Our story · Ardglass, Co. Down
One family.
One harbour.
Since 1923.
Established 1923
It began with our great-grandfather and one kiln behind the harbour wall. Four generations later, the kiln still stands. And we’re still smoking fish.
A kiln behind
the harbour wall.
Our great-grandfather started smoking fish here in 1923. One kiln, by the harbour, and a family recipe we still use today.
The original kiln is still standing. It’s part of the place, just as the harbour is part of Ardglass. For us, it’s where the story starts.
Four generations.
One family recipe.
The people
make the place.
Four generations have kept the smokehouse going. Today, Declan looks after the trade relationships, and the next generation is opening the door to home customers.
Hotels, fishmongers, delicatessens and restaurants have long been part of our business, including customers in Belfast and Glasgow. Declan has been answering the main line for forty years.
Now you can find our range here too, whether you’re around the corner or missing a taste of home.
From the family album
Declan, circa 1998.
An archive photograph, with more family photographs and old ledgers to be added if they turn up in the office.
Archive photograph to be suppliedDays, not hours.
Paddy has been our head smoker for forty years. The fish is slow cured over days and smoked over oak, following the family recipe.
Time is part of the work. The recipe has been with us since 1923, and we’ve kept to it.
Paddy’s words about the oak smoke and the slow cure will be added here.
Where our fish comes from
Good fish.
Known sources.
We work with long-trusted suppliers. Here’s where our fish comes from, plainly said.
- Salmon
- Farmed, mostly from Scotland.
- Trout
- From an inland farm, not far from Ardglass.
- Mackerel
- Landed locally off Ardglass.
- Eel
- Landed locally off Ardglass, when in season.
From our family to your table