We took a 40 minute drive here to buy a few fish. They have a really good selection and their fish look healthy however, literally ZERO customer service. The place was a little hard to find as it's within a bunch of other commercial businesses and there wasn't a sign above. There was a window decal however which helped us. We walked in and no greeting, pretty sure the guy didn't even look up from his phone (he was playing a game) lol walked around checking their selection out and literally not one person was around to ask if we needed help. We spend quite a bit of money on fish and the hobby and this business lost out on potential for good money. Guess they don't need anymore? We ended up going to Ocean Floor which is our normal go to and found what we were looking for with employees happy to help us. read more

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Do you love cichlids? Do you hate going to fish stores and only seeing 3 measly tanks with mediocre cichlids in them? Well look no further, this place was all of my dreams come true. They have quite literally probably 50 tanks of cichlids. Every color, style, font you could imagine Kenny gave us a personal tour of each aisle and explained all the fish, their quirks and personality, and what would go best with what we have in our tank right now. We left with only 1 fishy today (OB peacock who is absolutely beautiful), but trust there was about 10 we wanted to take home today. We will be back! read more

The Cichlid Shack - OB Peacock - Local Fish Stores Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

Beware of buying online from the cichlid shack. I ordered 6 fish from James, paid over $130 for overnight shipping just to get a dead fish. He "gave" me a credit for the dead fish but cancelled the order I placed using that credit without any communication because I asked him if he could cover the shipping cost for the replacement fish. Interesting how a 5" that went through a ridiculous 2 week "observation" period prior to shipping to me was DOA. There are too many online vendors to give business to one with awful communication and terrible customer service. BUYER BEWARE. read more

The Cichlid Shack - Dead fish - Local Fish Stores Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

Best place to buy African Cichlids! Never a problem! Always SO helpful and knowledgeable about their fish! Friendly staff. Amazing quality fish. read more

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This store front is closed. Yelp said it was open, and we drove 30 mins to get there. There is no longer a store. It was once a beautiful fish store. The status needs to be updated so no one else drives out of their way. read more

I'm hanging my review . First time I went to purchase fish I was impressed . Unfortunately when I ordered fish it took for ever to get my order. When the fish arrived I didn't revived one out of the two I ordered and got 2 Toby complimentary dead fish ! The variety and quality are top notch . The customer service has a lot to be desired ! If you want nice cichlids and don't mind an angry rude owner go to Cichlid shack . I have spent a lot of money with them . I will no longer be a customer . Instead I found plants n fins in Gilbert. Much nicer facility nicer fish larger selection great customer service and the owner mike is very knowledgeable . read more

The Cichlid Shack is an on line ordering nightmare. Placed my order February 17th, order arrived March 13th unannounced to swa air cargo. I asked for an update on my order routinely. No communication. I will never purchase or refer anyone to their online sales. Awful business. read more

I live 106 miles from this place and it took 41days for them to respond to me. On 4/30/22, I placed an order for 5 plants from the Cichlid Shack. I received a conformation email on the same day. On 5/8/22, I emailed the Cichlid Shack on the arrival date for my order. On 5/10/22, they emailed me back stating that they had a two week turn around and my order would likely be sent out that same week. They also reminded me that they have a clause regarding shipments. (I did not see this as it was hidden behind another drop down box). On 5/24/22, I still have not received my order. I place a charge dispute with my credit card company. On 6/9/22, almost 41 days, the Cichlid Shack canceled my order. Poor customer service. I will never order from this seller again. read more

My son and I just stopped by and picked up five Peacock Cichlids to add to my 75 gallon.  WOW, I couldn't believe the selection and the customer service was amazing.  The young man working there showed me around and was super helpful. Best African Cichlid selection I have ever seen at a local fish store anywhere.  Also, great customer service which is very hard to find. read more

The place is well hidden by the airport offices. It takes a bit of searching to find it, but once you do....its awesome. James can be very straight to the point and blunt with his answers which can come off to some as him being grumpy, but if you get to talk with him a bit longer he's just a guy who loves fish and loves what he does. He has a wealth of knowledge and will offer you tips and tricks to save you money that he has learned in all his years of keeping cichlids. This is a store that I would highly recommend to anyone trying to get high-quality fish. He actually produces most of the stock he has by himself. What that means for the average consumer is that the risk for parasites, disease, and other issues that can happen when fish are stressed in shipping or crammed into small tanks doesn't happen with this place. He focuses primarily on African cichlids with full vibrant color and is a sucker for the larger species of these cichlids. If you are looking to go purchase a goldfish, this is definitely NOT the place for you. If you are looking for a show quality assortment of rare species in the aquarium hobby....then start driving there now. James takes care of his fish with incredible detail and truly cares about keeping his stock healthy. I would highly suggest checking this place out. It may take a trip or two to find him open as this is a small shop run with almost no help, so just be aware that there are instances the store might not be open especially right around holidays. read more

