NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Another Nashville classic, Little's Fish Market, has announced they are closing for good, effective end of business this Friday. Following a social media post, the store in Germantown was packed with customers, hoping to get a few last orders in.
"It’s gonna be sadly missed," said Rachel Stewart, who has been shopping here since the store opened 65 years ago.
Ricky Woodard has been coming to Little's Fish Market for as long as he can remember. "They had this coke machine for 25 cents," Woodard recalled.
But it wasn't the sodas that got him hooked. "The good fish, the fresh fish," said Woodard.
So like a lot of other people in line, Woodard is angling for ways to increase what he takes home. "I’ll take 6 pieces of that fish," he said.
The owner tells NewsChannel 5, closing has nothing to do with COVID-19. In fact, they say they've had one of the best years so far in their history. Chris Little says they actually got an offer on the building and the space will soon reopen as a restaurant.
For another longtime customer, that's depressing but not surprising.
"You don’t want to lose that fabric of the neighborhood," said Bryan Bender. "You can’t blame somebody if they get a good offer, I’d probably do the same thing, it’s just sad to see it go after all these years."
In a way, Woodard feels like he's the one swimming upstream. He's worried as Germantown continues to prosper, losing places like this is the price of progress. "Downtown has really come in this area, and it’s thriving," he said. "It’s coming up so fast with apartments, it’s getting crowded, the parking."
But this honey hole won't totally dry up. Their other midstate location on Providence Boulevard in Clarksville is remaining open. It'll just require a longer swim. "But the fish is so good, I will travel to Clarksville," said Woodard.
Little's Fish Market also rose in prominence a few years ago, when they became the unofficial supplier of many bold Nashville Predators fans who have snuck in and slung a catfish onto the ice.
