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I'm originally from the north-east so have been somewhat spoilt by good chippies, find it hard to beat a couple of them from my home town of Spennnymoor (about the only thing it's got going for it).
Generally had bad experiences in Scotland, fish always seems poor, although there's one I've been to Peebles which was quite nice.
I've been off the fish and chips for over a year - although I would only have them once a month or so.
The last two times (once in a restaurant, once from a chippy) they made me violently ill. I don't know if I got unlucky twice, or if my system had changed so that the batter just makes me ill?
As a kid, breaded and battered fish used to make me feel weak and ill sometimes - something to do with the drop in blood sugar when trying to digest fatty food perhaps?
Anyhow, I tend to have a pie n chips whenever going to the chippy now - although I am toying with the idea of trying some fish again......
The steak pie and chips here:
http://www.partyatthepub.co.uk/bars/cape-st-katherine-docks/
is also pukka, as chance would have it.
Did I mention that the beer is good also?
There's a new chippy just opened down the road from us. Yay!! I've heard very good things. We shall be sampling its delights at the weekend. How exciting!
Which one is that, Binners?
MrWoppit, do you work for them or something?
No I just like the food, which is inexpensive and pukka.
If you're in the area...
It's pukka.
Worst fish meal I've ever had was in the states in the NW. It's an area with a fishing industry which and still has a salmon run so you'd think they'd know how to do it. Salmon on a cedar plank style dish. Fish indistinguishable from the plank. Fried oysters were like breaded lead shot. I left expecting food poisoning so the nicest part of the meal was not dying (or wishing I had) during the night.
Which one is that, Binners?
dontdropthesoap - Its called Moby's. Its on Bolton Road. Looks very nice indeed, and I've heard good reports
dontdropthesoap - Its called Moby's. Its on Bolton Road. Looks very nice indeed, and I've heard good reports
I've only had them once from there. They we're nice although we prefer the one near bargain booze.
Fish and chips has to be in dripping and prefrerably Haddock, not cod.
Pollock is bloody awful.
Seasonality has a lot to do with quality of chips. Some great chippies near Leeds, but a few fry the chips at too low a temperature.
Heard that seaside fish is "too fresh" to fry well. Apparently waiting a day or two avoids it being all soggy and excessivley moist.
Love fish n chips.
Coes in crossgates leeds is my fave.
Recently tried robin hood fisheries near wakefield amd though the chips were brill the fish.
The old Harry Ramsdens was recently taken over by the wetherby whaler chain, they do fairly good offering!
mr woppit,i was talking about fish n chip shops in betws-- hence the only show in town --its a honey pot for grockles, so there are numerous places to eat, but only one shitty chippy.
Peebles one was excellent when it was Big Ebbs - discovered it one Easter and we went two nights running for a sit in tea. Changed owners now but still as good.
I'm hoping that my local Edinburgh chippie, which has been excellent for near forty years, will be as good when it reopens in a couple of weeks after changing hands. But I live more in hope than expectation.
I can still remember the astonishment of staff 30 years ago when an English visitor asked for mushy peas, unheard of then up here.
And what's this daft English thing of a chippie being closed on a Sunday - don't they know we're not allowed to cook on the Sabbath?
Worst always seems to be at the seaside. My brother lives in Scarborough and I've yet to get a decent chip there.
I had the worst fish & chips ever last week. Charlie's Fish Bar Skegby Notts, never again.
i haven't had fish n chips for years.but worst as in never getting to enjoy the meal it was the bear hotel devizes back in the 80's.had gone out for a meal with my grandparents/my aunt/uncle who came to visit.was just about to tuck into some cod n chips (peas also) when we suddenly heard a fire alarm,we were asked to leave the building (due to a bomb scare of all things 😕
to this day the memory of that lovely plate of cod n chips sat untouched as i had to leave haunts me to this day 🙁
I see The Blue Lagoon in Glasgow has already been mentioned. Grim!
Is it still a chain - not been out in Glasgow in years!
Best - my current favorite is in Ballycastle, Co. Antrim down on the quayside. Very fresh, very good... bit pricey.
Must get back this year!
Had a Chinese takeaway that included some spare ribs that I'm rather partial too, however on this occasion I was not a happy bunny as when I bit into the first one it was full of pus this theme followed with the rest of the ribs, although they offered me another portion when I took them back and a voucher for a free takeaway delivered I declined and settled for a refund. Haven't been back since.
You bit into it, it was filled with pus (WTF, really, pus?!) and you [i]continued with the rest of the ribs?[/i] Jesus Harold Christ on a pogo stick, had you not eaten for a fortnight?
Bells fish and chips in Durham are very good. Any pub fish and chips tend to be dire! If it's a proper fishy they should use dripping of course. Chips were the waste product that were used to regulate the temperature of the fat so the batter didn't burn before accurate thermostats were available. The chips were just chucked away once the fish was cooked.
worst - all the ones in ft william and all the ones in birmingham.
best - one in welshpool, the famous one in hagley, kyle of lochalsh and the one by the road in tyndrum.
I have to confess I don't understand the media euphoria about the produce at Tyndrum. A bit greasy for my taste.
Had a few bad fish and chips experiences but good ones are Lloyd's chippy in Lampeter and Virgo's chippy near Haverfordwest. I live near Lampeter so that is definitely worth a visit once in a while.
Hmmmm - fish and chips
[i]Bells fish and chips in Durham are very good.[/i]
Oh yes! That name brings back memories, Bells were always good even after it burnt down!
I didn't actually bite into the rest of the ribs 😀
Spent three years near Bridlington and all the chip shops were rubbish but they weren't bothered as all the visitors from the West would eat any old shite. Jim Jacks in Peebles is excellent as is Marios in Loanhead if I don't make it to Jim Jacks before 9.30pm.
