Small World now delivers fresh seafood to pick-up sites across Center City

Of all the many roles Robert Amar has played in the local food scene over the past two decades — ubiquitous front-of-the-house presence at myriad local restaurants (Buddakan, Tangerine, Fare, the Inn at St. Peter’s Village), hot dog evangelist at Underdogs, his now-closed subterranean wiener restaurant near Rittenhouse Square — his recent venture as the founder of a Small World Seafood, a boutique wholesaler to restaurants was among his favorites.

“I could source direct for no-b.s. quality stuff and do well by the chefs in knowing their cycles,” says Amar, 51, a native of Montreal, who had 20-some regular customers. “I was always available, and I made a nice living.”

But, like a lot of restaurant purveyors who suddenly found themselves in a bind at the beginning of the pandemic, Amar was left with a cold truck full of 200 pounds of fresh seafood when Philadelphia’s restaurants were suddenly shut down due to the coronavirus in mid-March. So he sold it to his neighbors in Fairmount — who told their friends. About 10 people responded with requests for more the next week. And before he knew it and with the help of a new partner, neighbor and restaurant vet Andy Farrell, they’ve grown a direct-to-consumer venture fueled by a simple email newsletter and a series of weekly Google sign-up sheets. They are now delivering up to 2,000 pounds of fresh seafood to an average of 500 customers each week at outdoor pickup sites across Center City.

There are some core items like good-quality farmed salmon, dry-pack scallops, and frozen shrimp that are always available and come in two-pound bags of preportioned products. But the small inventory changes weekly with intriguing seasonal specials, and the quality has been outstanding for the price, from fresh New England haddock (which we turned into a Cajun fish fry), to plump red snapper from the Caribbean (we baked it en papillote with cherry tomatoes, wine, herbs, and capers), littleneck clams (spaghetti alle vongole), pristine tuna (sesame crusted with a ginger-soy glaze), fresh oysters, and even bone-in skate wings for which recipes were linked on the company’s website.

“We just sold 200 pounds of bone-in skate wing, and I can’t remember a week pre-COVID that 200 pounds of skate wing were sold in Center City,” said Amar, noting that retail customers’ steady demand for variety is a departure from chefs who consistently want the same things for their menus.

Small World is one of several restaurant purveyors that have transformed themselves into retail operations, including Green Meadow Farms, Samuel and Son, and Giordano’s Garden Grocery.

The convenience of access to such fresh ingredients without needing to go to a market clearly has popular appeal to the 2,500 email subscribers. Small World recently added a weekly drop-off in Washington Square to existing stops in Fitler Square and Rittenhouse Square on Fridays, along with Thursdays in Fairmount. And expansion is in the works, with possible Saturday stops in West Philadelphia and Mount Airy/Chestnut Hill planned for mid-September. Amar is also considering opening a retail storefront at the company’s headquarters (444 N. 4th St.) to sell smoked fish, broths, and sauces by late fall, “depending upon how people behave inside” when the city gradually reopens.

For the moment, though, a revived business that’s struck a chord by bringing restaurant-grade seafood direct to motivated local home cooks, has been its own reward.

“The amazing thing has been the community part of it,” says Amar, “and how much it connects us on those delivery days to so many people across the city.”

—Craig LaBan

Visit Small World Seafood (https://smallworldseafood.com/) for more information on weekly offerings and how to sign up for email updates. Two-pound packages of portioned fish, $18 to $34.