A true classic of the London fish ’n’ chip scene, The Seashell of Lisson Grove is something of a chippy celebrity. It attracts a fair few of them too, with everyone from Dua Lipa and Lady Gaga to Liza Minnelli and Stevie Wonder sampling its oceanic goodness over the years. It’s been at its current location since 1964 but has been serving since before WWII. Taste a bit of history.
Fish and chips is London’s quintessential street food. It originated with the fried fish sold by Sephardic Jews in the seventeenth century, before being refined over the centuries into the golden, battered, crispy delight we know and love today. Traditionally, it involved cod, which used to be as cheap as, well, chips. But these days, dwindling stocks of the fish mean that London's fryers are getting creative: you’ll find halibut, hake, calamari and more on many chip shop menus.
When done well, fish and chips is a stodgy godsend, ready to be drenched in salt and vinegar, and dipped into a delicious pot of mushy peas. When it’s bad, it’s just a load of beige. So let’s take the element of risk out of it. Here are the best places to get your fry on in London.
Recommended: London’s best seafood restaurants.