Page 11 - NFF News March 2020

Look out for more details of Pengellys School of Fish - an exciting new venture set to open later this year!
60 Seconds with Rob Phillips
Owner of Pengellys Famous Fishmongers The Quayside, East Looe, Cornwall
How did it all start?
I started work in the industry as a Saturday lad at the age of 13 - working mostly after school and Saturdays, it was a butchers and fishmongers combined so I was able to pick up both trades alongside each other. At 16 I was offered full time employment and the easy transitition from school leaver to money earner was a great feeling. As years progressed the interest in the fishmongers side became clear thats what I wanted to do and at the age of eighteen I was given the reins of the instore fishcounter. To be in charge of the counter at this age was great I was only limited by my imagination of what I could purchase for the mornings display, back in those days it was from Ross Fish Supplies. Things like gurnard, conger and pollack etc were brought in by local fisherman but not really as well known as they are now and wouldn’t really sell that wel - how times have changed!
At the age of 21 I had been in the current shop for 8 years and really wanted to learn all other aspects of the trade. The current shop was very comfortable but wages were poor and as I had been there since I was 13 I was always the boy! I left and became a manager of a fresh fish shop which did retail and wholesale. It opened up a huge range of diverse tasks to cope with , the ordering was a lot bigger, fish had to be picked up and graded from local boats in the harbour as well as all types of shellfish. We did our own shellfish, processing crabs and whelks and skinning of Skate and Huss - it was a really enjoyable time. It gave me great links in the trade across the country up and down.
I stayed there for almost a decade and together with the owner built a really great business, we grew the retail shop way beyond their expectations. I knew my own shop was the thing I really wanted and waited patiently until the right one came along. I looked at a few over coming years at all levels of the industry but decided Cornwall’s quaint town of Looe seemed a perfect choice.
Tell us about your business...
Looe has always been at the front for dayboat quality and I had dealings with merchants in the town over the years and knew the Pengellys shop had a fantastic heritage. The Pengellys family have been trading on the quay since 1946 where grandfather Pengelly started with a small cart, pro- gressed to a van and eventually the shop, which is still in its original location all bar a few feet and some modernisation. They also set up a shop in Liskeard which we still run today.
The Pengellys were boat owners and fisherman. They still have strong links in the town, some who still fish with trawlers on the quayside. We are very lucky to be able to say we still work with 2 members of the original Pengelly family and proudly all of our ethos remain the same. We buy the very best available and support the local fleet of boats. We have an excellent relationship with our fisherman and always show our gratitude of their labour by paying a fair price for their catch.
We are licensed direct buyers so we aim to buy as much as we can from the quayside, this means most of our produce is less than 24hrs old when its sold. Looe is one of the few active tidal ports in the UK ,which means the boats must come and go as quick as the tide allows. The uniqueness of this tidal port, the care in which the fish is handled and our location means we are able to offer some of the best fish available anywhere in the UK.
We currently send our fish across the UK by mail order to homes, chefs and restaurants alike, allowing them to receive the fish in the most perfect condition. In spring and summer our hook & line caught fisherman are out in force and the quality of this fish needs to be seen to be believed ,we are very lucky.
Plans for the future
Our most recent venture is Pengellys School of Fish – a historic building meters from the quay which has been refitted to a high standard. This will allow us to showcase our dayboat fish and promote all aspects of the industry in the town.
It has been fitted out with workstations and group preparation units to allow people to come and learn to fillet and prepare fish to a good standard. We will show people how to get the most from their fish led by expert fishmongers. There is state of the art cooking equipment and utensils to enable everyone the opportunity to taste all they have prepared.
Leading the school is Angela Harrison nee Pengelly along with myself and various chefs. There will be a range of courses and demos – We are really looking forward to it. Angela has a great wealth of knowledge on the local fishing industry and the town. She is the perfect person for the school which will be opening in Spring/Summer 2020.
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