Fresh seafood is making a splash in Hockessin.
Fishmonger George Esterling and has opened up George and Son’s Seafood Market in the former site of Grassroots on Old Lancaster Pike.
The Hockessin resident and his son, George, are offering up all varieties of fish, from tilapia to rockfish to salmon, and the elder Esterling said freshness is what will set his storefront apart.
He buys seafood every morning, usually directly from fishermen or a Philadelphia fish market, and picks fish based on freshness and quality, not price, he said. If it means he has to charge a little more to sell the best seafood available, so be it, he said. Buying fresh also allows customers to call in orders and, if he doesn’t have it in stock, he can get it the next day, he said.
He also has plans to open a sushi bar inside the store, he said, offering made-to-order sushi.
Esterling, who most recently ran a seafood store in the Riverfront Market in Wilmington, decided to open up in Hockessin to fill an unmet need. Customers can pick up fresh fish on Concord Pike or Kirkwood Highway, but nowhere in the Hockessin area, he said.
One of the biggest challenges of the fish business is anticipating demand, Esterling said, but after a few weeks of getting to know shoppers, it becomes easier to figure out what people are interested in buying.
And he has always enjoyed stocking a few varieties of fish nobody has heard of to open people up to new tastes, he said. He brought Opah – a firm, whitefish ideal for grilling – into his Riverfront store because the purple-and-yellow-polka-dotted fish just looked interesting.
“I want this to be your old-time, family-owned seafood market,” he said. “I’m not just your run-of-the-mill business owner. I’m one of your neighbors.”
