RESTAURANTS • First Word
The Skinny: Last month in the Ferry Building, chef Laurence Jossel and partner Holly Rhodes opened Nopa Fish, a fish counter slash fast-casual restaurant spin-off of their destination Divisadero restaurant Nopa. This time, seafood purveyor Joe Conte of Water2Table is also in the mix as an advisor. It’s the first fishmonger in the Ferry Building since the San Francisco Fish Company shuttered in 2020, so the business rights a significant wrong: A major port city deserves a seafood market in its food hall.
The Vibe: Inside the main atrium of the historic Beaux Arts landmark, tourists and commuters wander outside its wide arched awning on the southeast side nearest the Bay. On a recent Friday night, fish fans were already catching stools at two long wooden tables while lining up for their melts. Ocean blue tiles line the counter and walls, and 100 ceramic fish swim above the drinks case and register.
The Food: Jossel has a reputation for religiously shopping the building’s twice-weekly farmers market, so expect the same strong sourcing Nopa is known for. The tuna melt gives reuben vibes, smashing smoked albacore salad, punchy sauerkraut, gooey cheese, and griddled Acme sourdough, with Russian dressing for drizzling. As a seafood sandwich obsessive, this wasn’t the tuna melt for me — respectfully, a reuben is so rich and pickled, and I personally crave that clean wild albacore that tastes like cold summers on the West Coast.
The summer salad stars nectarine slivers and plump blackberries, trout latkes were more thick than crispy, and a sushi rice bowl was as “pristine” as promised, if not as dazzlingly cut as other chirashi bowls around town.
The Drink: Wine is from the California coast, including a white, rose, and chilled red; local beer is also on offer. Poured into plastic cups, drinks are presented as casually as the food, which is served in boxes on half sheets.
The Verdict: Impeccable ingredients, a perfect view, and it’s so good to have quality fish back at the Ferry Building. –Becky Duffett
→ Nopa Fish (Embarcadero) • 1 Ferry Bldg, Shop 31 • Mon-Fri 11a-7p, Sat 10a–7p • Walk-ins only.