It is like returning to childhood when I visit this store!…read moreMy son has a 10 gallon aquarium and we love to come to the store to choose underwater plants and sometimes fish. The choice is really vast! You can find literally ANYTHING in there. I'm still not ready to switch from freshwater to salt aquarium but if this finally happens I know where to go and who to ask about a proper setup!

I come here for years now and ai would say that they are awesome. I went today and there is this…read moreguy by the fish section with the piercing on his nostril seems unfriendly and impolite. He didn't even say thank you or welcome to me. I'm a little disappointed for that.

I returned to the Big Als location in Newmarket for the first time two weeks ago since management…read morechanged a few months ago. I was a regular customer to Colton the Live Reptile manager and Chuck the store manager, and they both always were outstanding gentlemen and pet owners. They always impressed me (being the owner of over 100 reptiles myself) with well maintained animals, good selection, and knowledge of each animal. During my visit back I was disgusted to find that the new management is careless and ignorant, as I found a dead african fat tail in their tank (I have pics) for sale for $119.99. When I mentioned it to the Live reptile manager his response to me was 'f**k off' and walked away and left the dead animal in there. It was starved to death. I could not believe my ears nor could my two friends or my wife with me. After spending over $3000 at that location over the last year and being talked to as such and shown that level of apreciation from the new management I have only one place to tell them all to stick it. I dont care for ignorant people as there will always be some, however I do feel bad about all the animals as two weeks later 3 more leopards have died, and the crested and gargoyle geckos food is still rock hard and in 4 inch tall plastic cups (I guess their geckos have pogo sticks to jump in there and eat). There was a level of sophistication and the store used to be immaculate - how disgusting it is to see it go down the drain. Feel free to go check it out for yourselfs. Maybe the lovely live animal manager will greet you with a lovely 'f**k off' when you ask for something. I hope one day they are treated the same as their animals and their customers. From: The guy that cares more about the store animals well being than the owners trying to make money from them.

I've been to this particular aquarium location numerous times in the past. I work with special…read moreneeds adults and one of my clients absolutely LOVES fish (fishies, as he likes to call them). These past visits left me impressed with the knowledge of the staff, who were gracious enough to speak to myself and my client. So when I decided, about 3 months ago, to delve back into the world of fish keeping, Big Al's was the first place I thought of for filling up my tank. So today, I decided to pay them a visit after I got off work. I spent time looking at the different display tanks, even though I knew I was after some male fancy guppies. After taking a look at their stock, it was nice to see how bright and healthy they looked. I also took a look at their Mystery Snails, though I wasn't sure if I wanted to purchase any or not. I finally made my way to the service counter, and I wish I had gotten the gentleman's name who helped because he answered all of my questions and made some suggestions along the lines of what I had researched online prior to my visit. I know that experienced 'fish keepers' have advised to beware of staff who may not know what they're talking about. Though I'm not an expert by any means, I feel as though I've done enough research in the past three months to have some idea of what to look for and how to stock my tank (which is a 10 gallon, btw). Anyway, my biggest question was in regards to algae eaters for my tank, I was leaning towards snails and that's what he suggested, three in fact. I also told him that I was looking at getting 3 guppies and was concerned about overstocking. He said that this was fine, and again, from what I've read online, he was spot on, though I would be at almost full capacity. So I went ahead and purchased 3 fancy guppies: a yellow rainbow, sunset cobra, and a turquoise. I also purchased 3 Mystery Snails: 2 yellow and one black one. The black was the only one left, though I hadn't seen it when I looked in that particular tank! I give the guy bonus points for that nice little touch! Needless to say, I would visit this location again. All the staff were quite pleasant and knowledgeable (I overheard another staff person speaking with others who were also looking for advice/suggestions). I would definitely recommend Big Al's (Newmarket)!

"Disclaimer" I'm not a pet owner and am rating this business as a prospective owner/customer…read more I have been in this plaza (includes The Keg, Dollarama, Decathlon, Astoria) a few times and have been curious about this store as I know a fish aficionado and have owned a Betta and goldfish before. It's right beside the Astoria. I've only ever owned a Betta and maybe a goldfish, but I love to browse as I find watching fish relaxing and almost hypnotic. I was very impressed with visiting this shop. It's organized and well staffed. Within a minute of walking in, about 3 of them had pleasantly greeted me with just a non-pressure, Hello. The store is very well organized and the signs are large and well displayed. The front contains all your supplies and even medications. The back, or The Deep, houses the majority of the stock. To each side of the entrance, there are aisles and aisles of tanks full of an astounding array of species, including a few sharks. This can be an expensive hobby, so it was good to learn that you can put major equipment purchases on a layaway plan. For anyone not familiar with that, you can basically save up to pay for an aquarium or expensive piece of equipment while they keep it on hold for you - a great way to avoid credit charges while keeping the item and its price on hold. Whether I just come to enjoy or keep considering purchasing a new pet, I highly recommend coming in to check this place out.

