Caribbean-inspired fish-and-chips ‘trolley’ in Pierce Co. opens for final season
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Marketplace Grille trolley reopened March 1 for its final season under current owners.
- Owners Richard and Carlene Lai Fook plan to retire after many years in the business.
- Menu unchanged for 25 years; trolley space is expected to be available for rent.
A fish and chips stand on the Gig Harbor waterfront reopened March 1 to serve up fish and chips, paella and sandwiches for its last season under its current owners.
Recognizable for its cherry red paint, Marketplace Grille in The Trolley @ The Boatyard operates out of a converted trolley stationed on the way down to the Gig Harbor Marina and Boatyard. Co-owners Richard and Carlene Lai Fook run the business. They moved from their brick-and-mortar Marketplace Grille in the Finholm District to The Trolley several years ago, Carlene Lai Fook told The News Tribune.
The News Tribune reported that the fish-and-chips stand was once known as JW at the Boatyard under its previous owners, who also owned a sit-down restaurant in Gig Harbor named JW.
The Trolley’s open hours are Monday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. They don’t advertise Sundays, but Carlene Lai Fook said they sometimes open Sundays around 2 or 2:30 p.m. and close up at 6 p.m. She encouraged customers to call ahead and check.
Though there’s no indoor seating, customers can slide into one of the red picnic tables in front of the trolley. There’s also a covered gazebo with a heater, she said.
The menu at The Trolley is the same one they offered at Marketplace Grille. It includes starters like calamari, classic mainstays like fish and chips and clam chowder and several Caribbean-inspired dishes such as jerk pork, coconut prawns and Caribbean crab cakes.
She laughed when asked about their most popular orders: “Actually, the entire menu,” she said. They cook everything from scratch and haven’t changed it for 25 years.
The Lai Fooks typically close the stand for a month or so in late December to go on vacation and skip the colder months. They’ve reopened in mid to late February in the past, she said.
This will be their last season. The couple have been planning their retirement for years, according to Carlene Lai Fook. She has many goals for their next chapter, including humanitarian work in Trinidad, where she’s from, and building schools and libraries in underdeveloped countries. She also hopes to do a lot of volunteering with her church, she said.
They don’t own the Trolley and expect it to become available for rent, she told The News Tribune in a text message. They are not interested in selling the business, she said.
