The Return of the Fishmonger: Why Britain's Specialist Seafood Shops Still Matter

In recent years, traditional shops have staged a return. Bakeries are back on the high street; delis and independent coffee shops have reappeared in towns once written off as casualties of supermarket Britain.

While the revival is often framed as a metropolitan phenomenon, it is just as visible beyond London - in market towns, villages and smaller communities where commerce is regaining a sense of locality.

Consumers are turning back towards provenance, craft and personal service, rejecting, at least in part, the homogeny of the supermarket model.

But among this new generation of specialists, one trade stands apart: the fishmonger.

Why Britain's Fishmongers Are Making a Comeback

Fish and shellfish remain my favourite ingredients to cook with, which makes the average supermarket fish counter such a dispiriting sight: farmed salmon, anonymous cod fillets and, if you are fortunate, a few tired-looking portions of sea bass laid over crushed ice.

Variety is limited; provenance even more so. Independent fishmongers - much like butchers - have spent years fighting for survival as consumers drifted towards the convenience of the supermarket.

Yet a determined few have not only endured but thrived, proving there is still a strong appetite for quality, expertise and properly sourced produce.

As a publication so often focused on the culinary world - the restaurants, the chefs, the finished plate - it is easy to overlook the people who make that ecosystem possible in the first place.

“It needs scaling properly, pin-boning and trimming. Lobsters are another big one, especially when we prepare them ready for customers...”

Behind every great kitchen sits a network of expert suppliers whose knowledge, sourcing and standards shape the food long before it reaches the pass or the home kitchen.

Increasingly, the country's most ambitious chefs are placing similar emphasis on seasonal ingredients and close relationships with producers, recognising that exceptional cooking begins long before service starts.

One such operation is Finest of Fish. Unlikely as it sounds, one of the country’s most impressive fishmongers sits nearly 90 kilometres from the coast.

From their shop in the Midlands, Lee and Catherine Wharton have built a business that draws customers from as far away as Wales, all in search of seafood rarely found outside specialist coastal markets.

For me, it is practically on the doorstep - a stone’s throw from where I grew up - yet even fishmongers in Cornwall would struggle to match the breadth and quality of what arrives on the Whartons’ counter each morning.

Meet the Family Behind Finest of Fish

Fishmongery runs in Lee Wharton’s blood. “I’ve done this all my life,” he tells me one Saturday morning from behind the counter, speaking between waves of customers. “I grew up in a fishing village in North Devon, set up my first shop at 14 and never left the trade.”

The pace is relentless, but so too is the enthusiasm. “We start around 5am most days,” he says. “On busy days we won’t finish until eight or nine at night.”

It is demanding work, sustained less by routine than by a genuine commitment to the craft.

Before a customer even steps through the door, hours of preparation are already under way. Fish needs to be skinned, trimmed and filleted; shellfish cooked and dressed.

Lee and Catherine Wharton

“Sea bass is probably one of the most labour-intensive,” the Whartons explain.

“It needs scaling properly, pin-boning and trimming. Lobsters are another big one, especially when we prepare them ready for customers.”

It is meticulous work, but essential to maintaining standards. “When you’re working with fish this fresh, you want to do it justice.”

What Makes a Great Fishmonger?

The variety on the counter is astonishing.

Gurnard, halibut, skate, native oysters, live lobster, scallops, plaice and turbot sit across the ice beside slabs of hot-smoked salmon, the counter flashing with colour and silver scales.

But stocking a fish counter is only part of the craft; presenting it is another skill entirely.

“You have to see it through the customer’s eyes,” says Wharton. “Certain fish go in certain places to catch attention, especially if something’s particularly beautiful or in season. It’s all about presentation, colour, balance and creating an experience.”

The Supply Chain Behind Exceptional Seafood

What the Whartons stock is the product of two things: an uncompromising eye for quality and a network built over decades in the trade. Wharton has been cultivating those relationships since his first days behind a counter at 14.

“A lot of our fish still comes from North Devon through family connections and fishermen I’ve known for years,” he says. “We also source from Scotland and other parts of the UK depending on the season and availability.”

That commitment to provenance mirrors the philosophy found in restaurants where sourcing, provenance and ingredient quality sit at the heart of the dining experience.

In fishmongery, reputation travels quickly. “These relationships are built on trust and respect over decades. You pay your bills properly, treat people right, and in return you get the best quality fish available.” It is a formula that combines old-fashioned discipline with a deeply sophisticated supply network.

Why Customers Travel Across the Midlands for Seafood

Set against a broader return to local shopping - and a growing fatigue with supermarket uniformity - the appeal is obvious. “People want local meat, local produce and local fish again,” says Wharton. “And I think they’re realising a proper fishmonger isn’t necessarily more expensive either.”

Consumers are becoming increasingly willing to travel for quality, whether that means visiting an independent fishmonger or seeking out specialist food destinations built around exceptional produce.

“A lot of people have never tried genuinely fresh fish before, and once they do it completely changes their perspective...”

More importantly, he argues, customers are buying into something the supermarket cannot replicate. “You come into a good fish shop, see beautiful produce and end up buying more because it excites you. But you also get service, advice, preparation and quality you simply won’t get elsewhere.”

But like any business tied so closely to the elements, challenges are never far away - and the British weather remains the biggest of them all. “January can be very difficult because the weather stops boats going out altogether,” says Wharton.

The reverse arrives in summer when demand surges alongside the temperature.

As the barbecue season takes hold, the shop shifts into overdrive, customers piling their baskets with shellfish and whole fish all for the grill.

That surge in demand is also being driven by a changing attitude towards fish itself. “A lot of people have never tried genuinely fresh fish before, and once they do it completely changes their perspective,” the Whartons explain.

“It speaks to a wider shift in how people want to buy, cook and live - away from anonymous convenience and back towards expertise, quality and human connection...”

“People now travel from Birmingham, Sheffield, Wales - all over - because they simply can’t get this quality elsewhere.”

The same appetite for quality ingredients is helping drive a new generation of independent restaurants focused on exceptional produce and craftsmanship.

The Revival of the Local High Street

Finest of Fish sits in Borrowash, a Derbyshire village inhabited by a plethora of independent businesses.

Within a few minutes’ walk are delis, cafés, a butcher, bakery and bars, each feeding into the same steady rhythm of local trade. “Local businesses feed off each other,” says Wharton.

The most successful neighbourhoods often operate this way, with independent restaurants, bars and food retailers collectively shaping the identity of an area rather than competing in isolation.

“Us, the butcher, the deli, the cafés - they all bring people into the village. People can park easily, visit a few shops and do everything locally instead of heading into a city centre.”

It is not nostalgia driving the change so much as convenience, quality and a renewed appetite for community.

More Than a Fish Shop

The Whartons’ success feels larger than one shop. It speaks to a wider shift in how people want to buy, cook and live - away from anonymous convenience and back towards expertise, quality and human connection.

“We’re looking at expanding,” says Wharton. “More space, more staff. Long term, it’s really for the kids. Hopefully one of them takes it on one day.”

What began, by his own admission, as “a hobby” has grown into one of the country’s most remarkable independent fishmongers, built not through trend-chasing but through knowledge and consistency.

At a time when the death of the high street is treated as inevitability, businesses like Finest of Fish offer a far more convincing counterpoint. You simply have to know where to look.

Visit Finest of Fish