I find myself holding a raw bay scallop on a white plastic fork. It’s Saturday at Shoreline Seafood Market on Patterson Ave. and David Whitby, our scallop savant — also the owner of Shoreline — has called this little, light-pink bivalve the best bay scallop I’ll ever taste.
I’ll admit, I’m a little skeptical. But my skepticism is soon overshadowed by an epic bite: sweet, meaty wisps of sea and saline. This beauty hails from Nantucket and is incredibly hard to grow, harvest and procure. Everything must align, from temperature at harvest (28 degrees or below) to weather during transport (the wind must be essentially nonexistent).
It’s hard work and a bit of a miracle that this pretty seafood bite is on my fork.
Another hurdle is the season for these jewels — November through February.
But this isn’t Whitby’s first rodeo, and these sea miracles are his legacy. He’s Richmond seafood royalty, though he would cringe at hearing someone refer to him that way. He’s part of the family that owned, operated and brought Yellow Umbrella Provisions from a tiny roadside seafood stand to the seafood markets of today (currently owned by Thomas and Tucker Brown).
Upon entering Shoreline, you’ll immediately notice marked differences from your traditional seafood markets.
You’ll see no fish draped directly over ice or stacked haphazardly — this can create cross-contamination, bacteria from meltwater and myriad other icks. Instead, Shoreline uses sheet pans nestled inside crushed ice, creating a barrier between fish and water. The sniff test is another dead (ha) giveaway — no off-odors announce themselves at the door. Instead there’s a quiet, almost sweet sea smell. Without being too cliché (or perhaps this is exactly where cliché is needed) this scent could evoke the shoreline itself.
My apologies in advance because when this article publishes, the 10-course omakase dinner option will no longer be available. The experience was delicate and decadent — a parade of fresh sea, river and ocean prepared crudo-ed, sushi-ed, seared, blackened, fired or fried.
But fear not. Whitby plans to add more tables to the market, launching an “elevated, casual dinner” service three nights a week starting this April, plus a monthly wine dinner series. He notes that if dinner is busy, folks can pop over to neighboring WayGone Brewery for a pint or two before heading back to Shoreline.
The culinary magician behind both dinner and lunch is executive chef Josh Loeb. Loeb began his culinary journey in Richmond at the now-shuttered Crab Louie’s and then traveled the east and west coasts before returning to his roots. Loeb is using his experience to craft pithy menus showcasing Whitby’s mastery of all things marine.
Back to lunch, which you can — and should — grab now.
On a recent midday visit, I find fried clam strips stacked like a fall leaf pile atop a split and buttered bun, covered in fresh shredded iceberg lettuce and mayonnaise, slightly tinged with sweet cornichon pickle. This sandwich is towering — hazel-hued clam ribbons are best finger-plucked off the top of the seafood submarine until the sandwich becomes less unwieldy and easier to bite, though both hands will still be needed.
A hot fish sandwich (think Nashville spice, but with a lighter hand on the heat) features a pristine filet of catfish fried deep brown and punched up with choppy lemon-pepper coleslaw — acidic and peppery simultaneously. Conversely, a huge slab of white flaky fish, darkened to the color just before black, topped with a perky horseradish slaw makes up Shoreline’s blackened fish sandwich. Both are respectable-sized, excellent versions of fish house options.
The elevated nature of the food permeates everything on Shoreline’s short but sweet lunch menu. You’ll be downright sad to miss the rice fries: planks of rice, sticky and gingery, stacked like beige logs and served with a punchy “shark” sauce, tangier than a spicy mayo.
Whitby has, once again, created a space where buying your fresh seafood is accessible, sustainable and well appropriated. (The market offerings here should get their flowers as well but that’s a whole different article.). This time, dare I say, this seafood market has matured with its owner and cliches be damned. Fine wine, Whitby and company, fine wine.
Shoreline Seafood Market is located at 10614 Patterson Ave. The market is open 1-6 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Lunch is available Wednesday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Stay tuned for 2026 dinner hours.
