Nordic Fish Opens in Fairfield: The Freshest of Fish, Poke Bar, Sushi Donuts & Prepared Food!

I have two words for you: Sushi Cake. 

And two more words for you: Sushi Donut. 

Hold on, two more: Sushi Burrito. 

Wait! Three more words! (so many words).

Knowledge. Sustainability. Heritage.

How on earth do all of these, plus a fresh Nordic wind, connect?

They intersect on the Post Road in Fairfield at the Nordic Fish market. 

Nordic Fish, located next to the Fairfield University Bookstore, pride themselves on the mantra of “knowledge, sustainability and heritage”-it’s even painted on their walls that overlook their supremely fresh catches and prepared food case. Frank Lanzo, co-owner, and partner Jardar Nygaard (formerly of Fjord Fisheries), saw a gaping hole in the Fairfield fish market scene. To put it bluntly, there wasn’t one…but now there is. 

In this bright, sleek market and casual eatery, the freshest fish abounds, sourced from the esteemed Fulton Fish Market in New York City. Frank happily states that every piece of fish is cut in-house and “everything has to touch our hands first”, with their special brand of culinary and fishing expertise and enthusiasm. He quickly adds, simply, that their fish is “beyond fresh”. 

As you enter the store, a large refrigerated case houses to-go-selections of their delicious soups (Clam Chowder, Lobster Bisque, Manhattan Clam), blocks of cold buttAH by the pound for all your drawn-butter needs, smoked salmon, Harmony Springs sodas and copious, fresh house-made sauces: cocktail, champagne mignonette, teriyaki soy, dill, miso glaze, tarter, spicy tarter, wasabi aioli. Dunk and dip away, my friends.

Amble a little further and you reach their sushi and poke (pronounced po-kay…it’s Hawaiian) counter, from which you can get takeaway or eat at several hightop tables. They offer a selection of bright sushi, udon, soba and chock-full poke bowls. Now, this is where the sushi cake, donut, and burrito enter the Nordic picture. Think of a poke bowl with all the fixings…yellowtail, tuna, salmon roe, sesame salmon and shrimp, spicy tuna and crab, avocado, then fashion it into a layered “cake” which will feed 8 of your most valued friends. Or how about a sushi donut for one? A round-hole-in-the-middle creation of rice, salmon, tuna, tilapia, shrimp, and topped with seaweed salad. The burrito is all of this poke/sushi goodness rolled in nori.

Their gleaming case is filled with a wide variety of catches. The day I visited there was everything from Day Boat scallops from Maryland, grill-ready octopus (babies, too), New Zealand cockles, Ecuadorian whole shrimp which were giant and are hard to come by, Hidden Fjord Salmon and Village Bay oysters, among others. Maybe grab some king crab legs, blue crab, rock lobster tails and live lobsters. Anything in their case-and this is one handy-as-hell service-can be cooked while you wait. Sauteed, blackened, grilled. To go with these “mains’, they offer a wide selection of ready-to-go sides such as smoked fish dip, albacore tuna salad, mango pineapple salsa, coleslaw, stuffed clams and more. Way more. Don’t overlook their daily take out specials, too. 

Nordic is particularly known for their Beach Bakes (lobster, corn, mussels, steamers) that are served family style and their stunning platters, which are perfect for holiday season (or as they say “Platter Season”); beautifully arranged designs of shrimp, crab, and lobster that they boil and hand-pick in house or artful sushi platters of varying sizes. Kiss that creamy artichoke dip bread bowl goodbye this year.

There’s a lot of good fish in this Nordic ocean.

As a man at the recent Taste of Fairfield was overheard to say, “If I were on death row, my last meal would come from Nordic Fish”. 

Nordic Fish

1499 Post Road, Fairfield

203-292-8400

www.nordicfishfairfield.com