If I could do zero stars I would...Went a bit out of our way to check this place out to add a few fish to our tank. When we walked in, there were two employees just sitting behind the desk and didn't even budge. They barely looked up. No greeting whatsoever. They just kept on talking to each other. We went over to the tanks for a minute and just left. And still not a word at all to us. We thought, Why even bother if the sales people could care less that we're there. So we just walked out. We feel bad for the fish...if they treat customers this way, we can only imagine how they might care for them. read more

A complete joke a business. Shameful really. On Thursday, Jan 27, 2022, I sent an email to the owner asking if they had an ornate bichirs in stock. He said yes. So I ordered an ornate bichir online. I initially chose to ship the fish to my house since I am always working on the days and times the shop is open (tues-sat) and since they are only open 5 hours a day it doesn't leave me much options to get there. I checked up on the order 3 days later to see if it would be shipped anytime soon. Couldn't contact anyone on the phone, so I called again and once again no answer and I ended up leaving a voicemail that likely no one bothered checking. I contacted him via email again for him to tell me to check out the "once order is shipped" area on his website (which I had already seen) and it stated we apologize for the delay we're extremely backed up blah blah blah we're rushing to get as many orders out each week (sure). I sent an email almost immediately saying if it was easier I would pick up the bichir during my lunch hour instead of it being shipped as long as I could get my shipping refunded $20. Waited 3 days, no response of course. So I sent another email requesting a response while feeling like an annoying customer as if I was bothering the guy. I had already given these clowns my $54.98 and yet they have me feeling this way. Today, Feb 6, the response I got was "you're welcome to come to the shop if you don't want to wait your turn in the shipping line." Nice, put it on me why don't you? Dude, my irritation has hardly anything to do with the "shipping line" and everything to do with shitty customer service. You can't get a hold of these people on the phone and it takes multiple emails to get a simple response. So, you know what ended up happening? I emailed him back around 10am stating I would be at the shop approx 3pm to pick up the fish and obtain my refund for shipping. I drive my ass 25 miles over there, walk in and his son (I assume that's who it is) is at the reception desk. I tell him I'm here to pick up the ornate bichir and guess what he tells me? He tells me it died in quarantine. I send an email 5 hours in advance to tell them what time I'd be there and the morons at this place didn't even bother contacting me via phone or email (shocker) to tell me that my fuckin fish had died. This could have all been avoided had I been given a proper response to my initial email offering to pick up the bichir, instead I waited 3 days for these unprofessionals to respond (which they didn't until I emailed them again). I wasted a drive of 50 miles back and forth. I told this kid if you're this backed up then you shouldn't be taking so many orders and disappointing your customers and he's like we got no choice we need the money. Of course, always about the money. I told him if that's the way they conduct their business so be it, it's their show but I sure's hell won't be back nor will I recommend this dump. Fuck the fish and especially fuck the customers, right? All hail the almighty dollar! I demanded a refund of course and I tell you what I'm glad I didn't spend a penny on this shithole, I just feel sorry for the ornate bichir cause his death could've been avoided if it wasn't for extremely poor customer service. Apparently they're too damn busy to keep the fish they sold alive. I've never had this kind of garbage customer service experience at any fish or pet store. There's no excuse as much as they are full of them. Thanks for nothing, Do yourself a favor and go elsewhere for your aquatic needs. read more

This place is nothing more than a typical online fish chop shop. If I knew they only send youtube influencer's orders in reasonable amount of time I would not have wasted my money or time and listened to Ben. I placed an order a week ago and haven't even received a confirmation email yet. Unless you like the hurry up and pay, then wait method I would avoid this fish chop shop. It's sad how hard it is to find a decent online fish store who put's themselves in the position of the customer I.E. if you paid your hard earned money, wouldn't you expect to receive your fish faster than the 2 weeks I'm on pace to wait. Never again. Go ahead and blame it on the pandemic, but I suspect this problem existed well before the pandemic. read more

This is by far the best most knowledgeable spot for fresh water fish I have been to. Yes, they specialize in cichlids but they know just about anything you want to know about freshwater fish,period. The staff was the friendliest in Phoenix that I have talked to. Willing to help with recommendations if they couldn't accommodate my needs or had cheaper quality options elsewhere. Best selection of Cichlids I have seen and more than willing to give the personal touch I expect from a small private business. I will be back once I get my tanks ready to accommodate more fish. Thanks for the great advice and time you gave to me. read more

First off, I live in Anchorage Alaska. I have been getting fish from James for a few years now. He has shipped fish to me several times and I have never had an issue (If you have ever tried to ship anything to Alaska, you know how nice this is). Not only is the quality of the fish amazing, but you can see and feel the love that he puts into his work. He is exceptionally friendly and knowledgeable. I have never had a bad experience working with the Cichlid shack and am a huge fan. Thanks James for all of your help over the years. read more

