Fresh Vs Frozen

Why Do We Only Offer Frozen Fish

We believe that freezing fish soon after it is landed (typically within 1-4 days depending on the type of fish and where it is coming from) gives you a better experience than eating fresh fish which may be kept chilled for a week or longer before it reaches your plate.
Committing to frozen also means we can offer you the widest range of fish, of the highest quality, at all times. Some fish are available only intermittently.
Most fish are at their best for just a few months of the year - this is the fish we want you to enjoy.
We believe that OUR frozen fish will give you the same eating experience as buying fish at the quayside and eating it straight away.

It's not because the fish was frozen, it was because the fish was inferior when frozen.

Until 50 years ago, most fish was caught by large trawlers which would undertake three week voyages to Iceland and other distant fishing grounds. UK waters were fished by smaller vessels which were back in port within a few days. These always had the best fish, because the fresher the fish at the point of landing, the better the quality. When commercial freezing was introduced, it was applied to the cheaper fish from the longer voyages. Frozen soon began to mean inferior. This reputation was largely justified, and it stuck. But it was not because the fish was frozen. It was because it was inferior when frozen.

Quality is determined by when, where and how the fish is caught, and how it is looked after between catching and delivery to your fridge or freezer.

Following the "cod wars" of the 1970s it is unusual for fishing trips to last longer than a week and poor quality long trip fish has become a thing of the past. There are still discernible variations in quality and "day boat fish" (from a fishing trip of 1-2 days) commands the highest prices, but fresh no longer means superior. These days, quality is determined by when, where and how the fish is caught, and how it is looked after between catching and delivery to your fridge or freezer. A good fresh fish display looks wonderful, but it takes its toll on the fish. Exposure to the air degrades fish. Everyone knows how tired the display can look at the end of the day. Some of the best fish is caught by specialised vessels which freeze their catch on board within hours. Our hook and line caught cod and haddock fillets from the well managed waters of Norway cost more than much of the cod and haddock landed fresh for processing onshore. This is because they are superior.

"If Our Fish Did Not Exceed The Quality Available In Supermarkets, We Wouldn’t Have a Business" Alistair Blaire

Why We’re Different

Of course, we are also committed to quality. If our fish did not exceed the quality available in supermarkets, we wouldn’t have a business. Quality is not just a matter of freshness. It’s also about cut and trim. We will sell you a whole fillet if that’s what you want, but most of our customers are looking for the prime piece of the fillet - what we call a fillet steak. They don’t want a Dover sole that’s too small to satisfy. They don’t want inferior grades of crab meat - they want claw meat. Over nearly 25 years we have discerned exactly what our very discerning customers want and that is what we give them.

And we are about service. It’s hard to convey the full meaning of what we see as good service, but it comes down to: 'Go the extra mile' and 'Do as you would be done by'. We try to apply the same attention to detail that we apply to cuts of fish and the delivery process to every aspect of our customer relationships. 

If our fish did not exceed the quality available in supermarkets, we wouldn’t have a business!