Acme Smoked Fish

Get there early! I recommend the Pastrami Smoked Salmon.

My only complaint is that the origin of the salmon is a question.

I love this place. Go and wait it’s so worth it. Try to get there closer to 8 when the line is shorter and they haven’t run out of the special of the day (one time it was salmon poke and it was amazing). Those whole Bering Cisco’s are delicious too.

And the clouds part and the heavens open and what will you find… Acme Smoked Fish!!!
If you have any interested in smoke salmon this place will probably blow your mind!
I met a friend at 10:30 and on a nice day the line was definitely outside the building so I suggest getting hear as early as you can.
Once you make your way through the factory type environment you get to the cold room where they are slinging salmon left and right. There are a ton of types, flavors, and preparations for your to choose from and luckily the staff are willing to basically let you try anything. The prices are very good for such high quality product.
I came home with the Gravlox (¹⁄₃ lb), Pastrami Salmon (½ lb), and Lemon Pepper (1 lb) along with a piece of Cracked Pepper Salmon all for $ 36.50 which again, given the quality I was impressed.
Overall, this place is a true gem in the neighborhood and the city. The staff are great and this place just proves that really this city is one of a kind!

If you like smoked salmon at all, this place is heaven! Acme supplies places like Russ & Daughters but here, you pay the same wholesale prices they do — by far the cheapest prices possible. My friend and I arrived at 10:20 and the wait was minimal. I would say 10 min or so, which gave us time to look at the prices and start choosing (which can take well over that time — there are so many things to choose from!). As my friend put it, going to a warehouse in the morning for smoked fish seems like the East coast version of lining up for barbecue in Texas. It’s definitely a food experience you can’t miss out on and maybe even a rite of passage. I would recommend coming around this time at the latest, however, as the line had extended out the door by the time we left (Maybe 10:45 or so?)
The line first passes by some salmon laid out for sampling. After that are prepackaged smoked fish. (I suggest skipping these — they’re just a little pricier and if you’re here, then I’m assuming you like a good deal.) Then, somebody comes to help you. If you already know what you want to order, you can just tell them. But, I highly recommend just asking to go to the counter where they cut the salmon. There, you can see what each fish looks like and you can ask to sample anything. My friend and I were extremely indecisive and in a state of wonderment/​excitement overload so we ended up sampling almost everything. All through this, however, the woman who helped us was extremely kind and happy to let us try anything. The sizes of the samples themselves were extremely generous, with my friend and I even struggling to finish sample after sample before the next one was handed to us. (Truthfully, I expected a brusque/​rude attitude since it’s wholesale, but luckily my experience was nothing like that!) Everything I tried was so good that I ended up with a quarter pound of each. I believe I got [cold smoked] pastrami, gravlax, sweet & savory, and the flavor of the day (not sure what this was but it kind of tasted like seaweed to me?), tuna, [hot smoked] salmon, and whitefish. I also got some orange ginger salmon jerky because I was curious and the woman who helped us called it «delectable.»
The prices are amazing! There were even some specials for as low as $ 4/​lb and $ 8/​lb. Cold smoked salmon runs from $ 16/​lb (Atlantic Salmon) to $ 18/​lb for flavored and $ 25/​lb for wild caught. Hot smoked salmon is $ 16/​lb. (I posted a photo of the menu if you want prices for everything else). Remember, they’re cash only so be sure to hit up an ATM before you arrive. It’s hard to resist getting a pound or two when everything tastes this good.
I had been planning to visit this place for weeks now and I’m so glad I finally had the chance to. For anyone who enjoys smoked fish, this place can bring out a child-​like excitement and wonderment. As my friend put it, «This is the only time I’ve been somewhere that smelled like fish and enjoyed it.» My only regret is putting this visit off until my last Friday in New York. I could’ve been eating so much smoked goodness all semester long! Don’t make the same mistake I did — get down here this Friday!

