They don't honor their warranties on live fish. I bought and paid for 12 fish and shrimp. 4 died and they blamed me. I have kept fish for most of my adult life so its not like I don't know what I'm doing. I took a sample of my water to another aquarium store nearby and they assured me that my water was well within the parameters required for the type of fish I was inquiring about. read more

Beyond the reef is the best aquarium store in the area, the staff is kind and I've gotten all of my aquatic animals from here but some have been sick, but other than that the rest have been thriving. The pictures are all of animals I've gotten from beyond the reef (in my own tanks) read more

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Such a wide variety of fish great place to hang out and check out their fish, supplies, all sorts of stuff. Staff is friendly and professional read more

Great store with some beautiful tanks. This place is fun to check out even if you don't plan on buying anything. Staff was super helpful and recommended some great plants for my freshwater aquarium. Will be coming back! read more

Great selection with very knowledgeable staff for those of us new to the aquarium world! Brought the two kids in to set up their first fresh water tank. The staff helped us select and set up our tank & accessories. There were lots of options to choose from and they made it a breeze! Highly recommend! read more

Short & sweet. NOT JUST SALTWATER. Nice assortment of freshwater plants, fish & misc doodads that make it fun. Young man in there selected the best of what I needed and I was on my way. LOVED visiting this store for years, glad finally to have a reason to buy something. Good selection of fish food too. read more

DO NOT BUY SHRIMP FROM HERE! Me and my boyfriend spent 86 dollars from here and boom planaria from your tanks! This worm will eat all your shrimp once you spot one worm you know you have more I'm so upset I should have inspected your tanks more shame on you for not looking into your tanks more often! All my shrimp are gone now! read more

Beyond the Reef - DO NOT BUY SHRIMP FROM HERE! I just bought 10 shrimp from here BOOOOOM GONE - Local Fish Stores Near Me - Schaumburg, Illinois

Great helpful staff & a variety of options. On occasion some local breeder's fish are available as well. Only 4 stars because on the weekends they are popular and getting help from staff an lead to a longer wait time. So go during the week. Overall, they are a great supplier! read more

This is my go to reef store for coral and saltwater fish. I've never had a sick fish from them...other stores carry ich parasites and marine velvet in their water. You should always quarantine new fish anyway, but I didn't know this when I was starting out years ago. Anyway, this place is friendly, helpful, and they have nice coral and fish. It's a bit of a drive for me but I don't mind. read more

I've been seeking a saltwater tank for years and have been to dozens of locations to evaluate service and selection. By far, Beyond the Reef has been one of the most impressive selections I've ever encountered. Probably the most shocking of all were the dozen or so seahorses in the front tank. I didn't even think seahorses were available for purchase by consumers, but Taylor explained and taught me almost everything I needed to know about owning and caring for them. Are they expensive? For sure! But he explained to me why and I'm still interested. Other highlights in this shop are the expansive selection of coral, the stingray tank, the huge puffer in the 500 gallon, and the jellyfish tank. You can get up and running with jellyfish for around $600! The knowledge and service we received here was definitely one of the best I've seen in fish shops. Taylor was totally passionate about everything I brought up, and he even answered some questions my son had. I'll be back to get more in depth information about seahorses, and hopefully leave with a tank and some seahorses next time. read more

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Im in need of a new tank set up. I was looking for live stock sand water equipment. I came in with a pretty hefty budget and was looking to see options for different tanks, but the employee immediately made me feel stupid for not knowing the difference between a tank and aquarium. I would Gladly take my money to Ginger bread or Reefwise and Ocean Reef's Den (ORD) Aquatics, where they have been beyond helpful to me. read more

Great coral and huge selection of fish. nice staff. Wish they were open earlier in the day.

They have the best prices around for driftwood and a big selection of unique pieces. And they have some cool shallow aquariums.

Shockingly bad customer service!!! I was there today 8/31/20 I bought a pump a little over 2 years ago with a 5 year warranty. I still had the box all original papers and the receipt from their store. The young man working today could only say no to every question I asked. He said " I never had to replace a pump before " and that was it. I said well maybe you should check with someone and I got a no. He also mentioned that the guy I need to speak with is usually in today and maybe I should call him. I said well I'm here and you work here why don't you call him and I got the no again. I asked twice if he was kidding me? So I asked there is nothing you can do for me? At least I got yes on that one. I've been shopping here for several years now and trying to decide to just write it and never patronize here again. That kid has no business being there alone. read more

definitely the best fish store i've ever been to and probably the best i could find near where i live. my friend bought some snails and a plant, spent a lot of time looking around read more

