NEWPORT BEACH — Terese Pearson offers her customers more than fresh lobster and fish, she provides recipes, tells visitors how to get the best taste from seafood, shares memories with those customers who remember when Pearson’s Port first opened and gets to know all who enter the store.

Photo by: Ambrosia Sarabia Staying Afloat – Pearson’s Port, which celebrates its 39th birthday this month, has been known for its fresh fish and friendly service since opening in 1971. More than 70 percent of the seafood sold in the floating fish market is caught by co-owner Tom Pearson aboard his vessel, Harvest, and sold by wife, Terese Pearson.

“It really is all about family here,” said Pearson, co-owner of Pearson’s Port. “We are so happy to have them (customers) here.”

Since its inception almost 40 years ago by Vi and Roy Pearson, the floating fish market has thrived in Newport Harbor, as the former owners created strong bonds with their clientele and served the freshest fish in the city. Now, the facility stands as the lone floating fish market in the state and is regarded as a city landmark.

“We are excited and proud that we are one of the things that Newport has to offer,” Terese Pearson said.

Pearson’s Port, which celebrates its 39th birthday this month, has been known for its fresh fish and friendly service since it opened as an open-air market in 1971. The store was the brainchild of Roy Pearson, who left his position in the aerospace industry to follow his “inner fisherman.” He built the market with his own hands, creating a fish stand where customers could peer into the bay and pick and choose the marine creatures of their choice.

The store went off like “gangbusters” and was a hit with Vietnamese refugees who sought familiar food staples, Terese Pearson explained.

Together, Roy and Vi ran the business with the help of their six children. Roy supplied the store with fresh fish he caught, and Vi staffed the store. Over time, Roy added walls to the floating dock, transforming the open-air stand to an enclosed market.

In 2000, after the death of his father Roy, in 1999, Tom Pearson purchased the store from his mom just before her 80th birthday, allowing her to retire. Since then, he and his wife, Terese, have run the store in a similar fashion.

Tom spends his days on the water on his vessel, Harvest, catching what is in season while Terese runs the store. Occasionally, their children, Haley and Carley, will also lend a hand.

Locals and regulars know what others don’t. The one-room floating store may appear to be nothing more than a shanty to outsiders, but once visitors enter the building (portions of the original market have been incorporated into the structure) they realize they are in a rare seafood haven.

Nine tanks hold live catches, such as shrimp and lobster. Fresh swordfish, tilapia, octopus, squid, scallops, crab, white seabass, halibut and just about anything else in season are sold. The store brings in fish from local fishermen and imports tuna from Fiji and Tahiti, as well as bringing in salmon. But about 70 percent of what is carried on a daily basis is caught by Tom.

“We definitely sell the freshest seafood that we can get our hands on, at the best prices,” said Terese Pearson. “I won’t sell you anything that I wouldn’t serve you if you came to my house.”

The dedication to selling only the best seafood, combined with the friendly atmosphere, has kept customers coming back to the market for years. Even rain is unable to deter visitors from visiting the market.

“There is no place like this, in any harbor,” said Tarek Elsharhawy, a longtime customer who drives in from Los Alamitos on a weekly basis.

Mark Lane of Costa Mesa has been shopping at the market for more than 20 years. He planned to barbecue two lobsters that he grabbed from the tank.

“I’ve been coming here for years,” Lane said, as Terese explained how to cook the lobsters on the barbecue. “My mom used to bring me.”

The business continues to thrive — and customers come by car, by foot and by boat. Newbies who have heard rave reviews spread by word of mouth often stop by to see what all the talk is about. They rarely visit only once.

“We look forward to doing business here as long as possible,” Terese Pearson said. “If our kids want it when we are done, then they can have it. We will just have to see.”

Pearson’s Port is located at 100 E. Coast Highway and is open daily excluding Tuesdays. For more information, call (949) 675-6771.