Different food offering helps a Guernsey beach kiosk stand out

Monday, 18 August 2025 10:10

Octopus is on the menu as an alternative to crab sandwiches.

Deidre Dudley-Owen runs the kiosk at L'Ancrese East and says she is using the glut of octopus being caught by local potters to her advantage:

"We've had such a reduction in crab, we decided we'd help support our fishmongers by buying the octopus.

"I'm currently in the process of tenderly cleaning each tentacle and making sure the suckers have nothing in them, then I cook them in a very secret way to make them as tender as pulled pork.

"It's really starting to take off and we serve it as part of a big salad.

"We've opted to use the best ingredients. We tried cheap and cheerful but it didn't work and it has helped us create a niche for ourselves."

Like many beach kiosks, L'Ancresse East is owned by the States of Guernsey and Deidre Dudley-Owen runs it as a concession.

She says the long dry summer has made the kiosk more popular than ever:

"The season has been really, really good and definitely up on last year.

"It's due to French tourists who eat an awful lot of octopus, and German and Dutch tourists who love to have a beer in the morning and of course Guernsey Dairy ice cream."

Deidre says running a beach kiosk, even in the glorious weather we have enjoyed, is hard work:

"We're never not working and we make a lot of hay as the sun shines, and we're aiming to keep the kiosk open even longer in the winter."

There is bound to be a bit of rivalry between the kiosks as they compete for customers but Deidre says they all know each other and they keep in touch during the season:

"We have a Whatsapp group and we keep in contact.

"We sit down every so often and chat about how well we're doing or what we can do to improve."