ACME truly is the Holy of Holy’s for the true smoked fish afficienato. Richie the «Chief» is a mensch, always approachable and always happy to please the customers. Monica and the rest of the staff on Friday mornings are a pleasure to deal with and always patient.
Wish ACME were located here in Los Angeles. The Best of the very Best!!!
UCLA Dave

I visited Acme for the first time today. It was a rainy day so the line didn’t extend outside and was only 15 – 20 people long. Even then, we still had to wait about an hour before being served. That said, I am not complaining. When they do get to you, they’re just as enthusiastic and friendly as they probably were at the beginning of the day. I told him it was my first time there and I came for sliced smoked salmon, he gestured me towards the far end of the table and generously let me sample the different varieties of the day. I never liked cold baked salmon, but it was actually pretty good. The pastrami was a little too salty for me. The dill had good flavor. I walked away with a pound of the daily special, which was avocado salsa, at $ 22/​lb. It tasted a little sweet, which I really liked and reminded me more of a poke or ceviche. It balances out with the saltiness of smoked salmon and would probably go very well topped with mango. Regular Alaskan smoked salmon was $ 14/​lb, which is a steal compared to the supermarket brands at $ 36−40/lb. I didn’t mind waiting on the line, granted the line was short when I arrived at 12:10pm but extended to the door when I left around 1:30pm. If I only had to wait for an hour, I’d probably visit again for the experience. If I have to wait for more than hour, I probably would just go to the supermarket. It is also a bit of trek to get to. Otherwise, the salmon is delicious and the prices are hard to beat!

Quite simply the best smoked salmon in all of New York City. Bought some for Passover and everyone FLIPPED.
This place is a true NYC treasure. I hope it’s here forever.

I wish Atlanta had an acme factory that sold to the general public. It was pretty cool choosing from all the varieties and way cheaper than a supermarket. Given the option I would be here every Friday morning. Sadly, its not an option

This is one of my favorite places to buy fish. You can pick them up at most stores but the fun is heading over on Friday mornings and purchasing directly from the source. In a world where old New York is being pushed out this is a treasure. You wait on line from 8 am-​12 pm (I think, I get there early) and you can buy directly from the source. The fish they sell by the pound fresh is unbelievable. We buy a ton and freeze it. My whole family loves smoked fish, it really is a treat to go.
Cash only and beware of parking rules, we almost got towed once a few blocks away because I missed the sign.

This place is the shizz!!! My wonderful husband has been bringing me smoked fish from Acme for years. He has more flexible hours than me, so waiting in line on Friday mornings doesn’t require taking time off from work. After hearing all about the generous free tastings, the brusque and efficient Polish fishmongers, and the endless array of preserved fish products, ACME has taken on a near mythical quality in my mind — a grand emporium of unctuous, rich smoked fish. Now that’s a reputation to live up to… and oh did it…
So after all that anticipation, I finally got to go last Friday since it was Good Friday and I had the day off from work. I showed up around 11:30 and the line was crazy long, like 40 people deep. I waited close to an hour, but have heard that on normal Fridays, the wait is 10−15mins max.
The outside is pretty non-​descript — it’s a generic warehouse on a industrial block, not yet overrun by hipsters and yuppies. Once you walk past the loading dock and into the refrigerated fish room, you’ll find several counter staffed by the aforementioned Polish ladies. There’s a little sign behind them with a list of products and prices. Fish here is much much cheaper than Russ and Daughters (and other fine purveyors of smoked fish), e.g. a lb of pastrami salmon here is $ 16 vs. $ 35.
Although they do give out free tastings, the myriad of fish products does get a little overwhelming. If you’re not a smoked fish connoisseur, I do recommend doing a little research beforehand or asking your bestest Jewish friend. My faves are the pastrami salmon, the gravlax, the sable and BBQ salmon. 4ozs of the stuff is enough for a tasting for two. If you want enough for two for a week, get a couple lbs of the stuff. It’s good for ~10 days in the fridge.

Super cheap baked salmon belly ($ 4/​lbs) but the smoked salmon ain’t that much cheaper than Trader Joe’s for example. Pastrami tastes absolutely amazing, but price is only $ 2/​lbs cheaper than TJ prepacked ones.

