• About us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Editorial Policy
  • Contribute
  • Contact
Monday, July 7, 2025
  • Login
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Health
  • Science
  • Tech
    IMGP4O and the New AI Paradigm: From Innovation to Impact

    IMGP4O and the New AI Paradigm: From Innovation to Impact

    How a pill used by millions every day could help prevent cancer spreading

    How a pill used by millions every day could help prevent cancer spreading

    Private company makes ‘fully successful’ Moon landing for first time ever

    Private company makes ‘fully successful’ Moon landing for first time ever

    Slack is down for thousands of people and nobody can do any work

    Slack is down for thousands of people and nobody can do any work

    Apple pulls iPhone security tool after UK government ‘demands access to user data’

    Apple pulls iPhone security tool after UK government ‘demands access to user data’

    Odds of ‘city killer’ asteroid hitting Earth in 2032 increase yet again

    Odds of ‘city killer’ asteroid hitting Earth in 2032 increase yet again

  • Travel
  • Sports
  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Fashion
    • food
    • Travel
    Finding the Perfect Pod What to Know Before You Buy

    Finding the Perfect Pod: What to Know Before You Buy

    10 unmissable Time Out London deals – including champagne brunch at The Shard for £55

    10 unmissable Time Out London deals – including champagne brunch at The Shard for £55

    People are just realising there’s a meaning behind the patterns on the Greggs pastries & say their minds are blown

    People are just realising there’s a meaning behind the patterns on the Greggs pastries & say their minds are blown

    English seaside hamlet with pub right on the beach often overlooked by Brits

    English seaside hamlet with pub right on the beach often overlooked by Brits

  • Entertainment
    You can now get hold of a PS5 for only £22 – but there’s a catch

    You can now get hold of a PS5 for only £22 – but there’s a catch

    Why I think Warner Bros. should sell up and leave the games industry – Reader’s Feature

    Why I think Warner Bros. should sell up and leave the games industry – Reader’s Feature

    Check your drawers for prized Pokémon games ‘worth £3,900’ – Nintendo fans might have titles worth thousands at home

    Check your drawers for prized Pokémon games ‘worth £3,900’ – Nintendo fans might have titles worth thousands at home

    Nintendo needs to bring back Zelda: Twilight Princess’ best character – Reader’s Feature

    Nintendo needs to bring back Zelda: Twilight Princess’ best character – Reader’s Feature

    Iconic Xbox game worth up to £650 if you still have it – and you don’t even need the box to cash in

    Iconic Xbox game worth up to £650 if you still have it – and you don’t even need the box to cash in

    GTA 6 PC release date revealed by peripheral manufacturer

    GTA 6 PC release date revealed by peripheral manufacturer

    Gamers slam Sony for ‘terrible’ PSN outage compensation as they suddenly realise certain users are excluded from offer

    Gamers slam Sony for ‘terrible’ PSN outage compensation as they suddenly realise certain users are excluded from offer

    E3 organisers are back with a new games convention called iicon

    E3 organisers are back with a new games convention called iicon

    Fortnite update v33.30 brings OG Chapter 1 Season 2 – and Godzilla is gone from Battle Royale

    Fortnite update v33.30 brings OG Chapter 1 Season 2 – and Godzilla is gone from Battle Royale

  • Covid-19*
  • Real Estate
  • More
    • Crypto
    • Press Release
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Health
  • Science
  • Tech
    IMGP4O and the New AI Paradigm: From Innovation to Impact

    IMGP4O and the New AI Paradigm: From Innovation to Impact

    How a pill used by millions every day could help prevent cancer spreading

    How a pill used by millions every day could help prevent cancer spreading

    Private company makes ‘fully successful’ Moon landing for first time ever

    Private company makes ‘fully successful’ Moon landing for first time ever

    Slack is down for thousands of people and nobody can do any work

    Slack is down for thousands of people and nobody can do any work

    Apple pulls iPhone security tool after UK government ‘demands access to user data’

    Apple pulls iPhone security tool after UK government ‘demands access to user data’

    Odds of ‘city killer’ asteroid hitting Earth in 2032 increase yet again

    Odds of ‘city killer’ asteroid hitting Earth in 2032 increase yet again

  • Travel
  • Sports
  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Fashion
    • food
    • Travel
    Finding the Perfect Pod What to Know Before You Buy

    Finding the Perfect Pod: What to Know Before You Buy

    10 unmissable Time Out London deals – including champagne brunch at The Shard for £55

    10 unmissable Time Out London deals – including champagne brunch at The Shard for £55

    People are just realising there’s a meaning behind the patterns on the Greggs pastries & say their minds are blown

    People are just realising there’s a meaning behind the patterns on the Greggs pastries & say their minds are blown

    English seaside hamlet with pub right on the beach often overlooked by Brits

    English seaside hamlet with pub right on the beach often overlooked by Brits

  • Entertainment
    You can now get hold of a PS5 for only £22 – but there’s a catch

