Ladywood fish and chip shop named in country's top 10

Dec 5 2009 by William Oliphant, Birmingham Mail

FOR the love of cod! A Birmingham chip shop has been named one of the top ten in the UK.

The Birmingham Mail revealed in October that the Great British Eatery, in Ladywood Middleway, had been named the region’s best chippie of 2009 and was down to the final 20 in the national Fish and Chip Shop of the Year competition.

Now the takeaway is among the last 10 standing and owner Conrad Brunton must face a panel of judges to tell them why his shop deserves to take the top spot. He said: “We are blown away to have made the finals.

“We have achieved so much in the 16 months since we opened and I am proud of all my staff for their work.

“We are all excited for the finals in January and hope to put Birmingham on the culinary map.”

The contest is organised by the Sea Fish Industry Authority, Seafish. Competition judge and project manager Nikki Hawkins said: “The standard of entrants continues to increase each year.

“We are seeing fish and chips shops paying an increasing amount of attention to sustainable sourcing as well as offering quality, value and choice.

“This industry has come a long way in 22 years and competition for the national title gets fiercer each year.”

The winner will be crowned by TV chef Aldo Zilli on January 21 at the Riverbank Park Plaza in London.

Every year Britain’s chip shops sell up to 276 million meals. Fish and chips rose to popularity when the first fish and chip shop was opened in London by Jewish businessman Joseph Malin in 1860.

He wanted to put together traditional fish fried in the jewish fashion with the popular working class meal of chips.

Earlier this year, the Great British Eatery was awarded a maximum five stars for the quality of its foood by Seafish.

Mike Pili, who was part of the inspection team, said: “All aspects of the business, from delivery to service, were of the highest standards.

“The Quality Award concentrates on 13 areas of the shop including raw materials, storage, premises, handling practices, management controls and of course excellent food. I congratulate the Great British Eatery for its attention to detail and the presentation of their fish and chips.”

Read our reviews of chip shops and takeaways across Birmingham