In Tiger Bay, the docklands of Cardiff, rough-and-tumble street urchin Gillie witnesses the brutal killing of a young woman at the hands of visiting Polish sailor Korchinsky. Instead of reporting the crime to the authorities, Gillie merely pockets a prize for herself — Korchinsky's shiny black revolver — and flees the scene. When Detective Graham discovers that Gillie has the murder weapon, the fiery young girl weaves a web of lies to throw him off course.

Louisa Trotter works her way up from being a skivvy to being the Queen of cooks, cook to the King, and owner of the Bentink Hotel. Her life and happenings among the guests and staff of the Hotel make up the 31 episodes.