Fish and Chip Facts
As far back as 1838 Charles Dickens wrote about fried fish
warehouses in the classic novel 'Oliver Twist'. These warehouses
acted as the forerunner to fish and chip shops - but the partner to
the fish wasn't the traditional chip as we see today, but either
bread or baked potatoes. The fish was sold by street vendors who
carried the goods in trays hung around their necks. The fish was
purchased cold for about a penny a portion.
The first fish and chip shop is thought to have been opened in
Mossley, near Oldham, in 1863, although there are claims for one in
London that opened in 1860.
Fish and chips was the only take-away food not to be rationed
during the Second World War. Frederick Lord Woolton, Minister of
Food at the time, even allowed mobile frying vans to carry fish and
chips to evacuees around the country!
Originally, most fish and chips were fried in beef dripping -
nowadays a variety of oils are used to satisfy the needs of a
discerning public.
In the early part of the 20th Century, the average wage was such
that a portion of fish and chips with mushy peas at 6d was
affordable for the working class - this would add vital protein and
vitamins to the usual diet of bread, dripping, tea and condensed
milk.