The Cichlid Shack - Local Fish Stores Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

I would like to know what the actual store hours are. Whenever I go to the store location the doors are locked and nobody EVER answers the phone. If the owner would maybe reach out and explain when the store is actually open, I could give the store a different review but until then 1 star is the best I can give them. read more

The Cichlid Shack is the best place in the valley to buy high quality African Cichlids! They have the largest variety of Haps and peacock cichlids of any fish store in the Phoenix area and the owner will take the time to show you all of the fish and explain their individual requirements, temperaments, etc. The fish are all very healthy and all of the tanks are very clean. The owner helped me pick the perfect fish to mix in with my existing tank and spent time finding ones that would work best for me. I would definitely recommend the Cichlid Shack for anyone wanting to find some new beautiful fish! read more

The Cichlid Shack - Skittles - Local Fish Stores Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

Great place to visit!!! They have the best looking cichlids. I finally found the one I was looking for. The best part is that he has almost all the colors available in the store. read more

Ordered fish online. Sent me wrong fish. Refuse to replace with correct fish. Told to sell them on my own and order more fish from him. Worst customer service ever. Spent hundreds of dollars to be treated like crap. Messaged him on Facebook to fix. Calls me crybaby and drama queen for complaint about being sent incorrect fish. Go practically anywhere else and you will be treated better. read more

Their customer service is very poor. I emailed to ask if they can send me pictures of the fish that I would actually be getting. I was denied and my order was also cancelled. Cancelling a customer's order just because they made an inquiry is very unprofessional. I'm okay being told no the pictures can't be sent but not with my order being cancelled. Not happy. read more

Amazing selection of African Cichlids, probably the best I've ever seen. And they all seem very healthy and well taken care of. They are pretty pricey, but if you want great fish that you can't get anywhere else, this is the place. I don't think they sell aquariums, and I didn't notice any accessories either besides food and stuff. This place specializes in FISH. I would come back here for sure if I needed exotic cichlids. read more

Terrible experience with customer service and availability, buyers beware!!!! Did everything in our power to communicate and get fish from just sitting at UPS. UPS had the fish picked up on a Thursday to be delivered on Friday. However this didn't happen and new schedule to be delivered was Monday. UPS stated this was because the shipper sent out late, and something doesn't seem right to have the fish sit for five days in a box. I offered to pick up but they wouldn't let me without hearing from the shipper. I tried to call, email, text, during business hours with no luck. I did get a rude pickup with a guy saying "we're not answering because we are helping customers, call back and I'll block you" then hung up. He answered to say that but not see what I was calling about it. I am a customer with 7 fish depending on humans. So far, they have not been helpful to their customer or live product, they don't value their customers after payment has been processed, and they don't care to resolve issues before it's too late. I don't recommend due to poor customer service, and the way they value resolving issues with their fish and shipping accounts. read more

This place will sell you a sick fish. And will tell you about the return policy. But then when you try to return the fish they will find all kind of excuses why they cannot take the fish back. They sold me a fish and put it in a bag and told me that it would last for 24 hours because they put pure oxygen in the bag. Then three hours later when I got home I noticed the fish was not doing well, so I called them and let them know via voicemail within three hours. Then when I brought the fish back to them they told me it died because I left it in the bag. But their policy clearly states if I would of put the fish in my tank did the warranty would be Nolan void. They will find any excuse not to replace a dead fish! I do not recommend this shop to try to skate by their own policies. And the Little girl who works there assuming is the daughter is very disrespectful. The heavyset gentleman I believe is the sun was pretty cordial and seemed like he understood. But because he was not the owner I feel that his hands were tied. read more

I have to say hands down best Cichlid selection in all Arizona!!! Also not to mention James is an awesome dude !! Expert in his field!! He is always open to answering any questions you may have with cichlids from breeding,treating when sick housing etc... his prices are awesome too !!! Hence why I am willing to drive 1 hour 45 to buy cichlids from him . His store is also really clean and he has a wide variety of cichlids to choose from and also food to choose from. read more

We drove all the way from the west side after calling and listening to a long message saying the store is back and Saturday hours are 10-4. We pulled up at 10:30 and the doors were locked. What a complete waste of time and energy. We will never come back. read more

For being in business during these hard times during covid and even in the aquarium sales world I am impressed. Granted they could've answered my phone and asked me to hold instead of ignoring my phone call which is why it's only 4 stars. I love their fish, the young man with the long hair was very helpful and I have enjoyed my fish a lot after buying them from this shop. Will come again. read more

This Place is the Mecca of Cichlid's. Great Customer Service Very knowledgeable/informative. A Clean & Awesome set up..... Best Fish store I ever visited... read more