    You can now get hold of a PS5 for only £22 – but there’s a catch

    Why I think Warner Bros. should sell up and leave the games industry – Reader’s Feature

    Why I think Warner Bros. should sell up and leave the games industry – Reader’s Feature

    Check your drawers for prized Pokémon games ‘worth £3,900’ – Nintendo fans might have titles worth thousands at home

    Check your drawers for prized Pokémon games ‘worth £3,900’ – Nintendo fans might have titles worth thousands at home

    Nintendo needs to bring back Zelda: Twilight Princess’ best character – Reader’s Feature

    Nintendo needs to bring back Zelda: Twilight Princess’ best character – Reader’s Feature

    Iconic Xbox game worth up to £650 if you still have it – and you don’t even need the box to cash in

    Iconic Xbox game worth up to £650 if you still have it – and you don’t even need the box to cash in

    GTA 6 PC release date revealed by peripheral manufacturer

    GTA 6 PC release date revealed by peripheral manufacturer

    Gamers slam Sony for ‘terrible’ PSN outage compensation as they suddenly realise certain users are excluded from offer

    Gamers slam Sony for ‘terrible’ PSN outage compensation as they suddenly realise certain users are excluded from offer

    E3 organisers are back with a new games convention called iicon

    E3 organisers are back with a new games convention called iicon

    Fortnite update v33.30 brings OG Chapter 1 Season 2 – and Godzilla is gone from Battle Royale

    Fortnite update v33.30 brings OG Chapter 1 Season 2 – and Godzilla is gone from Battle Royale

  • Covid-19*
  • Real Estate
  • More
    • Crypto
    • Press Release
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result

I own a fish & chip shop – 6 customers we hate, a parenting move is infuriating & don’t penny pinch on an essential buy

by Morris
September 10, 2024
in food
Reading Time: 6 mins read
0
SHARES
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

[ad_1]

NOTHING beats a chippy tea with lashings of salt and vinegar.

It’s long been the nation’s favourite and despite a fish supper now costing more than double than it did five years ago, it still tastes just as good.

The overall winner was announced in February this year
The owner of a fish and chip shop revealed the six customers that make his life more difficult
Getty
a plate of fish and chips with mashed potatoes and tartar sauce
The price of a portion of fish and chips increased by over 50% in five years, rising from an average of £6.48 to £9.88
Getty

According to the Office of National Statistics, a portion has jumped by 52 percent since July 2019, from £6.48 on average to as much as £9.88 today.

Chippies blame high energy costs and poor potato harvests for the hikes in price and despite our pockets taking a battering, one takeaway chippy owner says his business is booming.

He works gruelling 50-hour weeks to keep his customers’ fed but says there’s six types he can’t stand because they make his job even harder…

The vinegar drencher 

The lowest of the chip shop low are the customers who place an order to take home, and before it’s wrapped they use the complimentary bottle of vinegar on the counter to douse their fish and chips.

I sell bottles of vinegar for just 95p, they don’t cost the earth. 

This sort of customer pours on copious amounts and it seeps through a dozen sheets of greaseproof paper – needless to say, we no longer wrap fish and chips in newspaper. That went out when health and safety madness came in. 

One time, a customer actually pushed the end of the vinegar spout through the batter and into a fish.

The toddler dumper

Mums who have tired arms rest their toddlers on the chippy counter right next to where the food is wrapped. It’s infuriating AND unhygienic. 

Whenever it happens in my shop I make a point of getting out the anti-bac spray so other mums who are in the queue know it’s very unhygienic and don’t chance it. 

It takes up valuable time and my queue gets bigger. 

There’s a man who comes in my shop who does it every single time and he still hasn’t taken the hint. 

It’s a takeaway counter – not a high chair.

The carrier bag dodger

When it became law that we all have to pay for carrier bags in shops and takeaways my customers still expected a free one. I charge 10p, that’s less than the supermarkets do. 

It amazes me that someone is happy to spend £50 on fish and chips for their family of five but refuses to cough up a measly 10p for a bag. 

When they leave the shop I watch with glee when their fish ends up on the pavement or the lid drops off their curry sauce pot.

That’s what I call karma. 

The rocketing cost of fish and chips

There has been a 50% increase in fish and chip prices in the past five years.

In 2019, an average chippy dinner would only set you back £6.48 but now diners find themselves forking out an average of £9.88.

The beloved British staples isn’t the only take away treat to see a price increase.

Kebab prices rose an average of 44%, from £5.24 to £7.57, while pizza prices increased by 30%, from £8.06 to £10.48.

Source: Office for National Statistics

The last-minute chancer 

At the end of every single session I get at least one customer who expects free food. 

It’s the sort who stroll in when every light in the shop has been switched off. That’s a signal the shop is about to shut and the pans are switched off. 

a map showing uk 's top 40 chippie locations
The location of the UK’s top 40 best chippies.

