Welcome to
Common Seas

If you’ve ever visited one of San Diego’s local fishermen’s markets, you’ve probably seen a giant red-and-black California sheephead sitting on ice. These beautiful, thick-skinned fish have some serious teeth, an appetite for shellfish, and happen to be absolutely delicious. Sheephead spend their days eating crabs, lobsters, mussels, sea urchins, and other hard-shelled creatures. Their

What happens when a trained chef becomes a commercial fisher? For Jennifer Alvarez, it means thinking about dinner long before the fish ever reaches the dock. Jennifer came to commercial fishing after years spent working as a chef, opening restaurants and producing farm-to-table dinners (a passion that is still underway today). We’ve shared more of her story before, but

Written by Tanner Saraspe, a third gen San Diegan from a fourth gen fishing family. This week, a friend of mine, a good friend who runs a charter boat out of San Diego asked me something which I didn’t have an answer. We have been friends for years. We visited him in Thailand years ago

Not too long ago, Abalone was synonymous with San Diego seafood. For generations, popping abalone off the ocean floor was a rite of passage for locals. They’d be sliced, pounded, fried and enjoyed for their sweet and tender meat. Restaurants served abalone steaks and commercial fishermen landed countless pounds of local abalone along the California

At Local Fish we spend A LOT of time thinking and talking about seafood and one thing we’ve observed over the years is that consumers are creatures of habit when it comes to making choices. Most people go with what they know because let’s be honest, picking a piece of fish out of a case

After connecting with Ocean Discovery Institute (ODI) a few months back, we instantly knew that we wanted to find a way to work together. ODI is an incredible non-profit organization based here in San Diego that creates learning experiences for young people traditionally excluded from science due to race, income status and educational opportunity. With

After sitting at the helm of the hyper-local Cellar Hand, Chef Ashley McBrady is now running the kitchen at MAKE Projects. Ashley is a huge supporter of local seafood and our amazing community of fishermen here in San Diego. We got to sit down with her to learn a little bit more about how she

For today’s local seafood aficionado it may be hard to believe that San Diego was once known as the “Tuna Capital of the World.” In the 1940s tuna was one of San Diego’s biggest industries. It is estimated that a whopping 95% of US canned tuna was processed right here in San Diego.  Massive boats

We sat down with Sunny Trent, a key force behind Tunaville since its earliest days, working alongside founder and TV personality Tommy Gomes.

Chef Ethan, a third-generation San Diego chef, shares his journey from family-run kitchens to opening Glass Box. He emphasizes the value of local seafood, strong relationships with fishermen, and proper fish handling. His work highlights creativity, sustainability, and the importance of educating chefs and customers about locally sourced fish.

Commercial fisherman Forrest traces his roots to Azorean fishing families and New England shellfishing. After years in the Navy, he returned to the water in San Diego, pursuing independent, quality-focused fishing.

Jeff shares how his background in fishing and restaurants led him to connect with Local Fish and source directly from San Diego fishermen. He discusses seasonal seafood sourcing, educating chefs on whole fish, storytelling through species, and how direct relationships between restaurants and fishermen are helping reconnect diners with local seafood.