Big Al's Aquarium Supercentres - North York

Glad to see after 20+ years many of the same knowledgeable staff selection of beautiful fresh and marine plants, fish and supplies got our 20 gallon tank set up and ready for fish in a week!

Really rude and condescending staff member! Just assumed I’m doing a garbage job taking care of my fish without knowing any of the facts! I explained to him that I was sold sick fish elsewhere and was trying to save them (I just bought this aquarium a month ago) but he just couldn’t help but talk down to me and even had the audacity to quiz me about the individual chemical levels in my tank (as if I have them memorized!) when I told him that I had, in fact, checked everything. He was basically telling me not to use a water purifier that HE told me to buy! Unbelievable. If this is how they go about getting new customers, they’re doing it wrong! Just go to another location!

I normally frequent the Scarborough shop since it's bigger and tends to have all the things I'm looking for. Called this location asking about a part, so I didn't have to waste my time driving. The guy on the phone sounded so Inconvenienced when he had to look for it and when he came back with the wrong part number, (I specifically asked for another one) his response was pretty much to not look for it and for me to come by the shop since they "should have that part". Safe to say il be only going to the Scarborough location from now on.

This store have amazing staff. If you are new and want to ask questions and/or suggestions please go to Jordan. He knows what you need to start up a saltwater tank.

Very good place for buying aquariums terrariums custom products for the aqua, plants filters foods show pieces and most importantly fishes at a reasonable price.

The store manager reacted like I stole the aquarium LED lights just because I didn’t put it back to the area where I get it. He even stares to my kid which are only 1 and 3 years old and to my wife as well. He then found out that his guy returned it to the proper shelves. It’s a horrible experience for us.

They have a large selection of animals, and all are high quality. The best pet store I've seen yet. The only issue I had, is not to trust their website. Some plants/animals were not in stock, even when listed to be

Wide selection of products and livestock. Maintained properly and you can see the fishes are healthy. The employees are always friendly and insightful. They are always willing to help and answer your questions.

Came here first time and it's pretty quiet, like the environment although I find that they don't have that much variety in terms of livestock (fish)

I almost never write bad reviews but the customer service was terrible. No one even bothered saying Hi to us when we walked in and they were just trying to rush us and get us out of the store. The staff were also clearly smirking at us when we were leaving. Have never experienced this before ANYWHERE.

Insanely overpriced and poor customer service.
Just one example below - they sell this exact sprayer bottle at dollarama 50ft away for $3.50, but at big al's it sells for $21.99. Beside being overpriced, the customer service was really poor. Maybe it was just an off day when I came in but the associates were standoffish and arrogant. I came in with a lot of questions about my aquarium and trying to get answers and advice felt like pulling teeth. They kept walking away from me mid-conversation. I'll be taking my business elsewhere.

My favorite store to buy fish, live plants and aquarium supplies. I will strongly recommend this store over the other franchises to all whom are in the hobby.

I've been to all the big Al's and I was shocked by how rude one of their employees was. Needs better customer service training. He was on his phone while on the floor and kept answering towards my male partner everytime I asked him questions as if I wasn't there and then wheb he did acknowledge me he questioned if I knew the difference between a litters and a gallons for my tank. Even if this was a common question they way he asked me was insulting. Did not want to buy anything after this experience.

I recently purchased a 90 gallon fish tank, including stand and filter setup. The gentleman who helped me I believe his name was Gary, this guy was super knowledgeable and friendly. He made me understand the importance of having a good filter setup as well as frequent water changes along with checking water quality. I even hired him to come and set up the system for me to make sure everything is running smooth. I would highly recommend this guy if you are looking to purchase. This guy is definitely value added employee to this organization.

Very big selection of fish, the staff are very friendly and knowledgeable aswell. The only reason I deducted a star is because there were many dead fish left in the aquarium with other fish when I visited both times. The few here and there would be understandable but there was more than I usually see at a pet store.

Go here all the time for aquarium supplies and fish, staff are friendly, prices are good and they always have decent stock.

Terrible customer service.
There was multiple dead fish in several tanks, and when I asked about them the person there just told me “he’s going through the store” referring to one of the staff, and then said “fish die”

I replied “i understand but there’s so many dead fish in the tanks its concerning”

And he just ignored me.

I also asked for not pregnant mollies, or ones that don’t seem pregnant since I understand that it takes a bit for them to show, and he just grunted and shrugged saying he can’t guarantee it very rudely.

Last time (Sep 2021) we got fish from them, we got 6 mollies, two cory catfish, two african dwarf frogs and some cherry shrimp. The staff was very rude towards us this time too.

The mollies ended up having ick and we had to quarantine and treat them, and one of them ended up dying. Considering that we spent over $200 we expected that they would be healthy.

They do carry a large variety of supplies and food, however a lot of them are very overpriced.

The catfish and the rest are fine so far and have shown no signs of illness thankfully.
We have more fish in the tank that we got from the Big Al’s location in newmarket and they’re completely fine.

The new fish we got today are in quarantine now til we can make sure that they’re healthy and don’t have ick.

Staff were not vey helpful. I felt ignored. There were Alot of tanks full of fish with ick. I know the fish were new arrivals but it still didnt leave me with a great impression.

I am incredibly disappointed with this location, I have been using big als as my main aquarium supply store for years and I have never seen a location worse than this.

Walking around the store I noticed a lot of dead fish in there tanks, most of which look like they were starting to decay so I assume they had been there for at least a day or two.

All of their bettas looked sickly and were very underweight, and I noticed a few that looked like they were in the starting stages of fin rot.

Their Salt water show tank in the back of the store is decorated with entirely fake plants which you would think a chain that specializes in aquatics would know better than to do.