The tanks are clean and corals looked vibrant and pretty. One of the employees, Dan, was really helpful, knowledgeable, and friendly. He answered all my questions and was very patient with helping me find what I needed. I'm new to the hobby and Dan set me on the right path. Thanks Dan!!!! read more

These guys know their fish. And tanks. And fish food. And Finding Nemo. And to top it all off, they are incredibly friendly and patient! After stopping in another aquatic shop and leaving empty handed, my 3 year old daughter and I still needed to find pellets for our fresh water beta, Frank. Even though BTR doesn't sell specific freshwater beta food, they walked us through options that will keep our little buddy full and swimming happily. I wasn't kidding when I said they know their Finding Nemo - they have the whole cast here, so if you have a kiddo who's Pixar-fish obsessed, it's worth a trip! read more

Beyond the reef is always my first choice for marine fish. They have a great selection and also great prices to match. I also like the idea of supporting small businesses. Their staff is very knowledgeable which helps. Eric especially was very friendly and helped me when purchasing several fish species to make sure they fit the aquarium. I highly recommend visiting Beyond the Reef. read more

One of the few exotic fish stores in the area. I've only heard of like two others, one in another suburb that seemed to go out of business and another in Old Town (Chicago). Place isn't that clean (to be specific, the floors), but I guess I've never seen a "clean" pet store. I know the tanks are a lot of upkeep and require a lot of maintenance, so I shouldn't really judge the tanks themselves. I personally do not own a fish tank and have not seen enough of them to know what they should or should not look like. I will say their massive tank towards the back of the store is pretty sweet. That tank is probably the nicest and has the largest fish. I imagine they treat that one like a baby because the fish in it are definitely not cheap. I've been here a few times, mostly just to look. My boyfriend has a 45 gallon saltwater tank, so we've been in here to get an idea of what to buy next since a couple of his fish have died. He currently has an eel and a porcupine puffers "blowfish." He had a blue, skinny fish that resembles Dory from Finding Nemo, but we pieced together that the eel killed it when we discovered it dead inside the rock where the eel always hides with bite marks on it. At that point, I knew my bf needed another fish that could defend itself. For his birthday, I wanted to buy a fish. I told an employee the scenario with Dory looking fish and asked if he recommended anything. He said no to another puffers because two or more puffers probably wouldn't get along. I pointed out a couple fish that I saw and liked. I narrowed it down to two: a Picasso Triggerfish and a Greenbird Wrasse. Although the Picasso was a bit more pleasing to the eye, I realized the Greenbird had speed, which made it a perfect fit for his soon-to-be new home. The day I went to look was about a week before I could bring the fish over and give it as a birthday gift, and I was unable to hold it at my house. I told the employee I could come back in about a week and asked if they could put it on hold. I was told they usually put it on hold for no more than a couple days. I waited and just hoped it wouldn't sell. I planned to go back on a Saturday to purchase the Wrasse, but called on Wednesday to see if it was still there. It was, and the employee on the phone said he would put it on hold for me. I mentioned how I was told it could only be held for a couple days and was willing to purchase over the phone with my credit card. The employee just took down my phone number and said they would call if for some reason they couldn't hold it til Saturday. I didn't have to purchase over the phone and never received a call. Sure enough, the Wrasse was still there on Saturday and they marked the tank to show it was on hold. I asked for a box instead of a bag that they normally put the fish in. The same employee who helped me in store last time pulled out a huge box from the closet and placed another styrofoam box inside which held the bag of water with the fish. The transaction was quick and smooth. He explained a couple things like how to transfer the fish from the bag to the tank and how they medicate their water, so I shouldn't mix that water with the tank at home. I forgot to ask what the fish eats, but he offered any future answers with a simple phone call. The policy to return is just 24 hours, so I feared transporting the fish safely. Luckily, the fish is still alive, almost a month later and still swims about with quite some speed as it had in store. I am happy with my experience at Beyond the Reef and would recommend it. read more

My girlfriend and I have been in this awesome fish store numerous times. All of the aquariums are very well maintained; on top of that they have the best selection of fish to chose from. Their saltwater tanks are a thing of beauty. We enjoy going in to just browse but we've also made some recent purchases as well. If you want the best, most knowledgeable employee there as for Terry. He is personable and knows the most out of anybody there. He's very soft-spoken and doesn't try to sell anything to you; he knows what fish are compatible and makes very helpful suggestions. I highly recommend this store and Terry (their best employee by far)! read more

