The Hartford “Fish Man” is expanding.
Hartford resident and Just Fish owner Maurice Pipkin has drawn crowds with multiple food trucks for years. In mid-April, he will be adding his first brick-and-mortar location, Just Fish & More. It’s a rebranded takeout restaurant that will be located at 1010-1012 Burnside Ave. in East Hartford.
Not surprisingly, Pipkin said the No. 1 attraction for the food trucks has been its fresh fish. Pipkin has fresh seafood each week and makes regular trips to the New York and Boston markets. Among the standard offerings at Just Fish are whole belly clams, fresh clam strips, porgies, whiting fish and catfish.
“We sell the best mustard fried catfish,” Pipkin said.
Just Fish also serves shrimp, but he said it’s not jumbo shrimp but more like prawns. Sea scallops are another option for customers.
A rendering of the Just Fish & More, which is opening in East Hartford in mid-April. Just Fish food trucks have been operating in Hartford for the last five years. (Courtesy of Maurice Pipkin)
The East Hartford location will have more choices for customers, including seafood sausage which consists of shrimp, scallops and salmon, blended together that is turned into a “sausage.”
“That’s going to be one of our featured items that we’re going to add to our list,” Pipkin said. “We’re going to have seafood egg rolls, which is like our No. 1 hit that we normally bring out during the spring and the summertime which consists of lobster meat and shrimp. We put that inside of an egg roll with seasoned cabbage and we roll them up. People love them.”
Pipkin, who is also a pastor, previously owned a used car dealership in Bloomfield. He sold the dealership during the pandemic and opened the Just Fish food trucks and became know as the “Fish Man.” He posted videos on Facebook, TikTok and Instagram about his daily $10 specials. Pipkin said he will start doing that again in the spring.
“I’ll be back out there saying, it’s me again, the ‘Fish Man,’ giving you nothing but the best fish all around town,” Pipkin said. “We were all stuck in our houses, and I got the idea of doing a fish fry business. I converted a hot dog cart into a fish cart.
“I would fry fish for my family every Saturday,” he added. “I put a tent in the front of my house with a deep fryer, and I was just selling whitened fish, and then we became so popular. Everybody was like, it’s a spot you can go to where it’s outside, you can grab your food, and it grew from there. I always tell people that we went from a tent to a truck and now a takeout.”
One of the Just Fish food trucks in Hartford. (Courtesy of Maurice Pipkin)
Pipkin’s wife Takwana Pipkin, who also goes by TK, makes the potato salad and the hush puppies on the food trucks. His top cook is goddaughter Justice Conway. Conway, 30-year-old Hartford resident, has been working at Just Fish for five years.
“Pastor Mo asked me five years ago to work with him and I started as a cashier for him in a small truck,” Conway said. “I started out just doing the fries and inventory. When we started cooking in a bigger truck I started to cook. It’s been a wonderful experience.”
Conway said she has enjoyed meeting so many people in the community and memorizes her regular customers’ orders.
“I just like to make people feel comfortable,” Conway said. “That’s our main goal. We want them to be comfortable and experience great seafood.”
Conway said she has a 1-year-old child and was pregnant working at the food truck. She said her regulars are always asking about how her baby is doing.
“It’s been a crazy, wonderful journey. I love it. This is the most fun job I’ve had in my life,” Conway said.
Conway said she grew up around seafood, but it was never really something she ate. Some of her favorite dishes to prepare include the fish and shrimp combo, lobster tail and clam strips. She said the most common food she prepares is shrimp or catfish.
The Just Fish food trucks are currently located at 3250 Main Street in the North End of Hartford and at 20 Church Street in downtown Hartford near Capitol Community College. The hours for the Church Street location are Monday through Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday hours are occasionally extended as late as 8 p.m. The Main Street location is Monday through Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The food trucks in Hartford will remain open when Just Fish & More opens later this year.
“East Hartford is going to be great, and I think people will come from everywhere. I can’t wait,” Conway said.
Some of the offerings for the Just Fish food truck in Hartford. (Courtesy of Maurice Pipkin)
Just Fish will be opening a takeout brick and mortar location in East Hartford in April.
Pipkin said he expects to hire at least three more people to work at the East Hartford location.
“We’re going to be busy. It’s a busy street and there’s no other seafood in that area. We are going to be ready to rock and roll in April,” Pipkin said.
“East Hartford is going to be great, and I think people will come from everywhere. I can’t wait,” Conway said.
Pipkin said opening a brick and mortar was on his bucket list. His next goal is to open a second location. “I want to have Just Fish locations everywhere,” he said.
Pipkin said that East Hartford has been very supportive of his business coming to town.
“We are thrilled to welcome another new business to East Hartford,” East Hartford Mayor Connor Martin said. “Just Fish is well known throughout Hartford, and we are excited to see a space in our community given new life. The town looks forward to working with the business as it moves through the appropriate permitting and approval processes, and we remain committed to supporting entrepreneurs who choose to invest, grow and elevate here.”