The staff is unhelpful and frankly just incredibly rude, they need to learn how to treat customers.

I am very upset overall with this location and I will not be returning.

Fish wanted where way to expensive so me and the wife are still shopping around to other fish stores

Lots of plants and fishes, although some of the Rams I bought from them had internal parasites, for the most part their fishes seem healthy and their tanks well maintained. Large selection of live plants. Some very nice showcase planted tanks too.

I love Big Als
They are great, knowledgeable and a great help with all things fish related.

It is unique place in North York where you can see and buy aquarium fish and supplies. Great store and friendly staff.

Bought three gold fish last time, one death after few days.bought two black moore recently.came with white spot and red spot disease.both death after a week.hope it wont kill my other fishes.

I only come here to buy mealworms, but in my opinion they have beautiful fish here. Definitely worth a visit

Hey, place to go to if you want fish, aquatic plants, aquariums or anything else involving fish keeping

One of the worst Bigals ever.this place put a shame to bigals. March 2021. I went there and there is this Asian looking guy wouldn't help at all, looks like he don't want to work, ask him a question and he was so rude and try to avoid catching fishes. Never ever again to this store. Management need to look into this or change. Dirty place with dead fishes in the tank. Wish I could give a negative stat.

A place to find everything for your pet. Great selection of products, friendly staff and a fair price. If you are looking for something for your pet this is the place I would recommend.

Large selection of live fish and aquarium related products. The staff is very helpful and knowledgeable. I would highly recommend them if you are looking to start your own aquarium.

I highly recommend this location. The starff and management are very knowledgeable and helpful, always goes the extra mile for their customers. This location has a high standard of cleanliness which includes the maintenance and husbandry of livestock and corals.
Keep up the great work

Absolutely amazing experience at this store! See below the email I just sent to their head office about our visit!

"Hello,

My name is Eliza and I wanted to let you know about an outstanding experience my family had at your North York location on Saturday.

As a bit of background, our son has ADHD and multiple behavioural challenges, which can often make being out in public and socializing difficult for him. His therapist recommended we try getting him a fish because of the calming effects they have, so we visited your store to pick one out and get the supplies we’d need.

Originally we were planning on buying a goldfish in a bowl. While we were looking at the goldfish one of the staff from the fish department came over to ask how we were doing and if we needed help. I really wish I had asked her name, but she was blonde and wears glasses. I think one of the other staff called her Kayla but I’m not sure. All of the staff were super friendly while we were there, but she really went above and beyond on our visit. I explained that we were looking for a goldfish for our son and the bowl to put it in. She explained that this wasn’t really the best way to keep a goldfish, and that they would do better in an aquarium. I told her that we didn’t have room for a big aquarium, and she told us not to worry, and that there were plenty of options of both aquariums and fish that would fit what we were looking for. She showed us a bunch of the aquarium packages and we picked out a nice 5 gallon aquarium that looked nice. She took us back to the fish department so we could see some fish that could live in there.

The biggest thing for us was that she was super patient with our son, who was excited about getting his fish. She was trying to explain what taking care of a basic aquarium would be like, and our son kept interrupting her with questions and taking her all over the fish department to ask about things he saw in the aquariums. I apologized as he was super excited and can often be a lot to handle during those times, even for my husband and I. She smiled and told us not to worry because she remembered being the kid with a ton of fish questions too, which made us feel so much better as most people are super judgemental about our son and his challenges. She was super knowledgeable about all of the animals in the store, even the ones I didn’t know you could keep in an aquarium! Our son really wanted an orange or blue crayfish, and she explained that they would get too big for the aquarium he wanted, but that they did have dwarf crayfish that stay small and would work. She showed us some cool little frogs that we could add too, before asking what the kids favourite colors were and helping us find fish that were those colors. By the end of the trip, we had a whole list of critters that she suggested as possibilities to make the aquarium more interesting, and decided to go up an aquarium size to the 10 gallon one she suggested to fit everyone.

I really appreciate that she took the time to explain everything in a way that was easy to understand, and that she was friendly and patient with our kids and made sure they were involved. It’s rare that our son can stay interested in one thing longer than a day or two, but he’s spent the last few days asking when we can go back to the store because he has more questions for the lady and wants to get his frog.

I just wanted to let you as the store owner or her manager know that she was awesome, and you are lucky to have her! She probably doesn’t realize it, but she gave our son a huge boost that day. Unfortunately it’s rare for someone to interact with our son like that, and I wish all employees could be like that in stores we go to. We’ll definitely be back because of the service we received. I’ll have to ask her name the next time we see her, I have a feeling trips to the store might become a regular thing now! "

Do not buy Tropheus from this location within 7- 10 days they will all die. Ofcourse no refund.

Amazing.the most professional aquarium store I've been to. Very affordable prices, and an amazing selection from plants to live stock.

I'm new into the fishkeeping hobby and like to go here for advice.staff are very friendly and know their way around an aquarium. Have helped me with my new tank with various tips and advice.

Great selection of fish, shrimp, snails, and plants for indoor freshwater and saltwater aquariums!

One of the friendliest Big Al's I have been to in awhile, from the cashier at the front greeting you, to the one gentleman who helped me get my fish (had a ponytail, didn't his name) to the gentleman who cashed me out with the dope Batman themed tattoo sleeve. Amazing service and great vibe!

Some staff there have anger issues/mental health issues. I was treated appallingly.i will never return!

Fantastic Place and fantastic staff. Everyone is friendly in this shop.
I'm new to this hubby and learned a lot today. Look for Gary (the guy who looks like rock stars) he explained to me everything from A to Z about reef thanks and helps you to choose the best equipment for my new aquarium.
Thanks Again! ️

This is the place to buy anything related to your Aquarium. The staff are very knowledgeable and friendly.