Getting to know us

‘My father was the top Scottish Trawler Skipper, fishing for two weeks then home for two days. My youth in Eyemouth was made up of school and working at my best friend’s father’s fish business during the week. Then my weekends were spent at the market garden, growing, picking and preparing fresh vegetables and fruit ready for sale. I also worked in forestry, as a fisherman catching salmon on the River Eye, and helped the local butcher delivering meat to his customers on my bike. My grandfather was also a butcher with live pigs, cattle and poultry in his field behind his shop. Catering has always run through my veins. My mother was always cooking, our kitchen at home was central to family life. My father’s dream was to run a hotel but his roots were firmly attached to the sea. So then I left home to travel. Food, wine, hotels, restaurants, those were always of great interest to me and through all my working life it had been my goal to be where I am now.

‘When we first opened the restaurant in 2003 I initially supported my son Tom running the front of house, whilst working as a teacher. As I became more involved in the day to day running of the restaurant as well as it design and ambience I realised I was needed on a full time basis, and have continued to enjoy leading a small dedicated team of staff.’

As a child, I lived for some time in the Caribbean. This is where, through the magical blending of taste and culture, that I discovered that eating is not only a matter of subsisting but in fact a social event. I took a hospitality degree in France and worked my way around some of the most upcoming restaurants, first in the French Riviera and then in London, where I havenow lived for 20 years. Five years ago, I was invited to join the Patterson’s family and I could finally say that I was home. Since then, as Restaurant Manager, it is has been my pleasure to welcome our guest and to make sure that they enjoy a very special meal with us. From helping the young man who wants to propose to his girlfriend to organising a private function for a 50th wedding anniversary, for me it’s all about pleasing the guests who do us the honour of joining us for a few hours of ‘social-eating’.