Fantastic Fins

[djlamonica]

That side isnt open to the public, they use it to breed and is not set up as a retail store.  If there slow and ask nicley they may take you over there though.

[Motorcity7.3]

Stopped in today,first time. Called at 11:45ish internet said they did not open until 12noon. I was in desperate need of a new filter,old one gave up the ghost. Picked up a fx6 and a double bright led light for my 150 gallon and of course did some fish shopping! Took home a trio of red top aristochromis,nicely colored male,a nice eureka red peacock and a beautiful pair of nimbochromis venustus.

Could not be happier,great store and decent prices!
Hopefully if the weather cooperates,the next shipment will include a pair of wild caught usisya flavescent peacock to add to the collection. Dale showed me some of his prize collection and took some time to pass on some always needed knowledge! Overall a awesome,awesome time.

[JG]

I and another hobbyist made a trip to Fantastic Fins and I was impressed with the store. Nice selection of fishes, great people working in the store. Dale's passion is contagious. Great breeding room next door. High humidity in the store, but what should one expect amongst gallons of water. No complaints from me. Better than any of the LFS we have in Windsor, Ontario.

[Zach]

So yesterday my fellow fish breeder friend (aquaponicsJim) and I went to Fantastic Fins in Livonia for the first time. I heard a lot about the place but was excited to actually go...and wow! What a seriously awesome fish store not too far from home!

First off, they any and all varieties of African Ciclids which was HUGE for me...and the fact that they were all from local breeders, farms, and top notch fishkeepers really showed in how healthy many of the cichlids are!

Second, the staff were very helpful! I met Ryan and one of the owners. They sure knew their facts and answered all our questions...even 10 minutes to closing time when they obviously were trying to clean up! Nice guys.

They provided lots of information to us and I have to say that we will both definitely be back there to buy some quality fish.

I highly recommend this place. Favorite fish store in Michigan by far.

Zach

[AquaponicJim]

Great review of the place. Spot on!

[Zach]

I was starting this post off as just a friendly recommendation and then this happened. Lol!

[Ron]

Good to hear you guys really enjoyed the trip. I've always enjoyed my trips there as well. They are also a supporter of the MCA, which is great.

FWIW, for anyone looking for FF reviews, here is the main review thread http://michigancichlid.com/simplemachinesforum/index.php?topic=10.0

[thebbqguy]

I went to the store today. It was funny. I used to live just down the street!

It's funny how you can drive by a place for years and never notice. Then you start a new hobby and you recall seeing it but not paying attention to it. My wife loved the temperature in the store because she's always cold. Next winter she'll be wanting to go there and look around. 

We got there a few minutes after opening. I was surprised how busy it was. There was a steady stream of people buying fish. Not just looking; but also buying.

Before we went in I told my wife "we're just looking first" I wanted to see all the varieties and tanks before making my purchase. I knew what I wanted, but knew that if we zeroed in first I'd end up rushing through.

We went to get rotkeils, but after seeing the blue Jack Dempsey's I almost changed my mind.  I guess that's the danger of "looking around" first.

We had a lot of questions and they answered them all. They also recommended food and gave some tips on how to store the extra properly. I have read a lot of reviews and even a You Tube video about the store. I'd have to agree with everyone based on my experience. It's a nice locally owned store with service that hard to find from the "big box" locations.

[Jessthefishman]

Heading to fantastic fins today. Does anyone know any fish stores near by?

[Regalblue]

Heading to fantastic fins today. Does anyone know any fish stores near by?

Pet Connection in Livonia
Fish Doctor in Canton
Something Fishy in westland
Cichlid World in Garden City

[Riftwater]

Since I set up my tank a month ago I've hit about 20 stores in Metro Detroit, this was, by a good margin, the best out there.

[Ron]

I'm always amazed for what appears from the outside to be a small store, just how much they have available in there! Dale and his staff are great to deal with. I spent about an hour looking through everything and then ended up finding some plants, a few tetras, and a spiny monster that I couldn't leave without! It's always a pleasure to stop by there when the opportunity arises.

[cringram]

This is what I look for in a fish store.  Knowledgeable staff, cramped, wall to wall ceiling to floor fish tanks and filled with oddballs and rarities.  This is not a display store with spectacular setups and lots of tanks labeled "NFS".  But that is also reflected in the prices, which is a tradeoff I'll take anyday.  Especially when the fish that are actually for sale are so amazing.  By far my favorite fish store for cichlids and Plecos.  The owner breeds many of the plecos in the store and the prices can't be matched, nor can the selection.  They also tend to have a good selection of monsterfish/predators as they always seem to have several varieties of peacock bass, sting rays, puffer fish, vampire tetras, ect.  When I went in there last weekend they had a full tank with 4-5 different species of Birchir and another tank of wolfish (maybe a dozen?).  This is a true fish hobbyist store and it shows.