We all know the famed Pike Place fishmongers — practically everyone and their mother visits the iconic booth at the Market to see fish fly. But we had some questions about the mysteries behind the airborne seafood. 🐟
To get answers, we spoke with Jaison Scott, the manager + co-owner of Pike Place Fish Market. The interview is even more entertaining if you picture the salmon flying everywhere in-between questions, since he was mid-shift when we talked to him.
Q: Why the fish throwing? Is it just an easy means of transportation?
A: Yeah, it started somewhere around the 60s. It was much easier to throw the fish than walking it around back to the scale and then walking back to exchange the money.
We made it fun. We yell the order out, where the customer is going, and sometimes their name. It keeps it exciting for us and keeps us all in tune.
Q: You all use shorthand code when you yell out the orders. How many code words do you all have in the vocabulary?
A: You could say hundreds. With every fish, we yell out the name of that fish, what you have to do with that fish, where it’s going, who’s buying it, and how long to pack it for. Each kind of seafood has its own things, too. Fish might be “butterfly it” or “steak it,” but crab could be “clean and crack,” “as is,” or “clean it and put the back back on” for the people who want to display it.
We also use “TT” which means “test toss” for when someone wants a photo.
Q: Do you have to practice throwing the fish?
A: Certainly, you don’t want to hurt anybody and you don’t want to break anything. Some of these fish have teeth; some weigh up to 48 pounds. It’s harder when you throw bigger fish, so you have to use your whole body to get it up over the counter. The angle matters too — I’ve been “bitten” on the face and on the neck.
You try to make sure the guys know what they’re doing when they’re out here. There’s definitely some skill to it.
Q: Do you have to work out to be able to throw all of these fish?
A: It helps if you have some sort of background in football or something. We used to sell 20-pound octopus and throw them. The average halibut is 30-40 pounds. The average king salmon is 10-20 pounds — and that’s all day [handling them]. It’s fun throwing octopus, though. So, we have some guys that were into sports when they were younger and we have some that never played any sports at all.
You have to have good aim, too. We have a small hole [the fish are] going through. It’s maybe 4-feet by 2-feet. We’ve clipped the wall many times.
Q: What are the methods or techniques for throwing, then?
A: Well, if you’re throwing one of those halibuts, you need to use two hands. One hand on the front where the head would be, your feet spread apart, knees bent — and you kind of lift off. If you’re throwing something smaller, it would just be one hand and you throw it sideways. You have to be careful though, because this one [gestures to a fish smaller than a forearm] has spikes. You’ll hook them, and that’s not any fun.
Q: Have you ever hit anyone by accident?
A: Yeah, I landed one in a baby carriage once. I threw it way too high, the customer missed, and it went “zoom! boop!” in. The baby was fine, though, and the man wasn’t upset. It was a small salmon.
Q: What happens if you drop a fish?
A: We wash it, but we’re always very careful. This is someone’s food and we have to take care of it. We’ve thrown an $800 to $1,000 salmon before, and you know, someone’s going to eat that. We have to be careful. You have to throw it in a way where you’re still gentle.
The tourists think it’s hilarious, though. We don’t, but you get more of a cheer if you drop it.
Q: Any other interesting fish stories?
A: Oh, man. Guns N’ Roses came behind the counter and caught one before. Vanna White, Boy George, the Tennessee Titans, and Chrissy Teigan have all come behind the counter before. I mean, celebrities, politicians — you name it, they’ve been here.
Q: Is there anything you want people to know about this place or your role?
A: We love what we do. We’re really proud to be Pike Place Fish Market. We want to provide the best customer service we can and the freshest fish. I mean, if we didn’t have good fish, it wouldn’t be like this. A lot of our customers have been with us for a long time. We have some grumpy ones that even brave the crowds to get their fish.
