A North East chippy has been crowned a winner among the UK’s best fish and chip restaurants and takeaways in Fry Magazine's 2024 guide.

Trenchers in Spanish City at Whitley Bay, featured as one of the top 10 restaurants.

Fry Magazine commented: “The UK’s 50 Best Fish & Chip Takeaways and 10 Best Fish & Chip Restaurants follow months of mystery dining in which judges visited establishments unannounced, meticulously inspecting elements, including food quality, premises cleanliness, staff expertise, value for money, ease of ordering, and social media presence.

“Shops can achieve 100% if they score top marks on every section of the mystery dining, but takeaways had to achieve at least 95.5% or over to win an award while restaurants needed a score of 95% or higher to claim their well-deserved accolade.

“This is the 12th year the awards have taken place and judges are still impressed by the consistently high standards being set, with feedback such as ‘the cod was delicious’, ‘no improvement is necessary, the service was second to none and I felt valued’ and ‘the best fish and chips I have had’.”

You can see all the best named fish and chip restaurants and takeaways here.

Whitley Bay fish and chip shop named among UK's best

On Tripadvisor, Trenchers in Spanish City has a current rating of 4/5 out of 670 reviews.

A recent visitor posted: “Delicious fish and chips with quality mushy peas, fresh fish, freshly cooked. Tea not strong enough for my liking but extra tea bags produced without fuss. Callum our waiter could not have been more pleasant and nothing was too much trouble. Excellent service.”

Another wrote: “Wonderful friendly service, delicious food! Our waitress Daphne was incredibly helpful and was able to quickly suggest the perfect adaptation with the menu so my mom could get the meal she wanted. Thank you for making it such a fun visit too with how you chatted with us, you helped it be a really special, relaxed mother's day celebration!”

Further afield in North Yorkshire, Land & Sea in Sowerby near Thirsk was named one of the best 50 takeaways, with Trenchers and The Magpie Cafe in Whitby named as two of the best 10 restaurants.

Reece Head, competition organiser, said: “It gives me great pleasure to announce this year’s 50 Best Fish & Chip Takeaways and 10 Best Fish & Chip Restaurants winners. 

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“Despite the formidable challenges posed by inflationary pressures that have affected every aspect of the industry, these remarkable establishments continue to deliver top quality fish and chips using the finest ingredients.

“Their dedication extends beyond the plate, as they invest in cutting-edge equipment to facilitate seamless and swift transactions, coupled with rigorous training in customer service.

“Uncompromising in their standards, they are truly the best in the business and deserve their recognition.”