Yet they walk in, as bold as brass, and ask: ‘Have you got anything left?’

They’re hoping I’ll send them off with a free chip butty – no chance.

If it’s a regular who is running late then I have no choice but to bite my tongue because I want their repeat custom.

But otherwise no such luck – one woman had the nerve to tut and storm out when I refused to serve her 20 mins past closing time. She hasn’t been back, I’m glad.

Where are the UK’s best chippies?

The following is a list of the top 40 finalists of Fish and Chip Takeaway of 2023:

England

  • Angel Lane Chippie – Penrith
  • Westgate Fish & Chips – Morecambe
  • Westend Fish and Chips – Oswaldtwistle
  • Yarm Road Fish and Chips – Darlington
  • Lighthouse Fisheries of Flamborough – Bridlington
  • The Fish Bank – Sherburn-in-Elmet
  • Auckley Friery – Doncaster
  • Mr C’s – Selby
  • Catch 22 – Tattershall
  • Angells Fisheries – Newark-on-Trent
  • Pips chips – Cleethorpes
  • Marina Fish & Chips – Skegness
  • Linfords Traditional Fish and Chips – Market Deeping
  • Eastleigh Town Street Fryer – Marple Bridge
  • Chips @ No.8 – Prestwich
  • Hooked on the Heath – Knutsford
  • Fiddlers Elbow Fish & Chips – Leintwardine
  • Bishopston Fish and Chips
  • French’s Fish Shop – Wells-next-the-Sea
  • The Fish Inn Clacton – Clacton-on-Sea
  • Henley’s of Wivenhoe – Wivenhoe
  • Johnny Macs – Colchester
  • Stones Fish & Chips – London
  • Newington Fish Bar – Ramsgate
  • Sandy’s Fish and Chip Shop – Folkestone
  • Lewis’s Fish and Grill – Maidstone
  • Seafare – Guildford
  • Harrisons Fish & Chip Co. Botley – Oxford
  • Mike’s Traditional Fish & Chips – Bishopstoke
  • James Backhouse – New Milton

Wales

  • Posh Fish and Chip Company – Cardiff
  • Fintans Fish & Chip Co – Cardiff
  • Hennighan’s Fish & Chip Shop – Machynlleth
  • Finneys Fish & Chips – Benllech
  • Ship Deck – Caerphilly
  • Zero Plus Fish & Chips – Cardiff

Scotland

  • The Wee Chippy – Anstruther
  • Garioch Fish Bar – Inverurie
  • The Fish Works – Largs

Northern Ireland

  • Chipmongers – Portstewart

The dog feeders

I have nothing against animals, dogs especially, but when folk come in for a couple of sausages which I cook to order and then tell me with a smile that they’re for the dog, not them, I fume.

My job is to serve humans, not animals. I work 50 hours a week and I’m rushed off my feet as it is keeping my customers fed – I don’t have the time or the energy to make sure the nation’s pets are too.  

The change chasers 

Banks charge small business owners like me for change so when you come in with a £20 note and order a £1.50 cone of chips, it’s a joke.

I know why you do it – you know the bus or taxi driver will complain if you try to pay then with a note so you want to rinse me of my change.

At the end of the day I’m here to sell food, I’m not a bureau de change. 

[ad_2]

Source link

Related Posts

People are just realising there’s a meaning behind the patterns on the Greggs pastries & say their minds are blown

People are just realising there’s a meaning behind the patterns on the Greggs pastries & say their minds are blown
by Morris
March 4, 2025
0
ShareTweetPin

I tested pancake makers for Shrove Tuesday… £25 winner was fun & delivered restaurant-quality crepes

I tested pancake makers for Shrove Tuesday… £25 winner was fun & delivered restaurant-quality crepes
by Morris
March 1, 2025
0
ShareTweetPin

Mum-of-6 reveals epic Asda haul as supermarket slashes stock on ‘reduced to clear’ despite long shelf lives – saving £92

Mum-of-6 reveals epic Asda haul as supermarket slashes stock on ‘reduced to clear’ despite long shelf lives – saving £92
by Morris
February 26, 2025
0
ShareTweetPin

I’m a football WAG – here’s the protein-fuelled snack I make for my SPFL boyfriend, it’s so yummy

I’m a football WAG – here’s the protein-fuelled snack I make for my SPFL boyfriend, it’s so yummy
by Morris
February 23, 2025
0
ShareTweetPin
Next Post
VW reveals prices for sporty ID.Buzz GTX and new 7-seat model

VW reveals prices for sporty ID.Buzz GTX and new 7-seat model

  • About us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Editorial Policy
  • Contribute
  • Contact

All Rights Reserved© 2021 Manchester Times

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Politics
  • News
  • Business
  • Science
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Fashion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Tech
  • Health
  • Food

All Rights Reserved© 2021 Manchester Times