FISH and chips are considered by many to be Britain’s national dish and are a staple favourite in many households.
However, insiders at Poppies, a renowned London fish and chip shop chain, have lifted the lid on secrets behind the counter.
A worker from fish and chip company Poppies has revealed the fish they’d never order[/caption]
The chain was named after founder Pat ‘Pops’ Newland, who started in the industry at the age of 11 cutting up newspapers for takeaway orders.
While the fish and chip shop now serves thousands of customers across London branches in Soho, Spitalfields, Camden, and Notting Hill, there is one dish they would be hesitant to order themselves.
One worker told Express.co.uk:”It would have to be jellied eels. They’ve been a popular dish since the 18th century and lots of our customers love them but if you’re new to the dish it can be quite a demanding bite.
“We serve them in the traditional way which is cold having been chopped, boiled and coated in a spiced stock that sets around the pieces of eel forming a jelly.”
They also revealed their best-selling dish.
It may not come as a surprise that cod and chips proved to be the number one choice, with
The Poppies team revealed that their best-selling dish is undoubtedly cod and chips, with 70 percent of Londoners favouring it over other fish types.
Meanwhile, the most popular side is mushy peas.
The team shared: “Curry sauce trumps gravy amongst our customers but the number one side is always mushy peas.”
And the time of day doesn’t matter as they are ordered “all day long”.
The staff member shared: “A lot of fish and chip shops use frozen fish fillets which I don’t think many people realise.
“The fillets come from far away and can be frozen a long time before they end up on your plate. It’s one of the main points of difference at Poppies.
“We only ever use fresh fish, caught sustainably and responsibly from the waters around Peterhead in Scotland.
“Every day we receive the fresh catch, our skilled fishmongers fillet and prepare the portions and then they are coated in batter and cooked to order for our customers.”
In total, Poppies peels 13 tons of potatoes and makes 40,000 portions of chips each week.
Poppies serves thousands of customers across London branches in Soho, Spitalfields, Camden, and Notting Hill[/caption]
Most affordable fish and chip destinations in the UK
Here are the most affordable places for a portion of fish and chips in the UK, based on the percentage of a local weekly wage.
- Southwold, Suffolk – £8.35, 1.06% of a local weekly salary
- New Brighton, Merseyside – £7.67, 1.07% of a local weekly salary
- Portmeirion, Wales – £8.57, 1.2% of a local weekly salary
- Folkestone, Kent – £10.53, 1.23% of a local weekly salary
- Whitstable, Kent – £10.75, 1.25% of a local weekly salary
- Llandudno, Wales – £8.97, 1.26% of a local weekly salary
- Tenby, Wales – £9.32, 1.31% of a local weekly salary
- Hastings, East Sussex – £11.56, 1.35% of a local weekly salary
- Padstow, Cornwall – £10.10, 1.35% of a local weekly salary
- Shanklin, Isle of Wight – £11.56, 1.36% of a local weekly salary