If you love seafood like i do, specially salmon this is your heaven. It feels like my heaven every time i go here, and every time i take a bite of what i bought at home, shooop im back at my heaven.
Delicious smoked Salmon and dried fish are sold here. Salmon variety Dill, pastrami, belly, honey. and couple others. The people servicing the customers are nice, fast, attentive. You wanna try something just ask, theyll lop a piece of and off to heaven you go. Take lots of money youll prolly want a pound or more of everything you taste. They have stuff for sale every week for great prices, took some honey smoked salmon for 4 bucks a pound where usual its like 9 bucks. Cant go wrong, BK’s heck! NY’s best kept secret, been coming here, well before they moved to this new spot, since i was a kid. best 5 stars ever!
Price breakdown
Most delish smoked fish pastrami, dill, honey im forgetting a couple more
17 a pound
get whatever is on sale
try everything!
dont have to get here early early! lines are about the same all day from my experience, font get too late sometimes they run out the good stuff.
ENJOY!

It’s a great place to go if you are in the know about Acme and fresh fish! Lines are long if you don’t beat the rush!

ACME SMOKED FISH and fried chicken mamma mia!!!
IT REALLY COULDN’T GET ANY BETTER.
It’s like home made. So convenient, healthy and everything is absolutely fresh. I just love Acme.

This is a no frills show folks. There are no fancy show rooms or counters. This is buying your product the way restaurants or other wholesalers do. First of, your window of opportunity is small. Yes its only once a week and its on a weekday. Its a bit hard to spot the entry because its a working production facility. Once you do find it, assuming you dont have to queue in line, which is often the case, taste and sample multiple varieties of smoked salmon, hot and cold smoked varieties of cod, smelt, mackerel, herring and more salmon including the king version that is the uncured variety, which is one of my favorites and melts in your mouth. I can easily drop $ 100 and not look back. ITS THAT GOOD! for the true european smoked fish tradition look no further.
P. S. this is the same facility that supplies most of the fancy stores in Manhattan for circa $ 40/​lbs. Do yourself a favor, save some $ and take the treck on the L train to ACME !!

It’s a surreal experience but well worth it. Fridays. Greenpoint. Smoked Fish. Bring cash.

omg. this place is. heaven if you’re a big (smoked) salmon lover. I’ve been wanting to come to this place for sometime now and was so excited to finally have a Friday off! (Open to the public on Fridays). After going through an hour of traffic we finally arrived to this hidden gem. We waited about 10 mins to order. I wasn’t sure what to do at first but after watching a couple ppl order I was excited to get the pastrami and gravalax salmon. If you’re looking for something herby/​earthy try the gravalax. The pastrami was my favorite. It had a nice smoky and meaty flavor to it. We also tried their special of the day which was hawaiian smoked salmon poke. The poke had big chunks of smoked salmon mixed w a bunch of spices and avocado. My only regret was not ordering more poke. cash only and super friendly staff

Honestly, this is one of Brooklyn’s best kept secret. You can basically get anything for ½ the retail price in the city. Choose anything from smoked salmon, sable, trout, whitefish to herring. The staff here is wonderful, don’t be afraid to ask for samples.

Acme is an institution. I come for the Friday sales when I don’t feel like shelling out retail prices for good old fashioned appetizing. Great variety and prices on all kinds of smoked salmon, whitefish, herring, sable, and pastrami salmon. For kosher keepers, you do need to make sure that the items are properly wrapped. All smoked fish products, with the exception of Smoked Sturgeon are certified kosher by KOF-​K. All herring products are certified Kosher by the Orthodox Union (OU). Salmon Jerky is KSA certified. Baked smoked salmon, whitefish salad, belly lox, and sable make for great pickings for a synagogue kiddush or a bris meal. Oh man, some appetizing from here, with some fresh cream cheese, and hot bagels from your bagel store or bakery of choice, and you’ve got a meal to make any bubbe, Jewish grandmother, very happy, especially since you didn’t pay retail prices. (I know, sounds like a running joke from The Nanny). The Acme products, though, are also very good when purchased from your local grocer or from Costco, which sells their items at good prices.

Wow! The place had a long line of people waiting to purchase smoked fish during the window of opportunity they’re open to the public. We got generous samples of salmon cured with different spices. Everything looked fresh and delish! They only take cash, but the prices are very reasonable. We walked out with a bag full of fish for less than $ 30.

friday wholesale is heaven. cash only!

Amazing place — love the David Burke pastrami salmon. This is one of the places that makes this city really special!

This might be the worst kept secret among city foodies. About 5 separate friends have told me about this place, probably because it’s so great. The fish is phenomenal and they have free samples. Great service.