Beautiful fish, plants and corals. Love the sales and promos they often have…read more The last time I went the guy that helped us out really lacked enthusiasm and the will to work. When he answered my question I barely heard him because he walked away as he answered. I find that the staff here are not as knowledgeable or willing to help as other locations but they sure know how to set up nice tanks.

Ooooh I absolutely adore this place! it's super cutee! The man i spoke to (i'm assuming was the…read moreowner) is super nice and funny too! Walking in there is a beautiful large selection of Koi fish. Walking around I can ask him any question I want even if it's silly and he would just laugh and joke around along with me. He showed me a fish in particular that he thought was interesting but was already on hold for another customer it was a black colored really big and puffy one. I was saying the fish looked like a mafia boss and he would just laugh. I had a lot of fun with my friends and him just talking and walking around to the point we lost track of time and ended up being in there for 45 minutes. He didn't mind that we came in to just browse and have a look around as i was unsure if my father's tank needed any more fish. The fish there are big! (There are little ones too). There's also fish i don't see in regular pet stores (there was this super buggy eye'd looking gold fish, the eyes literally popping out of his head like big round googly eyes). I will definitely recommend this place to my friends and family!

Absolutely disgusted by what I saw in the store, wow, at least look after your tanks and maybe your…read morelivestock will live longer. Pretty sad, never going back.

Amazing Service, great selection of fish , plants, and accessories, owner is super knowledgeable,…read morepatient with the little ones , and pleasant . He offered personalized service to help start your tank and establish your ecosystem in-store. My little ones had a special experience all thanks to the owner. Hands down best aquatic shop in Toronto . A must visit !!

Came here after finding out they sell turtles. Turtles sold…read morehere seemed to be healthy and in the proper environment (with a heat lamp, basking rock etc) unlike some other places I've been to. Sold a decent selection of turtle accessories as well. 1 for $29 or 2 for $50. Cheaper than al's aquarium which is a few minutes away. Too bad they didn't have a variety of species, only the red ear slider kind. I've had my two turtles for over a week now and they seem to be doing well. No complaints there. Helpful staff, and they speak Cantonese

So I've read a lot of the reviews below. I used to buy all my fish at Discount Dragon 30 plus years…read moreago then I moved away. Starting buying fish for my pond . I finally decided to start up my indoor tanks . Several visits at big Al and my fish were all dying.. water conditions were perfect. Finally I noticed this store in the parking lot adjacent to Big AL's. let me tell you that the fish I got ( I have many tanks) are all doing really well. NO issues . The aquatic plants are cheap and the fish prices are very reasonable. I would recommend this place .

So I wanted to update my review. First. All of the fish I've purchased here are still alive,…read moreeating, swimming and, seemingly, happy! Yipppeeeee! So, I am even more convinced about buying fish ONLY from a store that runs EVERY tank INDIVIDUALLY, rather than linking all of the tanks. (see my detailed review, below, to see what I'm referring to). I went back again, already! And bought 4 more flame/honey gouramis, and 5 larger size blue shrimp! I also learned that shrimp are excellent additions to any tank. They eat algae, excess food that falls to the bottom of the tank, etc. And thus, shrimp really improve the bio-load of the tank. Importantly, they don't get too big, unlike plecos (plecos can grow to more than a foot, depending on the breed)! AND. They don't need to be considered as part of the "how many fish can I put in the tank" calculations, because they clean the tank and add basically nothing to the nitrite or ammonia levels! So to summarize.... Win, Win, WIN, WINNING!!! Buy all of your fish and live plants only here folks! On a (very) sad note...The super sexy 22 year old who helped me the first time, has moved on.... Sniff... Sob...sigh! Goddess of Grammar signing off...!

Very cool place to buy fish and equipment. I have nothing against the big box stores, but Finatics…read moreis a very cool place and the people working there are friendly and know their shit.

Bought my dream ball python morph here. A cinnamon girl, the staff was great and helpful. Ps great…read moreprices, I don't feel like I'm getting scammed here. #WSA

Stopped by a couple times to fruit flies for my boyfriend's frogs. My bf had COVID, so I picked up…read morethe frog food for him. I showed up with no online order and not really knowing what I needed or even what kind of frogs he had. I was unprepared. Oops! Both times, the staff asked me a couple questions and knew exactly what I needed for the frogs. A great experience both times!