Hey All,
Well I have to say within the past 2 weeks I have been in and out of pretty much all of the LFS in San Antonio and also some chain stores (PetsCo, PetSMART, Pet Surplus Supply, etc.)
Each store has good things about it:
Local Fish Stores (LFS):
Fintique
Phone: (210)735-2829
Site: http://fintique.home.texas.net/
Location: I-10 take West Ave exit down about 1.5mile on the right
I would have to say that they are pretty much a one stop shop when it comes to plants/fish/and supplies. I pretty much buy 90% of my fish supplies from them. I have found that they seem to have most of the things that I am looking for as well has having the most competitive prices in town. I would also have to say that they have the healthiest plants I have seen in the city. Another good thing about this LFS is that they post their inventory (Fish and Plants) online so it makes it very easy to just look up what they got in before making the drive there (I live in Helotes so is about a 15min drive). They also get shipments in TWICE a week (Mondays and Wednesdays) with fish/plants/and supplies which is a really big. Most LFS only get shipments in once a week and some for plants it maybe even two weeks. And if their is something specific you are looking for all you have to do is ask. Had a time where I was looking for a specific type of plant and shrimp and 'Ross' the order put what I need on the next order. Very good place to go.
Alamo Aquatics
Phone: (210)732-8282
Site: http://www.alamopets.com/
Location: Bandera Road in Leon Valley
They have a decent stock on fish. Not really anything in particular that you could not find at any other LFS. They only bad thing about this place for me was that they don't carrie shrimp there. Good thing tho is they are probably the second best place in town to get healthy plants. Downside tho is that their orders on plants are depending (really don't know when they will be in). Good store to go to for random fish and tank accessories. They have Flourish plant food that is pretty hard to come by at chain stores and they have good plant substrate (Eco-Complete). Current staff right now is very helpful but most are new and not to knowledgeable especially when having plant related questions. Best thing to do is know what you are looking for (plant wise) before going. This is the closest LFS to me so this is pretty much where I go to if I need something small like more fish food, substrate, and plant fertilizer. Usual shipments come in on Friday.
Gabes
Phone: (210)290-9376
Forum Site: http://www.maast.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=78
Location: 410 and Evers Rd.
They have a good selection of fish. About the same as if you went to any other LFS. The one big thing I liked about them is they are the ONLY fish store in San Antonio that I have seen carrying Crystal Red Shrimp (CRS). This is good if you are really into shrimp for planted tanks like I am. Only downside is that it is currently $14.99 per CRS that look to be in the grading range of about maybe 'A'. Their plant tank their does not have much of a selection as Fintique or Alamo but would recommend still seeing what they got. You never know could find something their that you might not have found at the other LFS. They get shipments once a week on Fridays.
Update (10/26/2009): Only place where I have found nano fish in town
Update (3/21/2010): Went in to Gabes today and man is his store store starting to take off. Very impressed with not only the selection of fish that he has in now but also with the plants. Starting to carry 'Dwarf Hair Grass' and also a very nice selection of nano tank fish such as 'Rasbora' and 'Endlers'. Starting to cater to the plated tank community. Salt water coral looked VERY healthy. Also does in store credit.
Texas Tropical and Marine
Phone: (210)341-3474
Location: 410 and Vance Jackson
They have a good selection of plants but they are usually priced about 2-3 dollars higher a pot than the other LFS in San Antonio and the quality of the plant is mild (Plants look mal nourished). Standard selection on fish (Nothing you could not fish at the other LFS). They have a very good selection on coral there for the salt water lovers. Seen rare coral not really found in San Antonio like frogs spawn. They also have a very good selection of salt water fish. I would probably say if you are in to salt water tanks go here. Plant shipments vary.
Update (3/21/2010): Still has nice salt water stock of fish and also coral but the freshwater fish stock was lacking. Freshwater tanks had dead fish in many tanks. Kept me from buying because did not know if it was due to something in their tanks water. Coral looked heathy tho.
Papa Jim's
Phone: (210)927-7991
Site: http://www.papajimstropicalfish.com/
Location: South Flores St.
Employees were nice. Had a standard selection of fish. They DO NOT SELL PLANTS so this was a big bummer. Very minimal selection of supplies there. Had a lot of pond Koi's. This is the only LFS that I saw that had pond fish and a huge selection of them in fact. Would not recommend this store if you need something specific but if you are looking for pond fish this probably is the place to go. Only would go here if it is the closest LFS to you and you need something very basic.
