Fresh oysters, sea bream and a couple of deckchairs… As the street food revolution hits Saltburn, Ruth Addicott talks to two local entrepreneurs who have tapped into something different

THERE aren’t many places you can find freshly cooked sea bream and oysters for less than a fiver, but street-food trailer Greedy Bassets Kitchen is one of them.

The business set up by local entrepreneurs Dave Rawson, 26, and Emily Dallara, 23, has gained a loyal following and will be pitching up at the seafront in Saltburn this weekend to celebrate the launch of their new “boat”.

Operating from a trailer shaped like a Yorkshire fishing boat, it is about as far away from a fancy restaurant as you can get, but who needs trimmings when a quirky menu and freshly cooked seafood is attracting foodies in their droves?

“It was inspired by our love of food and the Yorkshire seaside,” says Emily. “We cook everything fresh and it’s all locally sourced and people know exactly what they’re getting because they can see it being cooked.”

Dave came up with the idea after struggling to get a job after graduating in Town Planning.

He ended up working as a fryer at Seaview Restaurant in Saltburn which is where he learnt to perfect “proper” fish and chips.

After three years of job hunting and inspired by the huge trend in street-food, he decided to go into business with Emily. Their aim was to showcase nutritious, wholesome Yorkshire food using local suppliers – they buy the fish from Whitby Seafish, in Staithes, and the bread from The Stonehouse Bakery, in Saltburn.

Dave also wanted to recreate some of the nostalgia from his childhood of going on a day trip to a seaside town in Yorkshire and having fish and chips and ice cream and watching the boats unload their catch.

He got in touch with Richard Johnson, founder of the British Street Food Awards, who encouraged them to go for it and a year later, with funding from Redcar and Cleveland Enterprise Team, they landed a summer pitch on the lower promenade at Saltburn.

The Greedy Bassets Kitchen – named after Dave’s own two greedy basset hounds – was born and after a test run for friends in the back garden, they opened for business, catering for weddings, local events and attracting thousands of followers on Twitter.

The Greedy Bassets are now booked up every weekend until September, travelling across the country, including to the Boardmasters surf and music festival in Cornwall.

As fun as their job is, it is not for the workshy.

They set off at 4.30am some weekends and don’t get home until late evening and even then they have to unload the van and pack everything away. “We struggle to find people to help us sometimes because no one wants to get up at 4am and do those kinds of hours,” says Emily. “We need a third person and we’re looking for an apprentice with skills in hospitality and catering. It’s been a massive learning curve and now that we’ve learnt about costs, profit margins and marketing, we feel as though we’re starting afresh.”

Dave and Emily have come a long way since their first food festival in Leeds. They had only just started when disaster struck and the hob broke. “We’d paid pitch fees, paid for all the stock and literally just set up,” recalls Emily.

“Dave had to ring his dad in the end and his dad drove all the way over from Saltburn to find us a spare part.”

The most successful event so far was at the Malton Food Festival in May where the battered oysters went down a storm and sold out within hours.

“Lots of people were intrigued and had never tried oysters before, everyone absolutely loved them,” she says. “We have our own sauces – our lovely lime mayo or our suitably smoky sauce which makes them taste amazing.”

Although the menu and prices vary, Emily says prices never go above £5. A portion of fish and chips or pan-seared sea bream is £4.40, the Greedy Mother Clucker is £4 and oak roast salmon is £4.50. “We’ve also developed the menu so instead of having the food in a box and having to use a fork all the time, it can be hand held and you can hold a drink in your other hand,” says Emily.

They were unable to have a summer pitch in Saltburn this year due to work taking place on the prom, but they will be celebrating the launch of their new Street Food Boat there this weekend with entertainment from local act Bre Musiq.

The new trailer, “Clem”, is shaped like a Yorkshire fishing boat and was built by hand in 30 days by Dave and his father Les. “It is much bigger and faster and we can store more things, it’s easier to set up and also looks a lot better,” says Emily.

Along with the Homegrown Festival, which they’ll be attending in Northallerton on June 23, The Greedy Bassets Kitchen is also available for parties, weddings and corporate events.

As long as the customers keep on coming, they have big plans for the future. “We’d like to have our own cafe or deli one day,” says Emily. “And a whole fleet of street food boats.”

  • The Greedy Bassets Kitchen will be at Hazelgrove, Lower Prom, Saltburn by the sea on today from 12pm-5pm.