PETE Underwood, proprietor of Abergavenny’s Tasty Tatoes food stall for 28 years, has retired.

Mr Underwood became a well-loved personality in the town, selling filled jacket potatoes from his Cibi Walk stall to hungry locals – as well as a few household names.

He will now use his retirement to spend more time with his family and attend more matches of his favourite football and rugby teams.

“After 28 years, I thought enough was enough,” Mr Underwood said.

He said he had “no regrets whatsoever” about his decision, but added many of his customers had reacted sadly when they found out he was retiring.

“I’ve had some lovely messages on Facebook. My favourite part of the job was meeting customers, and I made a lot of friends.”

Mr Underwood gave a special mention to one lady who was his most loyal customer during his 28 years as Tasty Tatoes’ owner.

“She came to buy lunch four times a week, every week for 28 years,” he said.

“She didn’t know what to do whenever I had a day off or was on holiday.”

Remembering his early years setting up his trade, Mr Underwood said: “I used to be a chef, and that meant doing long shifts.

“I had two young children at the time. It was strenuous.

“But I knew the chap that was selling this business.

“It was very quiet at first, but I stuck at it, worked at it, and things got better.”

Mr Underwood prided himself on making his own potato fillings, such as coleslaw and curries, but said the most popular choice was always rather more simple – cheese and baked beans.

As well as hitting the right notes with the general public, Mr Underwood’s meals attracted the attention of some celebrities, including Olympic medallist Colin Jackson, former Wales rugby internationals Bobby Windsor, Eddie Butler and Scott Quinnell, and rugby coach Jason Strange.

Other famous Tasty Tatoes customers include former international goalkeepers David James and Neville Southall, newsreader Lucy Owen, and former world boxing champion Joe Calzaghe.

Although Mr Underwood is retiring, Tasty Tatoes will continue to operate in Abergavenny town centre under new ownership, and Mr Underwood is confident the business is in good hands.

“I’ve sold the business to a good friend of mine,” he said. “He’s got a lot of personality and he’s very good.”