Mike Trebble
Trade Secrets - Station Restaurant
Name: Mike Trebble
What do you do? I am Catering Manager of the Station Restaurant on The Embankment in Dartmouth.
How long have you worked here? Since 1990, albeit with a 3½ year break from 2003. I came back as Chef a couple of years ago and took over again as Catering Manager in September 2007.
What’s special about the Station Restaurant?
For a start it doesn’t have trains arriving! It was originally built in the late 1880s as a waiting room for train-passengers waiting to catch the ferry to pick up the train from Kingswear. It’s now a restaurant, open every day, all day, serving good, well-presented, wholesome food at great value - a place to have breakfast, lunch or dinner or just a coffee or ice cream, or perhaps even a take-away of the freshest fish and chips anywhere. It also offers one of the best views, if not the best, of any restaurant in Dartmouth. Even the washer-up has a great view!
What’s your background? I have lived and worked in Devon or Cornwall all my life. I have been in the catering industry since the age of 7 when I helped out in my mother’s café in Paignton. I have been Manager here previously but then left to be Catering Manager for Rush & Tompkins in Torquay.
How long has there been food served on this site?
Since the mid 70’s. It’s now become a permanent fixture of the town and is frequented by both locals and visitors. Obviously, at the height of the season, we serve mostly visitors to Dartmouth but our local trade keeps coming back, especially in Winter.
When are you open? During the summer, from 9am till 9.30pm, although we open earlier at 8am during Regatta week. During winter, we close a little earlier in the evening. We serve food all day from a light bite to a full-blown meal. We have an extensive standard menu for lunch and breakfast and a well-developed a la carte menu for dinner.
How busy do you get? At our busiest, we can get 1,000 people through in one day. We seat 90 in the restaurant and up to 40-50 outside. We have a busy ice-cream counter and our take-away service is very popular, especially if you are after fish and chips, cooked at the water’s edge with the taste of the sea still present. We can also serve hot and cold baguettes. There’s always a carvery available every day from 5.30pm during the season.
Our trade is obviously weather-dependent but we’ve worked hard to improve what we do during the winter, such that last winter, our trade, mostly local, was more than 50% up on the previous year.
What staff work here? In the summer season, there can be as many as 30 people working full or part-time shifts during the week. We are a cosmopolitan crowd, many are from Eastern Europe but more Dartmouthians now work for us.
Any new initiatives planned? This winter, we are keen to attract more functions and parties. We are open on Christmas Day. We also plan more themed Winter evenings such as a monthly Greek extravaganza with all the authentic touches.
What’s the best and worst of working here in Dartmouth? The marvellous views help. It’s a vibrant and cosmopolitan town but access and parking during summer can be a real pain. Trying to get across the Dart to work when the train has disgorged hundreds of visitors can be frustrating – perhaps, some form of fast-track facility for local workers would be good?
First Published July 2008 By The Dart