The Fish and Chip Shop
Classic, well-priced fish and chips, which make the queues worthwhile. This old-fashioned chippy uses its own secret recipe of batter which is simple and lets the flavour of whichever fish you choose come through beautifully. The chips are also little masterpieces: chunky, crispy outside and perfectly fluffy on the inside.
The Fish and Chip Shop 226 High Street, Aldeburgh, Suffolk, 01728 452250 open 11am – 2pm, then 6pm – 9pm.
First and Last Fish and Chips, Cornwall
A traditional chippy in the old style, this Cornwall fish and chip shop is only a very short stroll to the sea, where the hot fish is best enjoyed while strolling on the beach.
First and Last Fish and Chips, Sennen, Cornwall 01736 871483
The Fish Shed, Topsham, Devon
Lobsters, sea bass, cod and scallops plus a whole host of other fish and seafood lie on the wet fish slab at The Fish Shed, Topsham, ready to be grilled or lightly fried by Head chef David Kurley and his team. All fish is caught locally and cooked using low cholestrol oil. Kurley’s ethos is all about keeping things simple; crispy, chunky chips, fish either lightly beer battered or simply grilled and green salad or mushy peas. Scallops with bacon come highly recommended and the traditional cod is unbeatable. When asked why the The Fish Shed is such a cult phenomenon in Devon Kurley smiled: ‘I’m younger and better looking than Rick Stein and a better surfer’.
The Fish Shed, Tophsam, Devon. Tuesday-Saturday 11:30am to 2:30pm and 5:30pm to 8:30pm and 10:00pm until 4:00pm on a Sunday. For more information tel +44 (0)1392 878206.
Hive Beach Café
Recommended by the likes of AA Gill and Rick Stein, the Hive Beach Café at Burton Bradstock, Dorset is just 250 yds from the sea. Plaice, cod and fish cakes are available on a daily basis with specials such as grilled sardines, grilled mackeral, hake turbot and shell fish a depending on seasonal availablilty. All fish is bought in nearby Bridport and shellfish comes from Weymouth. A secret recipe for gulten free batter has become a massive hit and cups of head chef Gerry Page’s seafood soup (served steaming hot or chilled) are a must have down on the beach. ‘Whether it be crab sandwiches, fish and chips or grilled shellfish, if we can put it in a box you can take it onto the beach,’ says owner Steve Attrill. Hive Beach Café is open all year round and is now famous for serving bacon butties on Boxing Day and fish and chips for New Years Day hangovers.
The Hive Beach Café, Beach Rd, Burton Bradstock, Bridport, Dorset tel +44 (0) 1308 897070. Open daily from 11am until 6pm.
Leo Burdock’s
Burdock’s chippie has been around since before the First World War and in recent years, Tom Cruise and Naomi Campbell have frequented the shop, for a poke of Dublin Nay Prawns, and, of course, the sizzling haddock, battered in a recipe which is also a closely guarded secret. Whatever the secret ingredient is, many suspect it is addictive.
Leo Burdock’s, 2 Werburgh Street, Dublin 8, telephone 00 353 1454 0306
Seaforth Seafood Takeaway, Ullapool
Voted number 1 takeaway establishment in lat year’s BBC Food and Farming awards, the Seaforth Seafood Takeaway far surpasses your average ‘fish supper’. Based right on the harbour, overlooking the beautiful bay at Ullapool, Harry Macrae’s restaurant has been purveying the highest quality fish and chips for the last three years. Fresh local lobsters, oysters, pints of prawns and 1/2 pints of winkles are all available to take away and eat on the pier or the beach as well as classic fish and chips and specials from the restaurant including sea bream, bass and hallibut. Many an amorous couple has enjoyed a Seaforth carry-out overlooking the twinkling harbour lights but a wedding at the premises is the most romantic story to date. ‘Four weeks ago we had a wedding reception here,’ Harry explains, ’94 people all dressed up for the ceremony sat on the patio and on the sand and enjoyed a wedding lunch at the chippy’.
The Seaforth Seafood Takeaway, Ullapool, Ross-shire. Open all year round, 9:00am tunil 10:00pm. Tel +44 (0) 1854 612122
The Anstruther Fish Bar
Twice named fish and chip bar of the year, the Anstruther Fish bar in Anstruther, Fife, has queues which are a testament to its quality. Prince William was said to be a regular while he was at St Andrews and Kevin Spacey dropped in the last time he was nearby. The usual haddock sits next to squid, lemon sole, skate and other seafood, giving this fish and chip bar its rightful place in the Gourmet Guide to Fish and Chips.
The Anstruther Fish Bar, 44 The Shore, Anstruther, Fife.
Whelans Restaurant and Takeaway, Lytham
Whelans has been serving high class fish and chips since 1937 and a recent £200,000 refurbishment ensures it will continue doing so for many years to come. But it wasn’t until Rick Stein included Whelans in his ‘Sealover’s Guide’ that Dave Mccreedy’s restaurant was introduced to the whole of the country. The menu at Whelans will satisfy the likes of any Fish and Chips connoisseur: cod, halibut, John Dory, halibut or scallops can be served battered or grilled with mushy peas, normal peas or mixed salad and of course the crunchiest chips. ‘All fish and chips are cooked to order,’ explains Mccreedy, ‘the key to cooking the best fish and chips is to use the finest raw ingredients and then it’s all about the cooking process’. Gordon Ramsay’s decision to celebrate his 38th Birthday with a portion of Whelan’s fish and chips a few weeks ago came as a bit of a shock, ‘we’d just seen him on Hell’s Kitchen,’ said Mccreedy, ‘it certainly put the wind up the staff although he was extremely complimentary’.
Whelans, 26 Clifton Street, Lytham, FY8 5EW, tel +44(0) 01253 735 188. Open 11 am until 10 pm Mon-Sat and 11am until 9pm on Sundays.
Knight’s Fish Restaurant, GlastonburyA visit to Glastonbury is not complete without sampling the delights of Britain’s oldest fish and chip shop. Knight’s Fish Restaurant was started in 1909 and recently judged by the Regional Tourist Board and NFU as Best in the South West. Unsurprisingly tradition is the ethos behind ex serviceman Bill Knight’s restaurant: ‘we’re a British fish and chip shop, purely and simply’ says Knight. Situated in a beautiful medieval building, thought to date from the time of the disillusion of the monasteries the restaurant has flag stoned floors and marble table tops; ‘there’s no chrome and plastic about our place’ Knight explains. Cod or haddock and chips are house specialities but more old school dishes such as locally smoked eel, faggots and fish cakes are extremely popular.
Knight’s Fish Restaurant, 5 Northload Street, Glastonbury, Somerset. Tel: + 44 (0)1458 831882
Open Monday -Saturday 12-2:15pm and 5 pm until 10pm. Closed on Sundays.
Squires Fish Restaurant
After a tough day surfing, or not surfing really, its a great place to refuel.
Exeter Road, Braunton, North Devon. Tel. 01271 815533.
