My quest for the 10 top fish and chip shops in London was initially guided by a host of objective factors: Origin, handling, freshness and shape of the fillets. Cleanliness and temperature of frying fat. Composition and consistency of batter. Cooking time. Draining time.
But as my frustration grew, with even London’s most famous chippies proving themselves more adept at cutting corners than potatoes, my focus shifted from objective considerations to more emotional ones. Forget state-of-the-art oil filtration machines. I sought only fish and chips with a taste, texture and aroma so evocative I’d be transported back in time to family road trips along the North Yorkshire coast. For a kid who grew up in New York this was asking a lot. The closest my family ever got to the Yorkshire coast was Brighton. Brighton Beach, Brooklyn.
I nevertheless reconnected with the Yorkshire summers of my imagined past on the grounds of an Islington council estate. Fish Central, at King Square Estate, near the northern edge of Clerkenwell, serves the best fish and chips in London. It’s a 10-minute walk from Old Street Station – five minutes if you’ve had its fish before.
Forget regional styles, personal preferences or the look, location, logo or lore of the chippy under consideration. In London one can’t be that fussy, sadly. I limited my search to a single fish, cod, and a pair of benchmarks:
Fish too hot to eat straight away but too good not to.
Fish as delectable detached from its batter as is the batter detached from its fish.
Both criteria were repeatedly met at Fish Central, opened as a fish and chip shop by George Digby, a Greek-Cypriot, in 1968.
Fish Central’s George Digby
As the area around Central Street gentrified Fish Central followed. It’s now a nice fish restaurant where you can enjoy the best fish (£7.95) and chips (£1.95) in London with such modern comforts as chair, table, stainless steel cutlery and Australian Semillon Chardonnay. They take reservations.
An open question
I prefer the discomforts of the spartan takeaway shop fronting the kitchen, not to save myself £2.60 (a takeaway cod and chips is £7.30) and not because, much as everyone knows, fish and chips taste better when consumed on your feet, with your fingers. (Here the wooden chip forks are mostly for show. Few bother with them.) I like seeing my fillet first naked, then battered. I feel better following that fillet with my eyes as it’s lowered into and lifted from the hot oil. I get a special kick watching, if not George, then Hassan, his sideman, building a cone from multiple layers of paper and then filling it with golden goodness.
More than anything I take special delight hearing the question, “Open?”, meaning, would you like me to serve it to you open so that the dizzying vapours can penetrate your pores and you can start in when our fish, our chips and your expectations are at their hottest points?
Duh.
The two-minute fish story
After one too many dreary London encounters with dried-out fish I began refusing anything on view in the display cabinets, withering under the heat lamps.  (You should do the same.) I insisted that my cod be freshly fried. (Ditto.) This request elicited a range of responses, from admiration to grudging acceptance to the proverbial two-minute plea: That fish is fresh. It’s only been there for two minutes. When you hear “two minutes” you know you’re in trouble: If the server indicates one minute, or even four minutes, that could be credible. But two minutes? I’ve known hours shorter than that.
The first time I stepped up to Fish Central’s takeaway counter and demanded a freshly fried fillet I heard no sob story. Not a word. I got only a look from George as if to say: Are you kidding? Do you even see a single fillet in the cabinet? Do you think we’d serve anything that wasn’t freshly fried?
It’s now a little game we play. I ask for fresh. He gives me the look. Everyone is happy.
I had less success teasing George about his name. “What kind of Greek-Cypriot name is Digby?” Again no story. Just a glare and not one I care to see again. Game over.
The fish itself doesn’t fry. It steams.
When the cooked batter coats a fresh fillet in an even single layer without folds, puffs, big bubbles or spattered bits, much like the crunchy one clinging to Fish Central’s wonderfully plump Icelandic cod fillets, the fish effectively steams under its protective sleeve. When the frying time and temperature are right this indirect steaming favours the white meat of cod as much as direct steaming favours the white meat of lobster. The effect is one of the glories of fish and chips: diagonally sectioned flakes of cod glistening with moisture and joy.
The chip shake-n-salt
The chips Fish Central peels and cuts itself from Maris Pipers are good and sometimes very good. A surface sheen outlined by bronze highlights seals in the potato fluffiness. With each bite you feel the geometric shape formed by the crisp edges and corners.
Hassan brilliantly executes the chip shake-n-salt, eliminating worries about uneven distribution of salt. He holds the paper cone for you with two hands and tosses the chips like a salad, shifting them around from top to bottom and bottom to top, as you sprinkle salt over them.
Conclusion
Could a Yorkshire lad learn to love Fish Central’s fish and chips? With groundnut oil rather than beef dripping as the frying fat I suspect not. Nor can I be sure Fish Central would impress a Norfolk native or a lost Lancastrian. But for a local kid from EC1, or, in my instance, 10025, these are the best fish and chips in London.
Fish Central, 155-159 Central Street, London EC1V 8AP (map) – 020 7253 4970
Hi Daniel,
Thank you for this article! As a Yorkshire woman I pride myself on my high Fish n Chip standards and I’m definitely going to give Fish Central a try but….does this mean you’ve tried and rejected Masters Superfish in Waterloo? Their mustard batter has to be eaten to be believed. Maybe we can have a North/South/East/West list just in case we find ourselves in those vicinities in need of an urgent portion of cod?
D
Thanks for the tip as I actually work in the vicinity. I would desperately like to find decent fish and chips in London but I simply refuse to pay for such poor imitations.
