About us - what you’ve always wanted to Know !

Trawlers is predominantly a fish restaurant, although meat and vegetarian options are always on our weekly changing menus. Our cuisine is modern European using fresh Cornish and West Country produce.

The owners, Mark Napper (left) and Nick Love established ‘Trawlers on the Quay’ in June 2003.

As Executive Chef Proprietor, Mark has introduced his famous home baked breads and tantalising deserts, including his own signature desert ’Trawlers trio of Pots’. Mark strives to continually enhance and develop the restaurant’s menu to include innovative dishes and to promote the finest Cornish and West Country produce. Trawlers continues to feature in many Good Food Guides and is once again in the Hardens, Michelin and Which Guides in 2007. The restaurant received awards from Taste of the West and Visit Cornwall in 2006, for which they are extremely pleased. The restaurant has also been featured in a number of magazines and regional newspapers including; ‘Inside Cornwall’, Cornwall Today. Coast, and the Western Morning News on at least 5 occasions. A Trawlers recipe was the February feature in the Duchy Fish Quota Calendar in 2006 and they have ‘appeared’… on BBC Radio Cornwall on the Emma Lloyd Show and on Atlantic FM, when they hosted a morning show in November 2006.

And Why did they buy Trawlers ?

A question they often ask themselves! They were both looking for a life style change and a move to the coast. Having visited Cornwall many times it was top of the list and Trawlers just happened to be on the market at the right time and in a fantastic location right on the quay in East Looe with an enchanting backdrop both during the day and in the evening. They have found the local business community very friendly and supportive. The restaurants in particular work very closely together and Trawlers is one of the prime movers in the very successful Taste South East Cornwall Food Festival.

Over the past three years Nick and Mark have completely restyled the restaurant both inside and out, with a new bar and lighting, which they hope, is both informal and relaxing, and tables by the quay for al fresco dining in the summer months, where the view changes with the ebb and flow of the tides. They have also introduced a changing exhibition of contemporary art, from West Country artists, inspired by the sea, moor and coastal landscapes. They are totally committed to using and promoting Cornish produce, from land to sea. They have a local purchasing policy and therefore all their suppliers are principally from Cornwall with some of them ‘walking’ their produce to the restaurant, from the Looe Fish Market or from their local fruit and veg shop. The Which Guide said the restaurant ‘wears its Cornishness with pride’, and they now promote Cornish Tregothan tea on their menu.


Mark’s background: Hailing from the West Country , and after graduating from Catering College in Weston Super Mare, Mark embarked on the Southern Cross for Australia (as a cook !) he then worked his way up the ranks on the QE2 , and one of his claims to fame is that he made the crossing to New York 47 times!
Deciding to hit dry land for a while he then worked at some of the finest Hotels and restaurants in England, Scotland and Wales.
He was head chef at Warpole Court Hotel in St Davids and whilst he was head chef at Cromlix House near Dunblane, the hotel was awarded Egon Ronay Hotel of the Year.
However it wasn’t long before the call of the sea this time took Mark to work on private yachts. He spent 10 years as Executive Chef to the Barclay Brothers (owners of the Ritz), sailing around the Med in summer and the Caribbean in winter, it must have been hard work…. Apart from the brothers, Mark also cooked for a range of famous names including Barbara Streisand, David Bowie, Faye Dunnaway, Dustin Hoffman, Maggie and Dennis Thatcher, Carrie Fisher, Paul Simon and Prince and Princess Michael of Kent.
Once hitting dry land again Mark was Head Chef at Tilley’s Restaurant in Bath for a number of years before buying Trawlers.
He has put his distinctive high quality stamp on the menu and has introduced Cookery Master Classes at Trawlers, including deserts and taking the mystique out of bread making using West Country milled flour and local ingredients.

Nick, on the other hand has a very different background: coming from East Anglia and having been in Local Government for over 20 years. Originally qualifying as a Town Planner, working primarily in Yorkshire, and the ‘West Country’… he moved to promoting tourism and the local economy and was responsible for Market Town enhancements and Initiatives and in organising the biennial West Wilts Show for over 8 years. He was behind several successful ‘Charter mark’ submissions for Tourist Information Centres and is very proud that West Wiltshire was a national runner up in the Destination of the year in the England for Excellence awards. His work with tourism businesses brought him into contact with hoteliers and restaurateurs and he has a good understanding of the hospitality sector and the importance of customer care. At Trawlers Nick is involved in running front of house and responsible for marketing. He is also one of the lead members of the team organising the Taste South East Cornwall Food Festival, a member of the Cornwall Commercial Tourism Federation Executive Committee and Secretary of the South East Cornwall Tourism Association (SECTA). His ‘culinary’ claim to fame is that he worked for several years at week ends at the ‘Mead Tea Gardens’, just outside Bath, in multi tasking roles at front of house, as comis chef and ‘editor’ of their in house newsletter ‘The Media’. And if anyone knows anything about the Mead, they will appreciate that this was some experience. One would now say ‘awsome’…..if you ever ‘waited at the Mead’.

Being major sponsors and co organisers of Taste South East Cornwall, Trawlers is very keen to promote this year long celebration of local food and Cornish distinctiveness. We have many events planned throughout the year - there is a leaflet in the restaurant, or log onto our web site for further details. Trawlers is also a member of South West Tourism, Visit Cornwall, SECTA, Taste of the West, Coast and  Future Footprints.