I love cooking seafood and trying out new recipes. I cook some form of seafood usually about twice a week. Often I'll find recipes I want to try out, but the fish or shellfish needed is tough to find in grocery stores. That's why I wanted to find a local fish monger: I thought it could be my go-to spot for more obscure seafood.
After going to this place a couple of times though, I've realized it isn't really worth it to make the extra trip.
The selection isn't much better than Market Basket. The only item they seem to carry that MB doesn't have every week is catfish. However, A&P only sells whole catfish with the fin on. I need fillets as I like to deep fry them. Now, maybe the staff would fillet for me if asked, but those dudes don't seem to want to be there. I don't want to ask them to fillet for me. I'd rather just substitute MB Tilapia the weeks that MB doesn't have catfish fillets (the weeks that Market Basket DOES have catfish fillets, they are excellent quality).
I went there today looking for Black Cod (also called Sablefish or Butterfish). This is something MB never has. A&P doesn't have it either. I asked the guy behind the counter anyway. I figured maybe he would give me more info: like maybe they sometimes get it in, or maybe he'd suggest a good substitute. Like....Idk! I'm going to a small specialty store because I figured I'd get more specialized service. Guy just looked at me with a bored expression and said "Nah." The service at MB seafood counter is much better. They've often made conversation with me about when I could expect certain fish in or suggested substitutions.
The only items A&P carries that Market Basket doesn't always have are the live crabs and lobsters. So if you make these a lot, A&P might work for you. As far as the types of fish: Market Basket carries all the same stuff, for comparable prices, with better service.
Neither MB nor A&P carries soft shell crab and I'm still on the hunt for a fish monger where I can semi-regularly buy this.
All in all, I decided to check this place out to see if it would be worth the extra trip. Would the fish be better quality? Nope. MB has similar quality. Would there be a better selection of items? Nope. MB selection is huge. The only reason you'd need to go to A&P is if you needed live crab or lobster or whole catfish. Are the prices better? Nope. I compared all of my most frequently bought items. The prices are identical to MB in most cases and only a dollar or two off in a few cases.
If Shrewsbury hadn't gotten a Market Basket, this store would probably be worth the trip, because Shaws seafood selection stinks. But since MB has such a big selection, and since A&P doesn't have more obscure items, higher quality, lower prices, or better customer service, there just isn't any reason to make a second trip.
If A&P ever starts carrying soft shell crab, catfish fillets, black cod, and other items that I can't get at Market Basket, then I'll check them out again. read more