Robert Latimer ran his own creel boat off the west coast of Scotland for years before hauling them up for the last time in 2002 and coming home to Whitburn. The fishmonger he opened sits on the Shell Hill plot his grandfather built. The counter is sourced from the day boats running the Northumberland and Durham coast, landed that morning, on the bench that afternoon.
Cod, monkfish, sea bass, hake, plaice, halibut. Day-boat shellfish when the boats are running: oysters, crab, lobster, scallop, langoustine. Cut, filleted, scaled, dressed at the bench. Off the boat in the morning, on the counter that afternoon.
Made-to-order seafood platters (crab, lobster, prawn), house-smoked salmon hot and cold, dressed crabs, fish cakes, fish pies and seaside pasties. Picnic boxes packed for the beach. Order ahead for collection at the counter.
A breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea service alongside the fishmonger. Kipper in a bun, crab sandwiches, soups, scones, homemade lemonade. Eat in the snug or grab and go from the hatch. Licensed.
Sourced from the day boats running the Northumberland and Durham coast. Robert was a commercial fisherman on the Isle of Luing for years. The skippers we buy from we know by name.
Robert Latimer is the third Latimer to live and work at Shell Hill on the top of the Whitburn beach bents. His grandfather Robert Snr Snr built the original Shell Hill structure himself. His father Robert Snr extended it across the decades the site ran as a garage and petrol station on the Sunderland coast road.
Robert (Jnr) trained in fish farming in Scotland in the early 1990s and went on to work line fishing, scallop diving and lone-creel fishing on the Isle of Luing on the west coast. He operated his boat Flessy around the Corryvreckan whirlpool, the second largest of its kind in the world. He has described lone-creel fishing as the most dangerous job you can do in the UK.
In 2002, with EEC quotas making the trade unworkable, Robert hauled his creels up for the last time and came home. He opened Latimers Shellfish Deli out of the back of the family garage on the same Shell Hill plot. The garage and petrol station are gone now. The fishmonger and The Hatch sit on the ground three generations of the family put up.
“Hauled the creels up for the last time and journeyed back home to Whitburn.” Robert Latimer, on the 2002 return from the Isle of Luing.
Robert ran his own boat for years. The supply chain runs on the same logic: small day boats working the Northumberland and Durham coast, landing fish in the morning, on the Latimers bench that afternoon. Limited exceptions for warm-water exotics. The shellfish is largely creel-caught from the same waters Robert worked.
The Berwickshire port at the top of the run. Cod, monkfish, plaice, hake, line-caught bass, day-trip boats landing into the morning auction. The Latimers van picks up by mid-morning.
The shellfish is largely caught in pots set on the seabed, the way Robert worked off Luing. Brown crab, velvet, lobster, langoustine. Live held in the back tank at the deli until they hit the counter.
The Yorkshire foot of the run. Whitby crab, scallop, the deeper-water fish that the southern boats land. A second daily pickup brings the afternoon catch back up the A19 to Whitburn.
The cafe opened in 2008 alongside the fishmonger. The pandemic reshaped it into The Hatch, a counter-window service from the side of the building. November 2022 a new indoor snug opened. Now we run both: a hatch for grab-and-go, a snug for sit-down, and outdoor benches looking south towards Souter Lighthouse.
Inside seating adds 20% to cover VAT. Well-behaved dogs welcome at the outdoor benches. Free on-site parking on the old garage forecourt.
Shell Hill sits at the top of the Whitburn beach bents on the A183 coast road between Sunderland and South Shields. A mile north of Souter Lighthouse, a few minutes south of Marsden Bay. Free parking on the old garage forecourt. The benches face the beach.
If your question is not here, pop in to the counter, drop a note to hello@latimers.com, or phone during opening hours.
No. We trade Tuesday through Sunday, nine until five, both at the fishmonger counter and at The Hatch. Festive opening hours are posted separately each December.
The day boats running the Northumberland and Durham coast between Eyemouth and Whitby, landed that morning and on the counter that afternoon. The shellfish is largely creel-caught from the same waters Robert worked himself. A small number of warm-water exotics come in from further afield.
Yes. Phone the counter the day before or use the order page. We dress crab, lobster and prawn platters to order, pack picnic boxes for the beach, and hold collection orders cold until you arrive.
Well-behaved dogs are welcome at the outdoor seating area facing the beach. The indoor snug is for two-legged guests only. Free water on request at the hatch.
Our breakfast signature. A smoked kipper fillet, butter, a soft white bun. Best eaten at the outdoor bench looking south towards Souter Lighthouse, ideally before nine on a clear morning.