The Fry Awards have announced the UK’s best fish and chip shops have revealed after a secret taste test
04.04.2023The Fry Awards have announced the UK’s best fish and chip shops have revealed after a secret taste test.
Out of the 500 businesses up and down the country to enter this year’s competition, .
The shops are put through their paces, being subject to not one but two visits from mystery diners who then rigorously score the establishment on a number of criteria.
Most important, of course, are the three main ingredients that go into making the homely classic meal.That is, the fish, the chips and the batter.
But then there’s all the other stuff that makes fish and chips the classic British institution many of us know and love — the service with a smile, the ease of ordering and overall lasting impressions.
With that in mind, MailOnline decided to put three of the winners to test.The taste test that is. Here are the results…
Fish Kitchen 1854, Maesycwmmer, Caerphilly — £9.45 regular cod supper
Rating:
Reporter Harry Hawkins with his cod supper from Fish Kitchen 1854 in Maesycwmmer, Caerphilly, which he rated a 5/5
A regular cod supper will set you back £9.45
Our reporter said: Let’s face it, I am a bit of a fish and chip snob.I grew up in a seaside town where competition for the best takeaway was fierce.
And on the face of it, a small roadside takeaway in a village 25 miles from the coast doesn’t sound like it will meet my self-imposed standards, but we shall see.
Fish Kitchen 1854 in Maesycwmmer, Caerphilly, is owned by high school headteacher Lee Humphreys, 45, and run by his wife Samantha, 43, along with his parents Carol, 67, and Gary, 66, after they bought the dilapidated former Chinese restaurant for just £40,000 at auction and opened in November 2018.
‘It was a family dream’, said mother-of-two Sam who takes on the day-to-day running of the business along with her in-laws Carol and Garry while Lee takes on his day job as a teacher.
Carol Humphries, 67, runs Fitch Kitchen 1854, along with husband Gary, 66, and her son Lee, 45
Harry’s verdict: On first taste it is easy to see how the food impressed the judges
The family transformed the once crumbling kitchen into a smart and catering pernikahan magelang tidy shopfront with gleaming fryers and in just over four years the business has not only gained a popular following with customers travelling from far and wide for a fish supper but earlier this month came second in the Takeaway of the Year at The National Fish and Chip Awards 2023.
Sam manages the takeaway through the week while husband Lee helps out two nights a week after his classes finish 20 miles away at Pencoedtre High School in Barry.
Sam said: ‘The secret to the success is buying the best local potatoes, the best fish and the best oil you can, and then making sure it’s service with a smile.
‘We try to keep the food simple, yet also have a bit of creativity when needed.’
Staff at the Fish Kitchen 1854, which has been named in the UK’s top 50 fish and chip takeaways
Open for business: The Fish Kitchen 1854 is a traditional family-run establishment
<div class="art-ins mol-factbox floatRHS news" data-version="2" id="mol-dfe5b390-ca0a-11ed-831f-e7d1c9088225" website tried some of UK's best fish and chip shops and they were five-star