Local Chain Stores:
PetCo:
Site: http://www.petco.com/
I would probably recommend going to this chain store first. They tend to have basic equipment and fish that most people want. Then biggest thing about PetCo is that they carry different types of plants that the LFS don't carry at all in San Antonio. I think the reason for this is because they are a major chain they can afford to have very different set of plants. One main thing that I have gotten here plant wise is MOSS. Although their fish and supplies are routinely basic they carry moss. Their shipments are usually once a week as well.
PetSMART:
Site: http://www.petsmart.com/
Pretty much if all the LFS and PetCo is sold out of what you need or if you need something basic and PetSMART is the closest place to go then I would go there to get what you need hoping what you need is very basic like fish flakes or something. Or if you have a pet dog that needs to get groomed and while you wait want to browse around at fish supplies (This is where I take my dog to get groomed). Good store for pets just not really for fish.
Pet Supplies Plus:
Site: http://www.petsuppliesplus.com/
The only good thing about this place is that they carry the Flourish plant fertilizer line. So if all the LFS are sold out of it this is the place to go. Since there are only two in the city I really don't know if I would call it a chain but hey they have the ferts! They also have the cheapest Master Testing Kit bundle that pretty much tests for everything in your tank.
So yeah, that is basically the run down of most of the fish stores here in San Antonio. Here is a brief summary:
Looking for Plants (Top 4):
Gabes
Alamo Aquatics
Fintique
Texas Tropical and Marine
Looking for Specific Plant Supplies (Top 3):
Gabes
Alamo Aquatics
Fintique
Looking for Specific Fish Supplies (Top 3):
Fintique
Gabes
Alamo Aquatics
Looking for Fish Supplies in General (Top 3):
Fintique
Alamo Aquatics
PetCo
*Rankings Last Updated: 3/21/2010
I hope this helps any of you plant/fish lovers in San Antonio. And remember if you have a question about a specific item and/or fish you should call or check their website to make sure they have it before making the drive.
***IF YOU CAN MAKE THE DRIVE TO AUSTIN 'AQUATEK' HAS WAY MORE FOR PLANTED TANKS AND EVEN FRESHWATER TANKS FOR THAT MATTER THAN ANY STORE HERE IN SAN ANTONIO. WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND GOING THERE IF YOU ARE ABLE TO.***
Well I have to say within the past 2 weeks I have been in and out of pretty much all of the LFS in San Antonio and also some chain stores (PetsCo, PetSMART, Pet Surplus Supply, etc.)
Each store has good things about it:
Local Fish Stores (LFS):
Fintique
Phone: (210)735-2829
Site: http://fintique.home.texas.net/
Location: I-10 take West Ave exit down about 1.5mile on the right
I would have to say that they are pretty much a one stop shop when it comes to plants/fish/and supplies. I pretty much buy 90% of my fish supplies from them. I have found that they seem to have most of the things that I am looking for as well has having the most competitive prices in town. I would also have to say that they have the healthiest plants I have seen in the city. Another good thing about this LFS is that they post their inventory (Fish and Plants) online so it makes it very easy to just look up what they got in before making the drive there (I live in Helotes so is about a 15min drive). They also get shipments in TWICE a week (Mondays and Wednesdays) with fish/plants/and supplies which is a really big. Most LFS only get shipments in once a week and some for plants it maybe even two weeks. And if their is something specific you are looking for all you have to do is ask. Had a time where I was looking for a specific type of plant and shrimp and 'Ross' the order put what I need on the next order. Very good place to go.
Alamo Aquatics
Phone: (210)732-8282
Site: http://www.alamopets.com/
Location: Bandera Road in Leon Valley
They have a decent stock on fish. Not really anything in particular that you could not find at any other LFS. They only bad thing about this place for me was that they don't carrie shrimp there. Good thing tho is they are probably the second best place in town to get healthy plants. Downside tho is that their orders on plants are depending (really don't know when they will be in). Good store to go to for random fish and tank accessories. They have Flourish plant food that is pretty hard to come by at chain stores and they have good plant substrate (Eco-Complete). Current staff right now is very helpful but most are new and not to knowledgeable especially when having plant related questions. Best thing to do is know what you are looking for (plant wise) before going. This is the closest LFS to me so this is pretty much where I go to if I need something small like more fish food, substrate, and plant fertilizer. Usual shipments come in on Friday.
Gabes
Phone: (210)290-9376
Forum Site: http://www.maast.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=78
Location: 410 and Evers Rd.
