About Us

Started in 1982 by Val Ricca, Val's Ocean Pacific is a leader in the wholesale seafood distribution industry. We pride ourselves on offering our customers the finest seafood products at a discounted price. We understand the needs of the restaurant industry in general, and are fluent with the diverse nature of exceptional cuisine. We work hard to meet the concerns of each of our customers.

While our expertise is in imported shrimp, octopus, lobster tails, and king crab we offer many other products, both fresh and frozen, all of which are listed in our online catalog.

Each member of our staff is friendly, hard-working, and excels at what they do. We seek to  nurture the skills, experience, and knowledge of our team members in order to bring superior product to the market. We believe that empowering the spirit to strive for perfection results in long term value for our customers, our fisherman, our plants, our employees, and our shareholders.

Meet a Few of Our Team

Steve: Steve has been in the seafood industry for 33 years. He oversees Val's fresh seafood inventory, while increasing customer awareness by finding new seafood sources of quality products around the world. As a fisherman himself, Steve's connections with fishermen up and down the east coast are exceptional—as is his knowledge in the industry.

Bob: Bob has been in the seafood industry for 35 years. He is Val's head purchaser. He oversees all purchases, but his expertise is frozen fish, shrimp, and lobster tails from all over the world. He is an encyclopedia of all shrimp, king crab, and exotics.

Philip: A  former owner/operator of Hiasien Inc., a Chinese distribution company, Philip not only brought his company under the Val’s Ocean Pacific banner, his 35 years of experience as well. He is fluent in Chinese, both Mandarin and Cantonese. He runs the Asian area of our business and continues to grow our Asian market every day. His understanding nature of what the customer wants and needs, combined with his knowledge, makes him an excellent leader and salesman.

Dominic: Dominic has been a salesman and warehouse supervisor at Val's for over thirteen years. There is nobody that has more day to day responsibilities than Dominic. He is the man that is responsible for literally every pound of product that enters and leaves our warehouse. His kind spirit allows him the ability to solve problems for his colleagues and customers without breaking a sweat. 

Tomoko: A native of Japan and an NYC restaurant connoisseur, she is our newest sales woman. With her vast knowledge of the Japanese market and Japanese customer she is a true asset for us. She speaks English and Japanese, but be forewarned her Japanese is much better than her English! There is not a more pleasant person to deal with in this business than Tomoko. 

Karolina: Proudly holding the record for most languages spoken at Val's, Karolina runs the office with an iron fist! With her motherly approach and genuine nature it is no wonder she has a personal relationship with every customer who calls. Karolina is responsible for all office related maintenance and can help with any problem you may have.