Catch of the Day in The Isles of Scilly

They don't call them The Fortunate Isles for nothing - the Scillonian archipelago is as rich in natural food resources as any other single place in Northern Europe.

Yet a dozen years ago you would have been hard pushed to find a first-class meal made from local ingredients.

Seine netting for the fabulous little alandine fish in the Isles of Scilly

The net comes to shire in the sound between Tresco and Bryher

I am glad to report that the Scillies has really upped its game on the food-front. And I mean upped its game to the extent that the archipelago can now be regarded as a top food-destination, as well as being somewhere that happens to be unbelievably scenic.

On several occasions I’ve been to the Scillies to attend a truly unique foodie event. The ultra-low-tide "pop-up restaurant" staged on a sandbar between two islands, in a place where fishes swim for at least 22 hours most days, was one of the most extraordinary food happenings I have ever enjoyed...

Up to 500 people will paddle and splash their way out onto the bright white sands between Tresco and Bryher to enjoy bowls of fresh cooked mussels, or scoff some of the many amazing fishy treats caught, made and sold by a local family.

And it was that family - the Penders - that I was lucky enough to spend the rest of that happy sunlit day with. I did so because they are at the cutting edge of the archipelago's foodie renaissance and I wanted to find out more about what they do, why they do it, and how their business Island Fish, is faring.

It was Amanda Pender who'd invited me to the islands with the promise of the low-tide pop-up event and an afternoon's spratting. I realise that several hours of wading in chilly waters handling seaweed covered nets might not be everyone's cup-of-tea, but it's the sort of real and authentic foodie activity that pushes all my boat. Moreover, I'd heard for many years that the Scillonian folk of old used to enjoy - no, rely upon - this old fashioned form of fishing.

With Amanda's brother (fisherman Mark), her husband Andy and various other delightful family members we pulled and hauled and did, indeed, catch the little "alandines", which are the Scillonian sprats. In other words, they are not like our mainland sprats but, despite my best efforts in researching the name, I cannot find any explanation as to what they are. The Penders assure me they are not babies of some species, indeed they took great trouble to throw young mullet and so on back into the sea. 

What I do know is that the alandines are delicious, because the chef at Tresco's Flying Boat Club took half our haul and fed me some for lunch the next day . 

After our fishing adventure the Penders invited me across to their home on Bryher where, among other things for dinner, we consumed a huge dish of razor-clams which Mark and his two teenage children had caught during the low-tide event. 

As we waited for the food, Amanda told me why she and the family had decided to set up their new business called Island Fish at the beginning of the year. "It's a long story - my family has been involved in fishing on Scilly for as long as anyone can chart. It's something I've always dipped in and out of - and the time came when my brother and I can said - we could do that, maybe we could even do it better...

"My dad Mike hit 70 last year -  he didn't want to retire but slow down a bit - and at the same time the market has increased hugely for local fish. So it seemed like the time had come. I had a good job at the Island Partnership and had made lots of really good contacts - so it really did seem now was the time to build on what our parents had built up.

"The islands have had many excellent fishermen and still have, but most people tend to send their stuff to Newlyn or sell to the local restaurants and so on. Which we do. But I thought there was a market for the person who comes here on holiday and wants fresh fish. I wanted to keep it local, that could help keep our cost down - and I wanted to add value to to what we caught.

"There's a time in your life... You have a dream, an idea, that you can do something - and you either seize that or reminisce about it all your life. So my brother and I - along with my parents and my husband - we all put money in and said, let's take a risk...

"So we bought an additional boat for Mark - my father already has a boat which is a bit of an icon on Scilly. We made the front of my house into a retail area and invested in everything you need to package fish and sell the brand. Our brand is the family - it is centuries of tradition - fishermen who know and love the waters and care where the fish comes from. We want to pass all this on to the next generation.

"I gave up a well paid job in Scilly, which is rare. My brother did too because he was working offshore. So we have taken a risk. 

"Now we are selling crab meat - the plain, the white, the brown, we do potted crab with spices and butter and lemon - we do dressed crab and crab quiche. And it's all very new - I only gave up my job in April. So I want to use this winter to look at other things we can do. 

"We want to have less pots and nets to make the business more environmentally friendly - but it's about making more out of what we have got. We just need more time in the day because everything is done by hand. We will be looking for new lines - if anyone can write in to tell me what to do with crab - please do...

"And it's not just about crab and lobster. We sell everything we catch so we have zero wastage. We do mullet, mackerel, pollack, sometimes ray. The demand is really high for wet fish.
"Spratting is a thing islanders have always done," Amanda told me. "It's a bit of fun for the family. Even teenagers into their iPads love doing it. The Tresco Estate have been very good to us - they take our fish in all their restaurants including the Hell Bay Hotel and its new Crab Shack here on Bryher. 

"I know there are lots of challenges ahead - but it is really good when we all sit down as a family and thrash our ideas. The future is bright as long as you are prepared to work and work hard."

And you get the feeling this Scillonian fishing family is no stranger to that. More power to their hard working elbows if it helps turn the archipelago into one of the premier food destinations in the UK.