Writer and fried-food connoisseur Danny Mei Lan Malin recently sampled the fish and chips at the Anstruther Fish Bar in Fife, Scotland, but he left unimpressed sparking controversy with Scots writers
A takeaway reviewer has caused controversy after he visited the UK’s best fish and chip shop – but said he’d had better. The columnist has kicked off a row after visiting a chippy widely touted as the UK’s best but leaving a lackluster review of his meal.
Writer and fried-food connoisseur Danny Mei Lan Malin recently sampled the fish and chips at the Anstruther Fish Bar in Fife, Scotland. But he left unimpressed, he wrote in his weekly column for the Yorkshire Evening Post. The reviewer, who grew up in his parents’ chip shop in Barnsley, made the trip up to Scotland but after trying Anstruther Fish Bar’s famous grub he ultimately declared: “The best chippies are definitely in Yorkshire.”
Anstruther Fish Bar, which has won multiple awards, including being officially named UK fish and chip shop of the year, has also served chippy teas to the likes of Tom Hanks, Robert De Niro and Prince William, who popped in by helicopter for a takeaway meal in 2021. However, despite praising the “stunning” coastal location and perfect weather, Danny said that the famous Anstruther Fish Bar “didn’t live up to the hype,” complaining the meal had not been fried in beef dripping.
But now another commentator has fired back at Danny, saying “you’re wrong”. Rosalind Erskine, a food and drink editor for the Scotsman said his criticisms were misplaced, adding: “You would no more fry fresh fish and potatoes in beef dripping in Scotland than you would ask an Edinburgh resident if they want chippy sauce.” The best fish and chips in the UK are to be found in Scotland, Rosalind claimed, while slating the chippys in London especially, where she said she had been served: “Fish with skin still on it and no idea what a single fish supper is – neither me nor the people serving me knew what was being ordered”. The English capital was “where you’ll find the worst fish and chips in the UK,” she claimed. Meanwhile in his review Danny said he preferred the fish and chips in his native Yorkshire, reeling off a list of places he feels are better than the famous Anstruther Fish Bar.
