Sensational seafood

As Cornwall’s food and drink industry begins to recover, Natalie Millar-Partridge meets up with a couple who share a passion for Cornish seafood

Rick Toogood was born on the Channel Islands, surrounded by fish. His mother trained at Cordon Bleu and her enthusiasm for food – particularly fish – was passed onto Rick. With a passion for sea-fare ingrained his blood, Rick went on to manage various different sites for Fishworks, before realising his and wife Katie’s, joint dream of owning their own restaurant.

“I grew up in Guernsey, and as a kid was obsessed with going to the fish-market with my mum and grandmother, I was like a kid in a sweet-shop,” says Rick.

Despite not having any formal training to speak of, founder Rick, along with his wife Katie, attained their dish-inspiration from all avenues; travelling the globe, visiting diverse restaurants and, spending days working free-of-charge at various fishmongers before opening their first Prawn on the Lawn in Islington in 2013. Rick and Katie have since opened two further restaurants in Padstow, another Prawn on the Lawn in 2015, followed by Barnaby’s in 2018 – a cosy relaxed restaurant, in a former tearoom, serving local seafood with the additional meat dishes, cooked over a wood-fired oven. The inspiring husband and wife duo also launched their debut cookbook, Fish and Seafood to Share, in March 2018.

Having sourced a lot of their produce from Cornwall, it made sense to be closer to the source. Rick and Katie also realised there was no other restaurant offering their style of sharing plates and varied cuisine, so in May 2015, made the bold decision to move to Cornwall to set up Prawn on the Lawn, Padstow, leaving their Islington offering in the capable hands of their dedicated team, whilst still being very much involved with the menu and its general operation.