IWhitby suppose that I’m going to be more difficult to please as I’m from North Yorkshire and would rather wait for my twice annual visit to the motherland and eat proper grub from
Right on my doorstep of the last near 3 years. In fact when I 1st moved from the Warren St area (you must try Gigs on corner of Goodge St. http://www.gigsfishandchips.com/) I took my laundry right by this place and thought Oh we must check it out…
Alas we never did and it was forgotten in the mist of my ever decreasing circle of food venturing needs. But now you have rekindled it within me – I’m definitely dragging the missus there for a FRYday night chippie and walk home eating & licking fingers drenched in S&V and fat… with maybe a side of mushy peas and if they do them… scraps on top!
Cheers again Daniel! See you Monday at Burger Bash
FRYday night chippie. Why didn’t I think of that? Let me know how it goes, Will.
I went here about 3 years ago and it was great. I was only commenting on how long it’s been since I had fish and chips, so I guess it’s about time to return.
Nice to have an up to date validation!
If you do go back, Benn, let me know how it compares to your memory of it.
Ah Daniel you are making me hungry!
Great review and I love the video of the chip salt & shake 🙂
Thank you, Anna. Making you hungry was my aim, as you do it to me all the time.
As a northerner born and bred who lives near central street I can back up everything you’ve said; really good london fish and chips but no they don’t match up to ‘proper’ northern done in dripping fish and chips.
Just tried this on your recommendation and I agree, excellent fish & chips. Fish particularly so, tasted fresh and delicious.
Thanks
Glad you liked the fish, Tom. Did you eat in or takeaway?
Funny enough I walked past there a few days ago and immediately thought it looked like it was worth trying out despite the unglamourous location. Will go in next time I pass
Daniel – Will definitely have to try this place. I got a little turned off to fish and chips after eating at Rock & Sole Plaice because they fried the fish with the skin on; something this North American ex-pat had never seen before.
Meg – You are hardly alone in you aversion to skin-on fish and chips. But a number of London chippies leave the skin on, not just The Rock & Sole Plaice. It’s a regional preference unheard of in the north.
I went to Fish Central for the first time last June after extensive research online of where to take my fish loving non eat meat eating mother and family for a birthday meal. A bit of a ropey walk to the venue and one I may not have done had it not been the right side of the year with sun on my side – it was FANTASTIC. Loved the scallops, oysters – selection of fish fantastic, it’s supposedly a popular venue for cabbies – loved it even more hearing that – cabbies got great taste in food! It was a fantastic group meal of about 10 of us and the service was fantastic. No frills dining with tons of genuinely good food. Will definitely be heading back as it’s been a while. A little closer to me is George’s Souvlaki and Fish and Chip Bar in South Woodford. George looks like a bit of a bruiser but he’s a teddy bear at heart – I love watching them batter and cook the exact fish I’ve chosen.
I find fish and chips in London to be either tourist oriented or bolted onto a kebab/pizza/fried chicken joint, very few quality fish and chip specific shops left, living in the midlands now and some great chippies round here.
Hi Daniel,
I tried Fish Central yesterday. I asked for “fresh” and was told “everything is fresh” but still managed to avoid the fish in the cabinet (there was some there when I went).
The cod was very good, but slightly overcooked. It had a bit of chew to it, which I’ve done myself when making my fried fish and leaving it to cook for too long.
As far as the chips go, they were fine but I still haven’t had chips from a fish and chips shop that weren’t on the flabby/greasy side of things. I wonder if they’re double cooked or not.
Also, I feel they could do with some nice (homemade?) tartar sauce and free ketchup. I’d happily pay a bit more to avoid the 10p sauce packets.
Anyway, thanks for the tip,
Adam
Decent fish and chips is important to me but it is very difficult to find chips as nice as the ones I remember as a kid. In the old days chips used to be succulent (although sometimes a bit soggy if left too long). People did not relish “fluffy” chips which is what many people say they want today. Nearly all chips today are dry, stiff and floury with leathery skins. Dry and “Fluffy” is a poor substitute for juicy and tasty. Sometimes it is possible to get good fish in a chippy, but not usually – genuinely fresh fish is something special but rare now as a result of overfishing I guess.
Lazy, poor service (I’m holding back from calling it rude) means that no matter how good the fish & chips, this cannot be number 1 in London. The service in Kerbisher & Malt (for example) is far, far better.
We are two Australians who made a trip to ‘Fish Central’ based on an on-line article which listed the best 10 fish and chip shops in London. We explained to the owner that we were happy to purchase anything on the menu – and there were several pricey meals – but wanted the very best fish and chips he could offer. After some engaging chat his response was that we should choose the £7.50 cod and chips. A short while later he appeared with a complementary salmon ball entrée which was absolutely delicious – light as a feather, tasty and beautifully presented. The cod and chips that followed was without a doubt the best we had tasted – fabulous flakes of moist delicately flavoured fish which had been cooked at exactly the correct temperature to steam the cod inside the batter shell. The chips were perfect – fresh and crispy yet still tasting of potato.
Now this effort may have been encouraged my my relating of the story of the Cypriot chef we’d met on the road who gave us directions whist insisting that it wasn’t in fact the best fish and chip shop for a variety of vague reasons, possibly connected to his friendship with a competitor. But in any case, ‘Fish Central’ produced a first rate fish and chip meal – undoubtedly the best. The table service was first class – friendly and attentive. The only fish and chips to have come anywhere near in my assessment came from Akaroa in New Zealand – definitely worth the trip to Islington.
I’ve been going into Fish Central since I was in short trousers!
There are many pretenders, but only one king in London & this is it. Big George & his brother Freddie are two of the capital’s nicest fellas. Here’s to Fish Central & their tip-top grub.