I'm very new to salt water tanks - I've had my tank for about a month and have been checking out fish shops in the Chicago area. I live near the Old Town Aquarium shop which is truly fantastic with prices to match. There is also a surprisingly decent Petco on Clyborn. However, the best place I've found so far is Beyond the Reef, way out in Schaumburg. The place isn't very large, though the focus is entirely on fish and mostly salt water. They stock a wide range of fish, invertebrates, and coral.The front section has a bunch of tanks for sale. All the tanks look clean and the fish all look happy and healthy. Heck, all the coral look happy and healthy too. They have some very impressive fish including a lion fish and a massive puffer along with an eel. They were kind enough or my 4 year old son and I were just lucky and happened to be there when they fed the puffer and eel. Wow, it was amazing to see the eel eat a little minnow type fish. Prices seem reasonable - somewhere between Old Town and a Petco. I'd also like to give thumbs up to Tyler who patiently chatted with me about putting together a small clean up crew. This guy knows a lot and was very pleasant and not condescending, even though I am sure he thought I knew next to nothing. I ended up buying two snails, two hermit crabs, and a small coral frag. They have a selection of mushrooms for $5/each and a bunch of smaller frags for $10 each. They of course have larger and more exotic looking corals for big spenders. My understanding is that this place went through an ownership change late last year - I have no idea what this place was like before, but the new owners and staff seem to be doing a good job. I would suggest to them an email mailing list. Schaumburg is a trek for me, but I guess I can add this fish stop on my Ikea/Outlet/Woodfield mall shopping expeditions. read more

The fish are beautiful and all seem to be super healthy! Their display tank is to DIE FOR! It is utterly amazing. The staff cares about all of the customers that walk in the door and are super helpful. The corals are so vibrant I almost thought I was in the tropics. I haven't seen corals like that in a while!! Prices were right on point- nothing was over priced (unlike every other fish store in the chicago land area)! I love their fish only tank- beautiful fish with enough space for them to be happy. The coral only tank was a nice mix and was AMAZING. Defiantly recommending this place to all of my friends and family! Keep up the great work! read more

Beyond the Reef - Amazing display tank! - Local Fish Stores Near Me - Schaumburg, Illinois

I come here for the tanks at my work. Typically to buy silversides and leave. The cashier and people here are always friendly, smiling and asking if there is anything I need help with. I choose this store over the larger store in the plaza over. read more

Great little shop. It has everything you need to either begin your saltwater addiction - or escalate it to obsession. The layout is very practical and user friendly. Segmented sections for Reef safe fish - aggressive fish, and the fun stuff in-between. A little disappointed with the health of the tanks - I saw a few dead creatures - decomposing at the bottom, not encouraging if I had picked that fish the day before. Nonetheless, the staff is very useful and informative and the prices are right in line with the industry standard. They did charge me $1.00 per water test. Which is unfortunate because most other places do that as a complimentary service - to have you come back. And since Schaumburg is 45 min. away - it will be rare for me to head back. All-in-all a good store to buy supplies, just a bit out of my way. read more

One of the best shops for healthy marine fish and inverts. The coral is healthy and happy they have some great deals on frags. Their selection of live rock beats any store anywhere near Chicago. It is expensive, but worth it. Great coraline growth and fully cured (i experienced no cycle at all). Last but not least they have a fantastic selection of healthy fish, shrimp, crabs, snails, etc. And, they are always getting in new stock. Of all the Schaumburg stores, this is the best. And it is certainly worth the trip out the burbs if you live in the city like me. read more

I have purchased many fish from this store in the past couple of years. Most recently their employee Dan has helped me grasp a deeper understanding of the chemistry in my reef tank which has helped me sustain more advanced corals with lower effort. Whenever I go in there he is always willing to help me. Overall, I have had a good experience with this shop. read more

John and my favorite marine shop. John first took me here in 2005 when we met, and I'm sure he's been coming to this shop since he first started getting into saltwater aquariums. Always very helpful staff, healthy fish, great coral selection, and we even get our rocks, sand and water here. I was kind of scared they would lose a lot of business since Aquarium Adventure opened, but Beyond the Reef is still here and I hope it stays. When you walk in, there's this tank to the right with tons of corals and Xenias, I don't know how they do it, but that tank is amazing. read more

