What happened to Davis Street Fishmarket (Evanston)?

Hi,

I've been lurking here for a while, and have discovered several amazing places to eat as a result. I really can't thank this group enough!

However something happened on Friday evening that has caused me to sign up and post. Now I'm not one for going out of my way just to bad-mouth a place, but this place really deserves it (unfortunately). I promise that I will counter-act this post with several positive posts in the future!

Anyway ... On Friday evening a friend and I planned to have dinner at Davis Street Fishmarket in Evanston. We've been countless times, and always loved it. In fact I considered it one of my top five place to eat. The food was great, the atmosphere was original and fun, and it's within walking distance.

It's tough to describe for those who've never been there, but it had a cozy dining room with a fun ship/sea theme. A raw fish counter (thick "almost-sushi grade" tuna steaks for like $8 a pound). A huge cabinet filled with all sorts of sauces, and horse-radish, etc. A massive raw oyster bar, and a small drinks bar.

The dining room was mildly remodeled a few years ago, the awesome boat-like center bus-bar was removed to make way for more tables. That was a bit of a disappointment at the time, but certainly not the end of the world.

However the whole place has just been completely gutted and remodeled, and the result is just disgusting. The dining room is crammed with about 10 times the number of tables .. they've also added big, ugly "TGI Friday's" style booths. The big chalk-boards showing all the fish and specials are gone, as are all the decorations. Instead we have a few token, plastic fish screwed into the walls.

The sauce cabinet, raw fish counter and raw bar (and assorted theming) is all gone; replaced with a generic, long drinks bar, more tables and (ugh - this is painful even to type) big-screen TVs showing sports games.

Even the big old wooden entry-door has been replaced, now there's a thin aluminium thing that makes it feel like you're walking into a Gap store.

I honestly cannot fathom what goes through a persons head that would make them think such a change is good. They took a fun, unique Fish-Market and turned it into a generic, "atmosphere in a box", suburban chain. So sad

Anyway we didn't end up eating there; opting instead to walk around the corner to Gio's, which is a great little (if a bit expensive) Italian place.

Cameron.

Cameron,

Welcome to LTHForum.

There have been some lamentations on this site about the loss of the oyster bar and the tater tots at Davis St., although I believe Octarine mentioned that they'd bring the oyster bar back. If so, then I'll return. It was my favorite oyster bar in the area.

I was never a fan of the food in Davis St's dining room, but the remodeling effort seems perfectly in line with the remodeling effort of downtown Evanston on a larger scale. This is just another step in the inevitable process of rendering Evanston culinarily irrelevant.

Best,
Michael

Yeah, they say they are bringing the oyster bar back but I'll believe it when I see it. I've been avoiding the place for anything other than oysters (and tater tots) for the last couple years due to the higher prices and not much to show in the way of increased quality or portion size. Basically I tend to the Mexican or Chinese places when I am in the mood for fish, it just tastes better to me.

One other factor may be the new young chef. The buzz is that he has totally revamped the menu and is changing things up. Whether that is good or not I will leave to the tasters' discretion.

You might be interested to know that one of the original owners of Davis Street now runs Glenn's Diner, at 1820 W. Montrose. I haven't been there myself; seems kind of an odd hybrid of fish place and breakfast spot.

Who? Tara? Steve Prescott opened Davis St by himself afaik and he's been dead for quite a few years

kates wrote:You might be interested to know that one of the original owners of Davis Street now runs Glenn's Diner, at 1820 W. Montrose. I haven't been there myself; seems kind of an odd hybrid of fish place and breakfast spot.

Here is a recent thread on Glenn's. I've been meaning to try it since reading d4v3's report.

Thanks for the link, I missed that first time around. I will have to try this place out, it sounds great.

I had a completely forgettable (non fish) lunch at Glen's Diner a few weeks ago, but the dinner fish specials looked really good and I suspect that fish for dinner is the way to go at Glen's.

stevez wrote:I had a completely forgettable (non fish) lunch at Glen's Diner a few weeks ago, but the dinner fish specials looked really good and I suspect that fish for dinner is the way to go at Glen's.

Yeah, Glenn's is almost like two different restaurants. During the day it lives up to its "diner' moniker, but at night it becomes a decent no-frills seafood place a la the old Davis Street Fishmarket, complete with the specials boards. In all the years I went to Davis Street, I never once ordered off the menu (I can't imagine the place without the blackboards). Glenn's seems to be much the same way (at least at dinner).

I have not been to Davis Street since it was remodeled. In the last 5 years, I also avoided the dining room, but would frequent the excellent oyster bar. What a great place that was to get together with friends and suck down some shellfish and a few pints. When I found out it was gone, I couldn't believe it.

I'm surprised at all the wailing -- based on our dinner Saturday night the food is as good as ever. The remodeled dining room is much more comfy, and yes, they're still serving tater tots. We also like the new flat-screen TVs in the bar. There's only one flaw that I hope enough people complain about so it's corrected -- the new menu is very confusing. All the old favorites and daily specials are there, but not easy to find (e.g. the mussels are listed under "clams") and the standard varieties of fish that were always available blackened/grilled/broiled are still offered, but they appear in a weird circular ring around the daily specials area and you have to ask your server about them. Our food was spot on, and we eat there a LOT, but we agree that 86'ing the blackboard specials doesn't work when your menu doesn't do them justice.
>>Brent