Denver Central Market Changes Out Its Seafood Counter

When the Denver Central Market opened a year ago, one of the first scenes visitors encountered after walking through the front door was the expansive fresh-seafood case at Silva's Fish Market. But partner Jesusio Silva departed earlier this year, leaving the market's founders, Ken Wolf and Jeff Osaka, to rename and reboot Silva's, one of eleven vendors under one roof at 2669 Larimer Street.

After some construction work and a few weeks under a tarp, the new version, called Tammen's Fish Market, is now open. The name comes not from a chef or owner, but from H.H. Tammen, a Denver bartender who opened his own souvenir manufacturing company in the building now occupied by Denver Central Market in 1881 and later became co-editor of the Denver Post.

While the name is new, there's a familiar face behind the counter. Chef Aniedra Nichols, recently of Fish N Beer (and Elway's Cherry Creek before that), is now turning out a small menu of seafood dishes, including shrimp and grits, a seafood roll and raw-fish preparations like ceviche, poke and oysters on the half-shell.

While the fresh-fish counter is smaller than before the makeover, there's more seating at the counter for customers and a new kitchen setup with a flat top, grill and fryer so that Nichols can turn out a greater range of daily specials.

Tammen's is open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. If you don't see what you need at the fish counter, you can place special orders on the Tammen's Fish Market website.