with cups of tea. I’ve taken many people, including Rick Stein, up there until sadly the mission closed. We wanted to bring that tradition back by opening up the seafood café for breakfast at seven in the morning for the market workers and those who want to get up and experience it. And also come along and have a brandy! Market workers around the world have a shot of something with their breakfast.” Do you get a kick out of this process of refurbishment leading up to an opening? “I adore it, the whole conception of how our restaurant will look and feel and wouldn’t do it if it didn’t give me a buzz. We manage the whole project ourselves and are constantly making decisions as we go along. It can be a bit stressful as our furniture and furnishings, the kitchen equipment etc are all brought in from off site at the last moment. We just hope that when it arrives it’s okay. “This will be my 24th
restaurant
in 48 years, from small cafes to big spaces, so it does get easier. I look at a space and instantly know what’s going to work. I walk around and absorb it for a day or two to feel the space. Mat (business partner Mat Prowse) and me have worked together for 20 years. We both think very laterally. I move, he moves; we’re like one body, it’s an invaluable link.” What makes the restaurant experience successful? “It’s in the little details and trying to create that
“Brixham is on the way up
thing you can’t quite put your finger on. Someone wrote about it recently and called it ‘restaurant umami’, the sixth taste. It’s something in the décor, food and service. Somehow or another there is a feeling of really liking a place, an ethereal feeling. For me it’s creating the invisible, the warmth, in every single detail – from the poster on the wall, to the staff uniform, to what goes on the table. It’s all about attention to detail. We’re only as good as our worst detail. I think the food is 35 to 40 per cent of the experience. Most of it is from the service you receive as soon as you walk in to a restaurant, including the welcome we give you. “Simple food is the hardest to
and people are talking about it.”
get right. Cooking a piece of fish smothered in sauce on beautiful crockery in a beautiful setting is easier than just grilling or frying it. Everyone knows a good chip from a bad chip, what greasy batter tastes like, and old fish from new fish. “We have the same production
process in all our Rockfish restaurants. We keep our detail and consistency right and have the preparation done
before people walk through the door. If you’re not prepared, something will go wrong.” Is the Rockfish brand following a long-term plan or developing as it goes along? “Our first Rockfish in Dartmouth was simply an opportunity we wanted to develop. We thought ‘we want to do a fried fish restaurant’ and we did it and got stuck into it. We’re always developing new ideas and thoughts. When we thought we’d like another one we expanded and thought about
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