They have a good selection of fish. About the same as if you went to any other LFS. The one big thing I liked about them is they are the ONLY fish store in San Antonio that I have seen carrying Crystal Red Shrimp (CRS). This is good if you are really into shrimp for planted tanks like I am. Only downside is that it is currently $14.99 per CRS that look to be in the grading range of about maybe 'A'. Their plant tank their does not have much of a selection as Fintique or Alamo but would recommend still seeing what they got. You never know could find something their that you might not have found at the other LFS. They get shipments once a week on Fridays.
Update (10/26/2009): Only place where I have found nano fish in town
Update (3/21/2010): Went in to Gabes today and man is his store store starting to take off. Very impressed with not only the selection of fish that he has in now but also with the plants. Starting to carry 'Dwarf Hair Grass' and also a very nice selection of nano tank fish such as 'Rasbora' and 'Endlers'. Starting to cater to the plated tank community. Salt water coral looked VERY healthy. Also does in store credit.
Texas Tropical and Marine
Phone: (210)341-3474
Location: 410 and Vance Jackson
They have a good selection of plants but they are usually priced about 2-3 dollars higher a pot than the other LFS in San Antonio and the quality of the plant is mild (Plants look mal nourished). Standard selection on fish (Nothing you could not fish at the other LFS). They have a very good selection on coral there for the salt water lovers. Seen rare coral not really found in San Antonio like frogs spawn. They also have a very good selection of salt water fish. I would probably say if you are in to salt water tanks go here. Plant shipments vary.
Update (3/21/2010): Still has nice salt water stock of fish and also coral but the freshwater fish stock was lacking. Freshwater tanks had dead fish in many tanks. Kept me from buying because did not know if it was due to something in their tanks water. Coral looked heathy tho.
Papa Jim's
Phone: (210)927-7991
Site: http://www.papajimstropicalfish.com/
Location: South Flores St.
Employees were nice. Had a standard selection of fish. They DO NOT SELL PLANTS so this was a big bummer. Very minimal selection of supplies there. Had a lot of pond Koi's. This is the only LFS that I saw that had pond fish and a huge selection of them in fact. Would not recommend this store if you need something specific but if you are looking for pond fish this probably is the place to go. Only would go here if it is the closest LFS to you and you need something very basic.
Local Chain Stores:
PetCo:
Site: http://www.petco.com/
I would probably recommend going to this chain store first. They tend to have basic equipment and fish that most people want. Then biggest thing about PetCo is that they carry different types of plants that the LFS don't carry at all in San Antonio. I think the reason for this is because they are a major chain they can afford to have very different set of plants. One main thing that I have gotten here plant wise is MOSS. Although their fish and supplies are routinely basic they carry moss. Their shipments are usually once a week as well.
PetSMART:
Site: http://www.petsmart.com/
Pretty much if all the LFS and PetCo is sold out of what you need or if you need something basic and PetSMART is the closest place to go then I would go there to get what you need hoping what you need is very basic like fish flakes or something. Or if you have a pet dog that needs to get groomed and while you wait want to browse around at fish supplies (This is where I take my dog to get groomed). Good store for pets just not really for fish.
Pet Supplies Plus:
Site: http://www.petsuppliesplus.com/
The only good thing about this place is that they carry the Flourish plant fertilizer line. So if all the LFS are sold out of it this is the place to go. Since there are only two in the city I really don't know if I would call it a chain but hey they have the ferts! They also have the cheapest Master Testing Kit bundle that pretty much tests for everything in your tank.
So yeah, that is basically the run down of most of the fish stores here in San Antonio. Here is a brief summary:
Looking for Plants (Top 4):
Gabes
Alamo Aquatics
Fintique
Texas Tropical and Marine
Looking for Specific Plant Supplies (Top 3):
Gabes
Alamo Aquatics
Fintique
Looking for Specific Fish Supplies (Top 3):
Fintique
Gabes
Alamo Aquatics
Looking for Fish Supplies in General (Top 3):
Fintique
Alamo Aquatics
PetCo
*Rankings Last Updated: 3/21/2010
I hope this helps any of you plant/fish lovers in San Antonio. And remember if you have a question about a specific item and/or fish you should call or check their website to make sure they have it before making the drive.
***IF YOU CAN MAKE THE DRIVE TO AUSTIN 'AQUATEK' HAS WAY MORE FOR PLANTED TANKS AND EVEN FRESHWATER TANKS FOR THAT MATTER THAN ANY STORE HERE IN SAN ANTONIO. WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND GOING THERE IF YOU ARE ABLE TO.***