaps attempt at learning how to gut a fish.

With all these fascinating things to see and do, Sydney Fish Market is not just any conventional market. So when anyone were to invite you to Sydney Fresh Market, hopefully the first thought that comes to mind would be that of freshly cooked delicious seafood meal instead of a stinky smelly traditional market, as SFM is anything but that.

How to get to SFM

Sydney Fish Market is located at Bank Street Pyrmont and is open daily at 7.00 except on Christmas day. Visitors can get to SFM by:

Bus: Departs from Sydney Electricity Building and Queen Victoria Building. Every 20 minutes or weekdays and 30 minutes on weekends

Metro Light Rail: Departs from Central Station, Hypermarket or Darling Harbour. Trains operates every 12 minutes, 24 hours a day for 7 days a week

SFM is also accessible via Monorail (Darling Harbour Monorail Station – 10 minutes walk from SFM), by boat (Blackwattle Bay) and by car.

Book Sydney Hotels here

Article Information
This article was written by Rozila Wong and was first published 16 April 2007. This article is free for personal and commercial reproduction, with the following terms and conditions.