A Hidden Gem Awaits at 39th Street Pier
By Mary Nauha
Astoria is adding a new dimension to the term ‘FRESH’ in the local seafood market! For those who are lucky enough to know a few fishermen or are willing to pay the big bucks to dine out in couture establishments flung sporadically around the northwest, live crab is not too hard to find. For those who don’t, it might be something of an anomaly.
Local resident and proprietor of Hanthorne Crab Company and Pier 39 Seafoods, Tom Hilton, is native to Astoria and brings his family heritage along with a strong network of friends and associates in the fishing industry together to offer an all-new experience to Astoria at Pier 39.
Fresh, local and sustainable wild seafoods will be purchased straight off the boats of people Tom knows personally here in Astoria through Hanthorne Crab Co. and wholesaled to his own development which is Pier 39 Seafoods. Tom will offer fresh salmon, fresh crab, and fresh seafoods by supply and demand. If the customer demands it, he’ll be able to get it. “Right now we sell live crab. We’re in the process of building a commercial kitchen so we can sell cooked crab, crab cakes, crab cocktails, smoked salmon and pickled salmon–the fine delicacies that our families grew up on here in Astoria,” says Tom.
According to Tom, “the difficulty we see is that people aren’t aware. They come to the coast looking for seafood and are surprised to find that we, in fact, eat a lot of steak and hamburgers. So we see an niche in our market place for this type of experience. Here at Pier 39 we are a tourist-based place, but also a lot of locals come here. We want to provide a seafood experience, but also we want to provide an educational experience so we will educate our consumers on the type of product they get.”