I have to confess I don't understand the media euphoria about the produce at Tyndrum. A bit greasy for my taste.
To be fair, I think the euphoria was a result of comparisons made v. the vile sludge served up across the road in tyndrum!.
Mumfords & Sons (nothing to do with that wierd band that cropped up a few years ago, but i was always confused/mildly excited when i heard them mentioned on the radio... always thinking "wow, i used to go there!") in Grays, Essex used to be brilliant. shit location (Grays) but great fish and chips.
now i longer eat North Sea fish as i think/believe that stocks are/have been over fished and that by buying fish doesn't help the situation. now I'll hae a steak and kidney pie with chips.
all of that is somewhat irrelevant now that i live in Munich where good chips are very ferw and far between... just lots of "fries" which, as we all know, are shit. one good place on Fraunhoferstr does good chips with currywurst and is open late... good to know if you are ever in town.
Worst pie and chip in Chester, chips re fried refrys, and the pie when bitten into was green with mould and furry inside.
The chippy got closed down by environmnetal health soon after.
Also anyone ever had deep fried pies, used to be a delicacy in a chipy near gloucester docks.VILE.
Chippy in Maghera is not so good. The worst we had was in Aldeburgh, mushy fish and soggy chips.
Don't know about worst, but most disappointing fish & chips was Harry Ramsden's in Guiseley. Just wasn't that good.
My brother lives in Scarborough and I've yet to get a decent chip there.
All the ones on the seafront are appalling. Best I've found is Rennards. Can't remember the road names, but it's on a roundabout near the town centre - if you head past the "casino" where the Opera House used to be, heading towards the North Bay, it's on your left just before the roundabout.
Best place IMHO is:
Sit in rather than takeaway
had a fishminister (southville, bristol) F&C the other day. tried both normal batter (pretty good) and seasme batter - incredible!
the actual fish was pretty good too.
chips were relatively average - its been a while since i found good chippy chips.
there's a place in st andrews, on market street, which is awesome (better than anstruther imo) - it was so good i went there for my graduation dinner with the parents (had battered monkfish iirc...)
Best & Worst: Bobby's at the bottom of Christmas Steps in Bristol. The place has won awards, and I have had terrific fish & chips from there several times. Last time I went the chips tasted like they'd been fried in motor oil with iron filings, and the fish was so off it made me heave.
Piccolos in Long Ashton is similar - chips are almost always soggy, and the fish is either terrific or an ancient whiffy thing. The chinese place does consistently good fish, but the chips are almost raw.
I've generally had better fish n chips up north. Not had owt to write home about down here.
Did I mention I know a London pub that does REALLY PUKKA fish and chips?
I once had sausage and chips at Butlins when I was a kid. My mother thought I was just being twisty when I complained about the sausage being hard, until I banged it on the table and it snapped in half...
It was hollow inside with a sort of fossilized, charred skin. Must have been in the frier for a week at least.
The doughnuts were foul too. I can still taste them.
And the food poisoning.....though that might have been Pontins.
The Village Inn, in Torrance. New owners recently, advertising take away fish and chips. I got it once. Not only did I have to wait 20 mins, but it was inedible. The fish was skinny, hard and had obviously been sititng out, or cooked and recooked. It was like chewing on leather, honestly, no exaggeration. Makes me feel sick thinking about it. The chips were not able to be stabbed with a fork to try and eat them.
Geordie owners. Obviously had some stupid idea they could make food sell well. No chance.
On the other hand, got some excellent fish and chips from Chips & Co i Kirkintilloch via Just Eat. They arrived within 20 mins of clicking 'order' and tasted great.
Worst - Molesey Fish Bar near my house just vile soggy chips too much rock hard bater and not fresh fish
Best - Sylvesters, Appledore.
Too many bad fish suppers to mention still have nightmares about a chip van that used to come round our area when growing up they would be jailed if doing the same these days.
The one in robin hoods bay big up by mate but was a disappointment but still ok
The best- major fish Callander and the real food cafe tyndrum and neither anywhere near the coast
Fish and Chips from the Fox Inn in Hague Bar - tiny, and still frozen. Also, a pie somewhere in Wales, which didn't have any pastry. When I asked where it was the waitress brought out a pastry "lid" that had obviously been shown the microwave.
Best is the one in Clifton on the way home after a night ride.
Another crap one fort William chippy near Nevis sport number 1 daughter vomited straight after consuming that muck
Local chippy in Swansea, thankfully now under new ownership.
When my large fish and chips arrived, she said "arite luv, I'll only charge ewe for a small fish cos the batter is hard". Didn't go back.
Thankfully the Waun Wen chippy is now much better.
Im a firm believer that British citizenship should involve eating fish and chips weekly 🙂
Worst - My local in Ludlow 🙁
Best - Rick Steins - Falmouth, or The monk fish battered from Darts farm, or the battered salmon from the Ashvale chippy in Elgin
"Soggy/non-crispy chips from a chippy is a crime punishable by death. It's that simple"
Trendy telly watcher and so wrong. When i was younger chips were not crispy and can never be. not pulp but never ever ever crispy.
Bad meal. the chippy in Aviemore.bloody awful and bugger all for a stupid price.
Bikebuoy, that would be Oliver's, and it's 5 mins from my work. It's amazing I'm not the size of a small house...
Worst meal I ever had was at a chinese restuarant in Lanzarote, ordered a chow mein and as it arrived infront of me I thought 'something is awry here..' My suspicions were confirmed on my first mouthful of the noodles. They were spaghetti!!! Overcooked tasteless spaghetti at that. Whole thing just tasted weird.
On the bad fish n chips front, any chain pub IME. All frozen, then charge double what a proper chippy would. Don't mind paying restaurant prices for fish and chips, if they are restaurant quality.