A coastal haven in North Yorkshire has been crowned among the best towns along the British coast for food and drink, according to a new survey.

Whitby was revealed among the hotspots for 2024 and was the only Yorkshire destination to feature in the rankings, according to Which?.

The famous Magpie Café has also received a special mention.

The consumer champion website commented on their findings: “The food available at the British seaside has improved hugely.

“There's now somewhere special to eat in every part of the coastline - from St Andrews in Scotland to Fowey in Cornwall. A total of 21 seaside towns got impressive, four star ratings for food and drink in our latest survey.”

It added: “Almost 5,000 Which? members gave us their views on the best and worst seaside towns. They rated everything from the beaches to the tourist attractions, but in some places the biggest attraction is still the perfect fish and chips or, increasingly, something more sophisticated.

“South East and Southern England have five of the highest-rated seaside towns for food, South West England four, Wales three, Scotland, East England, and North East England two each, and Yorkshire, North West England, and Northern Ireland one each.”

See all 21 seaside towns in the UK given four stars for food and drink here.

The best fish and chips shops in the UK

Why is Whitby among UK’s best seaside towns for food and drink?

Which? explained: “Yorkshire has long claimed the country’s best fish and chips and Whitby is one of the best places to go to test that claim.

“The Magpie Café, right on the waterfront, has been serving up its chips fried in dripping for more than 80 years.

“Another local delicacy is smoked kippers from the Fortune’s smokehouse in the centre of town.”

The North Yorkshire town was given an overall destination score of 77%.

On Tripadvisor, a recent visitor said the fish they tasted at The Magpie Café was “sublime”.

@the.yorkshireman Kicking off the best fish and chips in North Yorkshire with the very famous Magpie Cafe in Whitby 🙌🐟 #whitby #magpiecafe #whitbyfood #whitbyfoodie #thingstodoinwhitby #northyorkshire #ukfishandchips #yorkshirecoast ♬ Young Folks - Shindig Society

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Their review said: “Ordered cod and chips from the takeaway and Finally got to taste the famous Whitby fish and chips!!!!

“The chips were perfect, hot fresh crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside and as for the fish it was sublime!!! the batter was perfection crispy. light and golden brown and the fish was succulent and juicy.”

Another wrote: “The best fish and chips I have ever tasted, fish, chips and mushy peas, try the sticky toffee pudding.staff friendly and helpful, well worth a visit if you are in Whitby.”