Forget the BAFTAs or Grammies, this is an award we can get invested in
Fry Magazine have announced their 50 best fish and chip shops in the country. After a rigorous judging process in which chippies across the land were visited by a mystery shopper and assessed on everything from food quality to customer service, social media presence to Covid safety measures, the top 50 has been announced by the publication.
Despite the more than 40 different criteria that the shops were judged on, it goes without saying that the food remained the most important aspect, with “all outlets assessed on the flakiness of the fish, the crispness of the chips and the crunch of the batter, alongside value for money.”
It seems like the north is the place to go as well, with 20 of the takeaways on the list being in Yorkshire, the North-East and the North-West. Whilst the majority of those named are in England, Scotland and Wales have strong representation as well, with 12 Scottish and seven Welsh outlets appearing on the prestigious list.
The magazine also say that despite the challenges of Covid, this year was actually the highest the benchmark has ever been to make the big 50.
Reece Head, the competition organiser, praised the resilience of the chippies across the country that have managed to keep going despite the difficulties of the last year. He said: “Without doubt, the last 12 months have been tough for fish and chip operators and many will not have dealt with this level of crisis management before.
“Allowed to operate during the pandemic, there was a lot they had to implement in a very short space of time to operate in a Covid safe manner. Many takeaways had to flip their businesses to click and collect and delivery, serve at the door, introduce card payments and work in much smaller teams. Likewise, mobile units introduced pre-orders and added new routes and additional vans to keep the nation fed.
“During a time of uncertainty, these operators have helped maintain a sense of normality. They’ve been at the heart of their communities, with a smile on their faces and hot food in their hands. And the fact that we’ve had our highest pass mark ever is testament to their hard work and dedication, and we would like to congratulate each and every one.”
With chip shops from North Ayrshire to Devon making the list, there’s a strong chance that one of the top 50 is not a million miles away from you.
