The UK’s best Fish & Chip Takeaway and Restaurant convene in Belfast
Fish City’s John Lavery with Whiteheads Fish & Chips’ Sam Wright and Geoff Whitehead.
Wednesday, 13 December 2023
Award-winning Belfast seafood and fish and chip restaurant Fish City welcomed Geoff Whitehead and Sam Wright of Whiteheads Fish & Chips, this year’s reigning winner of the Fish & Chip Takeaway of the Year at the National Fish & Chip Awards.
Geoff Whitehead is director of Whiteheads Fish & Chips, located in Hornsea on the Yorkshire coast, a family-run fish and chip takeaway and restaurant that serves fully traceable MSC-certified sustainably sourced cod and haddock.
Geoff and Sam travelled to Belfast and spent the day with Fish City owners Grainne and John Lavery and their team. They discussed a range of issues pertinent to the trade, including inflationary pressures on the cost of materials, services, energy and labour, as well as how the cost-of-living crisis and the collapse of Stormont over the past two years has affected trade across industries and threatened the viability of hospitality businesses in Northern Ireland, which is a key player in the Northern Irish economy as the fourth largest private sector employer with a turnover of £2 billion. These pressures are not only felt in Northern Ireland but broadly across the whole of the industry in the UK. John and Geoff also discussed economic pressures to be faced in the following year and how best as an industry to navigate a way through.
Owner John Lavery gave Geoff and Sam a tour of the business, including its potato processing and seafood preparation rooms, as well its head office and training room, in which its Kids Club takes place. They enjoyed lunch at the restaurant, with Geoff and Sam opting for Fish City’s award-winning fish and chips with MSC-certified haddock. Geoff was also welcomed onto the frying range to show how he fries fish at his award-winning fish and chip shop in Hornsea. Geoff and John noted the differences in their approaches to battering fish, a reflection of regional differences in taste and the texture of the finished product. Interestingly, once Geoff drops the fish into the oil, he removes the excess batter by reflexively flicking his fingers over the oil, producing a fireworks display of instantly cooked scraps, pieces of deep-fried batter that are a by-product of frying fish. Scraps are traditionally served free of charge in fish and chip shops in Britain, and some shops even have scrap butties on their menus. In some regions of the UK where they are popular, scraps are treated as a topping or side order.
Fish City owner John Lavery said, “I’ve always found those within the fish and chip industry provide support to one another and are happy to exchange knowledge, information and market conditions within their area or region for the benefit of all. It was an honour to host Geoff and Sam’s visit to Fish City Belfast. I’m humbled by their praise of our operation.”
Whiteheads was the first fish and chip shop in East Yorkshire to obtain MSC certification. Fish City was the first on the island of Ireland to obtain this certification with the Marine Stewardship Council, demonstrating a commitment to traceability of sustainably sourced seafood and good management of MSC-certified products. Both businesses maintain unique MSC Chain of Custody codes, which allows consumers to trace individual batches of fish along the entire supply chain from sea to plate.
Also recognised at this year’s National Fish & Chip Awards, Fish City Belfast is this year’s reigning Fish & Chip Restaurant of the Year and winner of the Environment and Sustainability Award. Fish City also celebrated dual wins at this year’s 10th Annual MSC Awards celebrating businesses and organisations committed to sustainable seafood. Fish City was recognised as the UK’s Foodservice Champion of the Year and Marketing Champion of the Year, the latter in recognition of the restaurant’s longstanding Kids Club, a free educational programme for P7 school children to learn about fish and seafood and the importance of sustainability to the long-term health and viability of seafood supplies, the fishing industry, and the marine environment.
At the National Federation of Fish Friers’ (NFFF) Annual General Meeting in November, Fish City owner John Lavery was announced as the new Regional Director of Northern Ireland. The NFFF was set up in 1913 as the fish and chip industry’s national body committed to promoting the national dish and protecting the interests of the trade. Fish and chip shops and restaurants in Northern Ireland can consult with John or liase any issues at hand that the NFFF could support or resolve.
