A popular fishmonger has said an emotional goodbye to his current home after decades of trading.
Jenkins & Son, which has been trading on Deal High Street for more than 80 years, has left its site next to Dial A Pizza to move to a larger site nearby.
Fish and street food outlets are to launch in the former JC Rooks & Son unit – two years after the popular butcher went into administration.
The unit has been empty since the collapse of the family chain in 2022, causing the loss of 150 jobs.
Builders have been carrying out repairs and renovations to the store over the past nine months to allow the fishmongers to open this Tuesday.
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In a post yesterday that has received huge support on Facebook, Jenkins & Son said: “So it’s our last and final day of trading at 118 High Street, Deal.
“It was an emotional day for all as this small shop has been the backbone of the Jenkins family, friends and work colleagues for too many years to mention.
“But soon the doors will open in our new business where we have room to expand and grow our business.
“We want to take this opportunity to thank all our lovely loyal customers for supporting our local family run business over the years. We wouldn’t be in this position without you.
“We hope you will continue to visit us for fresh fish and home cooked meals at our new address of 77-81 High Street, Deal.
“We’re opening our doors on Tuesday and we can’t wait to see you there.”
The ground floor of the former JC Rooks & Son unit has been split into two parts. One half will be a traditional fishmonger and poultry shop and the other a street food bar and grill with 24 seats.
This means customers will be able to have fresh fish dishes cooked right in front of them by head chef Peter Keyes.
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Speaking to KentOnline last month, marketing co-ordinator Sacha Taylor said: “We have outgrown this shop as we now produce our chef’s home-cooked food for people to take away.
“We’re bursting at the seams, so when the Rooks unit came along a couple of years ago, we made an offer on it.
“It took a while to buy it because it was quite complicated, but now we’ve taken over a 1,000 sq m building to move into as a fish and poultry business like we are now, but we’ve also created a barbecue area in the kitchen, bar and seating for street food.
“We have applied for a liquor license and hopefully, if granted, we will be able to sell alcohol in the shops as well.
“It’s a new venture for us and it’s quadrupled in size. The aim is to give people new ideas on how to use fish in everyday cooking.
“The concept will ultimately be that people can pick up a piece of fish from the fishmonger, go to the chef and have them cook it the way they want it.”
It took Jenkins & Son 14 months to buy the building and builders and electricians are currently on site to prepare the new store for opening.
“Eventually, we’re also going upstairs because there’s room for a possible restaurant and seafood bar with a rooftop terrace,” she explained.
“It won’t be up for a year or two, it depends how everything goes. We are also planning pop-up and sushi events.
“We always did them, but we had to use other people’s places. Now we can make them in our own shop.
“Eventually we want to do cooking classes, so we have lots of ideas for the future.”
It is not yet clear who will take over the current Jenkins & Son unit after it closes, but it will be leased to a new business.
JC Rook & Sons was one of the oldest and largest butchers’ firms in Kent, with 11 shops across the county.
It has been established for over 55 years, having opened its first butcher shop in Dover in 1965. However, after the pandemic, the company went into administration.