Been going to this LFS for a few months now. I went in about 6 weeks ago planning on purchasing a clean up crew. One of the employees asked what the issue was so I described it to him. Being a beginner in salt water I was completely oblivious that algae could actually harm my CUC. I decide to do massive water changes and clean the tank equipment and live rock. I purchased new CUC about 2 weeks ago and they are thriving. If he wouldn't have told me the danger to the animals caused by the algae I had I could have wasted tons of cash by killing the CUC. To the poster that stated the prices are way to expensive. I'm guessing you have never been to multiple LFS stores or haven't ventured outside of Petco. High quality aquatics cost money. Running an LFS costs money when it's not backed by a corporation. I would gladly pay the slightly higher prices for quality. Every time I have gone to this store everyone has been more than helpful. read more

Great LFS! In my 3 or 4 visits to your store I been greeted by friendly, well informed and passionate employees. Thank you for spending time with me yesterday, it was great to learn a little bit about your business! See you soon! read more

I really like this place!! The staff answered all of my questions, gave a lot of really useful advice and seemed happy to do so. Their tanks are very clean and well kept, and they have a great selection. They were very knowledgeable about the type of tank I had as well and were able to give me advice beyond what could be found in an owners manual. I'll definitely be going here again. read more

This is the best local fish store in all NW suburbs! The whole staff is extremely knowledgeable about the salt water hobby. They have the best selection of LPS AND SPS corals around, but the one thing that sets Beyond The Reef apart from other fish stores is how much they actually care and the perfection that they put it in maintaining/ care they give their fish and corals. All price is reasonable. Here's a quick story. I bought a Royal dotty back from BTR. They warned me that it might be aggressive towards my other fish. We'll turns out that it was extremely aggressive. I call Beyond The Reef, and they said that would take it back for store credit! I think that was an awesome way to handle the situation and make the Costumer happy! I will be a lifelong customer! read more

This place's prices are a complete Joke! The staff is snobby and there are plenty of places in the Chicagoland area with better selection, healthier corals and fish, and staff that actually wants to help you and wants your business. I seriously wouldn't buy anything from this place, ever! If you're familiar with this hobby and have nothing better to do, and want a good laugh, go check this over-priced chop shop out. Example $179 for a small 5 head plain green candy cane. LMAO! The only reason they get 1 star is for the nice display tanks. Take my advice, go elsewhere. read more

I live in Glenview and make the drive out to Hoffman Estates now and then. Decent selection of fish and inverts. Prices are pretty good as well. Staff is usually nice and friendly. Wish they would get more larger fish in from time to time. Largest fish are in their 500 gal. show tank and NOT FOR SALE. If I were the owner in these economic times I would sell ANYTHING for $$$. Overall decent place with no major complaints. read more

I have to give this place five stars, because it is a great saltwater shop. They have an incredible selection that keeps me driving there from Chicago to purchase items for my tank. Oddly enough, for a store like this, their prices are quite reasonable, especially for coral frags. What's even more impressive is that the staff knows their stuff. I recently was in the store and saw this beautiful nudibranch that I thought would be a great addition to my tank. In the end, the staff gave me a bunch of information, but said they really weren't totally certain what it has been eating, and didn't want to sell it to me because of that reason, so it didn't just go home at starve in my tank. I was shocked that a store would turn down the $30, to help keep the creature alive. That's the way to do business! I will gladly keep making the drive! read more

Excellent store...great selection of saltwater fish and coral. The store is kept very clean and the staff is knowledgable. I'm very happy with this store. read more

We are first timers with owning a salt water tank and were able to learn so much from their staff as we got into creating our tank. Their staff takes the time to work with you. Their display tanks are amazing...be sure to not miss the jelly fish tank in the back of the store. High quality fish and some of the most beautiful corals you can imagine. Chris who works there is so absolutely knowledgable and always a huge help. read more

Jim and the clan are very helpful. Much better store now under new ownership with a bigger selection. Now carry Ecotech and AI. Excellent Bali rock - a bit pricey, though. read more

This is a great place with product you would expect. Importantly, they know their fish/coral and know how to talk to customers in a reasonable manner, which is curiously rare in the specialty pet business. read more

This is my trusted LFS. They have a great selection and very knowledgable staff that is more than willing to help out and listen. All the fish I have purchased have been very healthy! This place comes recommended from others that I've met in the hobby. read more

Been going here for years for corals, marine fish, and salt. Now under new mgmt the place is half fresh water, if I wanted fresh water fish I will go to Petco. Recently I the only customer buying several marine animals, but the staff was busy doing tank maintenance and the other employee answered a phone and began I long conversation answering lame questions. Here is some free business advice, If you have a customer in your store picking out merchandise and ready to pay, how about putting the lazy caller on the phone on hold. Anyway this place has gone down the toilet. read more