From Toledo to Conneaut, there’s nothing like walleye in the summer on the shores of Lake Erie. It’s local, it tastes great, and it’s sustainable.
“Walleye is generally our number one seller or close to it, especially in the summer,” says Regan Reik, the general manager of Pier W in Lakewood. “Walleye’s the one fish we always have on the menu.”
Buying seafood can be an adventure (there’s a reason restaurants will put “market price” on their menu), but this year, there’s an added wrinkle: Tariffs.
Although there are charters aplenty in Ohio to go out on the lake for some recreational fishing, the walleye found in stores and restaurants comes almost exclusively from Canada. The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, passed in 2020 to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement, exempts food from tariffs, but President Donald Trump has proposed across-the-board tariffs on all goods coming from Canada, including walleye.
That plan’s been walked back, but there’s still a lot of uncertainty for anyone who catches, buys or even eats walleye. “A couple months ago, it felt like the sky was falling,” says Vito Figliomeni, executive director of the Ontario Commercial Fisheries’ Association. “The relationship’s a little tested right now, but we’re hopeful we can work through these challenges and get back to where we were.”
“We’re all watching it very carefully,” says John Barker, president of the Ohio Restaurant & Hospitality Alliance.
Quinn Goehring, owner of Quinn’s Kitchen and Bar in Bay Village, says the cost of walleye is just the latest thing he’s had to deal with, noting that the price of eggs almost tripled — a heavy load at a place that makes its own desserts. There are currently two walleye dishes on the menu, including IPA fish and chips, which has remained popular since its introduction when the restaurant opened in 2023. He said if prices get high enough, he might have to use cod for fish and chips.
Reik notes that the walleye supply has been so plentiful this year that it’s offsetting a lot of potential price increases.
“We haven’t been suffering too much to increase menu prices or not sell it,” he says.
It’s been an excellent early harvest, as well as record hatches.
“Walleye has been doing extremely well over the last few seasons,” he says. “They’ve really thrived recently for sure.”
Barker points out that prices remain high across the board for seafood, in addition to potential tariffs on Canada and China.
“I think you’re going to see pressure on everything,” he says. “Lobster, calamari, salmon, scallops.”
But when it comes to seafood in Northern Ohio, there’s nothing like walleye.
“Ultimately, people here want walleye,” Goehring says, “So we’ll have to figure out how to keep doing that.”
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