Manx kippers — where to buy them now Moore's has closed

A Manx kipper is a herring that’s been split, soaked in brine and smoked, and Peel is where the island learned to do it. This page covers what’s changed. The famous kipper yard you’ll find in older guidebooks has closed. Here’s who still makes kippers, where to buy them in Peel and Douglas, how to get a box posted home, and what to do with one once you’ve got it.

First, the bad news: Moore’s has closed

If your guidebook tells you to take the tour at Moore’s Traditional Curers, it’s out of date. Moore’s smoked herring on Mill Road in Peel from 1882 and billed itself as the last traditional kipper yard on the island. It closed on Sunday 1 October 2023. The tenants, who had run it for six years, said they were “tapped out” and cancelled the Manx National Heritage tours that were already booked (Manx Radio (opens in a new tab)).

Peel Commissioners looked at buying the building and decided not to (Manx Radio (opens in a new tab), November 2023). In September 2026 the smokehouse was still on the market at £549,950, or £30,000 a year to rent, with seven smoke houses, a shop and a kitchen, according to the agent Black Grace Cowley (opens in a new tab). The old manxkippers.com website now just says it has closed.

Before it shut, Culture Vannin filmed the yard at work. If you want to see a traditional kipper yard, their film of Moore’s (opens in a new tab) is now the only way.

Who still makes Manx kippers

Devereau’s. The family firm was established in 1884, and its kipper factory is on the same road in Peel as Moore’s. In 2023, when people confused the two, Devereau’s said it was still smoking kippers and kipper fillets, and supplying island supermarkets and its own two fishmongers (Isle of Man Today (opens in a new tab)). By September 2026, the trade paper Fishing News reported that Devereau’s in Peel was the only kipper house left on an island that once had many (Fishing News (opens in a new tab)).

There’s also some genuinely good news about the fish. For years, Manx kippers were made from herring landed elsewhere. The Manx herring fishery reopened in 2023, and Devereau’s started selling kippers made from locally landed herring, the first in many years (Fishing News (opens in a new tab)). The 2026 season started late: the herring didn’t show up until mid-September, against a fixed season end of 21 September. So whether your pack is made from Manx or imported herring depends on the year and the catch. Ask at the counter.

How a Manx kipper is made

The method has barely changed since Peel started doing it. Devereau’s says the process was developed in Peel in the 1870s, and describes it like this (Devereau’s (opens in a new tab)):

1. Split. Each herring is split along the back from head to tail, then gutted and cleaned. It stays in one piece, opened out flat like a book.
2. Brined. The fish soak in a salt-water brine.
3. Hung. They’re hung on tenterhooks, rows of small hooks on racks.
4. Smoked. The racks go into big kilns. Each batch is smoked for as long as the size and oiliness of that catch needs, so there’s no fixed time.

What you get is a soft, oily, salty-smoky fish, usually sold in pairs with the head and tail still on, or as boneless fillets. The island’s appetite for herring used to be huge. Devereau’s quotes records showing almost twelve million herring a year going from sea to local tables in the 1840s.

Where to buy kippers on the island

• Devereau’s factory shop, Mill Road, Peel. A plain factory shop near the inner harbour, just along the road from the old Moore’s yard. Phone 01624 843160.
• Devereau’s fishmonger, 33 Castle Street, Douglas. In the town centre, and it sells fresh fish, crab and lobster as well as kippers. It was posting its daily catch online in April 2026. Phone 01624 673257.
• Supermarkets. Devereau’s has supplied island supermarkets including Shoprite, Robinsons and Tesco. It’s the easy option if you’re self-catering, but you get less choice than in the shops.

Both Devereau’s shops keep fishmonger’s hours: an early start, closed by mid-afternoon and shut on Sundays. We couldn’t find current hours published anywhere official, so ring before you make a special trip.

Getting kippers posted home

Devereau’s online shop (opens in a new tab) posts to the UK and the Isle of Man only. Postage and packing are included in the price (September 2026):

What	Price, including postage
Whole kippers, 1 pair	£13
Kipper fillets, 1 packet (6oz)	£13
20 pairs or 20 packets	£85
3kg box	£45 (2 boxes £70)

For one pair, most of the £13 is postage. It’s much better value to buy several and freeze them.

If you’re in the UK and missed your chance, Devereau’s kippers are also sold by independent fishmongers there. Several list them by name online.

Where to eat a kipper

A kipper breakfast is the classic, and plenty of island hotels and B&Bs put one on the menu. Ask when you book if it matters to you. Around Peel harbour and the promenade, the kiosks and cafés have long sold kipper baps. What’s on changes with the season, so look at the board rather than relying on a review from five years ago.

Chefs use kippers too. For Manx Menu March 2026, Little Fish Café in Douglas served a Manx cheddar soufflé with a kipper rarebit sauce (Business Isle of Man (opens in a new tab)). That was a one-month dish, though, and restaurant menus change. For the rest of the island’s seafood, start with queenies, Manx produce and our Manx food guide.

How to cook one

• Jug it. Stand the kipper head-down in a tall jug, pour in boiling water to cover it and leave it for about five minutes. There’s barely any smell, and nothing to wash up but a jug.
• Grill it. Skin-side up under a hot grill with a knob of butter for a few minutes, until the edges sizzle.
• Fry it. In butter, flesh-side down first. It’s tasty, but the smell will hang around the kitchen for a day.

Serve with brown bread and butter, a poached egg or a squeeze of lemon. Eat from the tail end, lifting the flesh off the backbone. Kippers are bony, and fillets are the answer if that puts you off.