CASH ONLY.
I didn’t realize this when I visited, so I could only buy $ 40 of fish. A total shame, given how fantastic the fish was, but given Acme’s prices I still managed to buy 2+ pounds of goods.
I highly recommend the pastrami smoked salmon and the sable. I arrived around 12:30pm and only waited 10 – 15 minutes. Staff was incredibly helpful and nice — when I mentioned it was my first time visiting and I wasn’t too familiar with what to buy, she offered me samples of the fish so I could make up my mind.

They’ve done a great job keeping a clean and safe operation going. They definitely make the best lox and pickled herring. But wait— there’s more. They now make salmon jerky which is a great healthy snack. Nice to see what they do for the public now.

This is the best place to bring back some flavors from New York City to Hawaii. My friends kept asking me where I got the fish smoked from because it was so good! Got to sample all the fish and it was delicious. My wife didn’t like the way the sales people treated us, rushed but hey isn’t that the way New Yorkers are. I still gave them five stars!

Bravo to Acme! For this past big Friday, the staff at Acme were so kind to start their works and open the store as early as 6am!
Besides their impeachable smoked salmons, I also found the salmon salad, trout, white fish, caviar… so delicious!

Grumpy people waiting waiting waiting on line every Friday morning. Smiling on the way out. So worth it. This week it was the chopped herring, fresh sliced smoked salmon and the pastrami lox!

Fish Heaven Friday!!!
Come in from 8 AM– 1 PM (i’m not sure if 1 PM or 12:30 so please check)
This place has the best fish and it is fresh and clean. My mom always went her and when I moved out I made sure to find out where she gets the fish from.
The smoked trout is my favorite and they are well priced. The white fish is great as well.
And if you most know they have not always the salmon belly— Heaven in your mouth– the taste of salmon perfection… My mom never told me about this!

This is the acme factory/​warehouse — read nothing fancy. They sell their fish, on site, at discount prices on Fridays from 8 – 1 pm only. Make sure to arrive early to get your pick at the freshest, best priced, smoked fish in the city.
The entrance isn’t clearly marked. You’ll know you’re there when you see the acme sign. The door is to the right of the roll up large door.
Waits are long as everyone is assigned a specific staff member to weigh and select their fish. Offerings here range from pre-​packaged acme and blue Hill Bay products (smoked salmon and herring, roe, salmon jerry and candy, herring, and a variety of spreads) to very fresh fillets of smoked and cured fish including blue fish and skate.
As this is a factory, there is no place to eat on site so expect to take out and eat somewhere else (I haven’t found a great bagel place in the area though Peter Pan will do).
Fresh smoked salmon is around $ 8 a pound.

Fish Friday!
Acme is famous for smoked fish. You see there stuff all the time, in supermarkets, delis, bagel stores, and so on. There’s like 5 different brand names they distribute. So chances are, if you enjoy lox or whitefish or whatever deliciousness you’ve probably already had acme fish.
So back to fish Friday. Every Friday from 8 – 1 the place opens up to the public. Go. Ask to try. Buy fish. Eat and enjoy.

Soo good! I think lox and salmon sashimi are my most favorite foods ever.
Acme nova lox is fresh and flavorful with an extremely luscious mouthfeel… If you love fish as much as I do, you’ll know what I’m trying to say.
Just do yourself a favor and get your booty to Acme.

I don’t want to write a review for this. I don’t want anyone to know about this magical, wonderful place called Acme.
What else would you be doing from 8am to 1pm on a Friday?
Here are steps to happiness:
1. Step inside.
2. Follow the line of people.
3. Wait patiently for your turn.
4. A server will assist you and get you everything you need.
5. Grab some packaged smoked salmon.
6. Sample their fresh smoked salmon… GRAVLAX (they give you free samples, and they’re not stingy with them!)
7. Grab their ultra delicious smoked salmon spread (BEST SPREAD YOU’LL EVER NEED IN LIFE)
8. Order a pound of each smoked salmon… trust me. You’ll finish half a pound in one sitting.
9. SALMON ROE!
10. Pay in cash. (Bring all your money here)
11. Leave while trying to hide your giddiness & excitement in order to avoid looking like a noob.
12. Get Grady’s cold brew around the corner and get some bagels from your local deli and call it a day.
On a serious note though, bring all your money here.