Frequently Asked Questions

Monday at 12:00 PM is the cutoff for that week's delivery. Anything that comes in after noon Monday goes out on the following week's route.

We sell what the boats bring in. Species, seasons, and federal catch limits decide what's available — not a purchasing calendar. Some weeks that's red snapper and scamp grouper, other weeks it's queen snapper or hogfish.

When a fish sells out it stays on the site marked sold out. Check back the following week.

Yes — any time before the Monday 12:00 PM cutoff for that week. After the cutoff your share is counted and packed, so we can't pull it back. If something's wrong with what shows up, our guarantee still applies.

Yes. One of the best parts of buying frozen is that it lets you stock your freezer.

Orders over $200 — use code GM200 for 10% off your entire order. Orders over $400 — use code GM400 for 15% off your entire order.

Not yet. We're building a recurring delivery option so you don't have to reorder every week. Drop your email on the Shipping & Delivery page and we'll tell you when it goes live.

We run a Tuesday route through the Tampa Bay area between 6 and 8 PM. Your order is packed on delivery day and stays in the freezer until we load the route, then travels to you in an insulated bag with ice. We text you the moment it's at your door.

Everything arrives frozen solid. It'll stay good for 1–2 hours, but the sooner you can get it inside and into your freezer, the better. This is Florida.

Free on orders of $50 or more. Under $50 there's a $7 delivery fee.

Enter your address at checkout. If you're in our zone, Tuesday delivery shows up as an option. If it doesn't appear, you're outside the current route.

Email jeff@gulfmonger.com and tell us where you are. We open new zones as customers stack up in an area.

You don't need to be. We leave the order at your door and text you when it's there — add a preferred spot in the delivery instructions at checkout. Just plan to get it inside within 1–2 hours.

If you'll be out of town, message us as soon as you know and we'll move you to the following week. The sooner the better, since we pack on delivery day.

Not yet. Right now we run local delivery only. Nationwide shipping is coming — the engineered cold chain has to hold on a two-day box before we put your fish on a plane, and we won't ship until it does.

Yes. We're at farmers markets around the Bay — check the market schedule for where we'll be this week.

The Gulf. We run our own boat out of John's Pass and buy from captains and fish houses we know by name. Everything we sell comes out of federally managed waters — science-based catch limits, seasons, and quota. Our fin fish fall under NOAA's Gulf Reef Fish program; Florida lobster is federally managed under its own spiny lobster plan.

Our fin fish gear is hook and line: rod-and-reel and federally permitted longline. No bottom trawls, no gillnets. Meet the captains behind your fish.

Portions average between 5 and 7 oz. We aim for 6 oz every time, but because we hand-cut and portion every fish, hitting it exactly isn't always possible — and we never go below 5 oz.

The FDA's recommended serving size for fish is 4 oz. We felt that was a little small for a full meal, so we sized ours up by 50%. The result is a balanced, individually portioned meal.

Not everything we sell is a fillet portion. Taco packs are 8 oz, grouper cheeks are 4 oz, and collars and whole fish are sold by weight. Every product page lists its own pack size.

Every fish is hand-cut and portioned, and we remove the bones — pin bones included — as we go. Each fillet is inspected twice before it's packed.

Even so, a small bone slips through now and then. It happens with hand-cut wild fish, so give each fillet a quick check before cooking.

By weight band, so you pick the size range that fits your table. Actual weight varies slightly within the range you choose.

Every whole fish comes gutted, scaled, and vacuum-sealed — ready to grill, roast, or fillet at home.

The collar is the cut just behind the gill plate — rich, fatty, and full of flavor. It's a chef's favorite, best grilled or roasted right on the bone. Collars are sold by weight and vary from fish to fish.

The cheek is the small, round muscle from behind the fish's cheek: tender, mild, and scallop-like in texture. Cheeks are naturally boneless and sold as 4 oz portions, which averages 7 to 10 cheeks depending on their size.

In 8 oz packs — 2 oz more fish than our standard 6 oz fillet portion. The cuts are bite-sized and vacuum sealed, ready for a hot pan, the grill, or the griddle.

Taco packs come from the trim. During processing, not every fillet finishes at a full 6 oz portion, and those off-cuts are the same wild caught fish we sell as fillet portions — so we pack them here instead of letting them go to waste. Because the trim comes from a full production run, a snapper or grouper pack often combines two or three species.

No. Everything we sell is wild caught in the Gulf and frozen exactly once — by us, within 48 hours of the fish hitting the dock. We don't buy imported fish, and we don't thaw and resell.

In packs of two. Every pack is two Florida lobster tails from the same size band, so they cook evenly side by side. The price you see on the product page is the price for the pack — both tails, not one.

Pick the band that fits your table: 4–5 oz, 5–6 oz, 6–7 oz, or 7–8 oz. That's the size of each tail in the pack. Individual tail weight may vary slightly within the band.

The band you pick is the weight of each tail, not the pack. A 4–5 oz pack is two tails at 4–5 oz apiece — not 4–5 oz total.

Bands run 4–5 oz, 5–6 oz, 6–7 oz, and 7–8 oz. Two tails is dinner for two, or one plate that means it. Individual tail weight may vary slightly within the band.

None. Lobster has no bones. The tails come in the shell, which protects the meat in the freezer and holds it together while it cooks — the meat lifts out clean once the shell is split.

Nothing to pick through, and nothing to check the way you would with a hand-cut fillet.

Freezer paper first, then vacuum sealed. The paper keeps the sharp edges of the shell from puncturing the seal in your freezer, and it blocks the light and air that cause freezer burn. From there it's frozen to -5°F and held through an engineered cold chain until it reaches you.

Florida lobster is crustacean shellfish, a major food allergen.

Fish is processed, vacuum-sealed, and frozen to -5°F — all within 48 hours of the fish hitting the dock. That's the whole promise, and it's the reason our fish eats the way it does.

Most "fresh" fish at a counter is 7 to 10 days off the boat and has been riding a temperature curve the entire way. Freezing to -5°F within 48 hours stops that clock — texture, oils, and flavor hold where they were the day the fish landed.

Frozen isn't the compromise. Done right, it's the engineered version of fresh.

For the best quality, we suggest eating within 6 months of purchase. That said, our fish holds excellent quality out to 12 months.

After 12 months it's still safe to eat, but the quality starts to degrade.

Keep it frozen until you're ready to cook. Then: open the package before thawing, and thaw under refrigeration. Overnight in the fridge is usually enough for a 6 oz portion or a pack of lobster tails.

Don't thaw on the counter, and don't leave it sealed in the vacuum bag while it thaws.

If your fish still has ice crystals, feels refrigerator-cold, or reads below 39°F at the core, it's within a safe range and can go straight back in the freezer.

If it arrives warm or fully soft, don't refreeze it — email us and we'll take care of it.

Email jeff@gulfmonger.com within 48 hours of delivery with your order number, a short description of the issue, and a photo of the affected product and its packaging.

Once we confirm it, you get a replacement or a refund — whichever fits the situation.

Usually, yes. Some thaw in transit is normal and not a problem. Ice crystals, refrigerator-cold to the touch, or a core temperature below 39°F all mean it's within a safe range and can go back in the freezer.

Warm, fully soft, or at or above 39°F at the core is a claim — email us.

No. Once a box leaves our cold chain it can't re-enter it, so returns aren't possible for food-safety reasons. That's what the guarantee is for — full detail on the Refund & Returns Policy page.

Email jeff@gulfmonger.com or use the contact form. It's us on the other end, not a call center.