Every year, the great and good from the world of fish and chips eagerly await the release of the Fry Magazine Top 50.
If your business involves battering, this is the big one, a shining endorsement of your efforts. Those in the industry refer to it as the Oscars of Fish & Chips.
And for the last couple of years, a tiny Greater Manchester chippy has elbowed its way onto the list, and stayed there.
Chips @ No 8 in Prestwich has been consistently named as one of the UK’s best by the magazine, earning national acclaim.
So is is actually worth the hype, or the queue that sometimes gets down the street?
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Yes. It is.
I could just stop writing there, really, but let’s carry on.
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Curry sauce on a Chips @ No 8 chippy tea. Credit: The Manc GroupGot the bag at Chips @ No 8. Credit: The Manc GroupBattered halloumi from Chips @ No 8 in Prestwich
There are a few things that make this little local hotspot so special.
They cook all their potatoes in beef dripping (or vegetable oil on request), which leads to the most jaw-droppingly perfect chips that retain their heat and texture for as long as it takes you to leg it home with your paper bag full of fried goodies.
None of that soggy nonsense sticking to the paper. These spuds have integrity.
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Owner Dan Edwards must have sold his sole to the devil to come up with batter as light and crisp as his is, perfectly cradling buttery-soft fillets of cod and haddock.
Vegetarians are well-looked after too, with herb-battered halloumi that turns to a buttery, salty disc and a regularly changing roster of pies.
And local suppliers pop up regularly, like Grandad’s Sausages with their intimidatingly long meat products.
With food this good (I haven’t even mentioned their perfect curry sauce yet), Chips @ No 8 was always going to shine against so many hundreds of brilliant fish and chip shops nationwide.
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But it’s the little extra attention to detail that set the bar even higher here.
It’s the map on the wall labelled with whiteboard marker, showing where that day’s potatoes and fish have come from.
It’s the disco ball hanging from the ceiling, so that even a Friday night sitting in your pants eating fried food and watching Netflix feels that bit more fun.
Battered halloumi in curry sauce from Chips @ No 8 in Prestwich. Credit: The Manc GroupA map of suppliers inside Chips @ No 8 in Prestwich. Credit: The Manc Group
It’s their efforts to support local, from raising funds for EatWellMCR (through battered Creme Eggs, of course) to commissioning local artists to paint the windows.
Times are really, really tough for fish and chip shops in the UK right now. The fish has hit the fan and we’re losing these British institutions at an alarming rate.
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Just this week, Dan shared a heartfelt statement stressing how dire things are, with energy bills doubling in the last month alone, haddock soaring 40%, and potatoes costing 25% more.
He wrote: “Why am I telling you all this? Because if and when our prices go up, it’s out of necessity, just to keep the doors open.
“Every fish and chip shop in the country is sweating over whether they should/could increase prices? Will people still come? How are the bills/staff/suppliers going to get paid?
“Support your local fish and chip shop, even if it’s not us, because if it closes, I guarantee another one won’t open in its place.”
Trust the hype. Trust the queues. Trust us. Chips @ No 8 is a gem.
The cosy Peak District pub serving a pick’n’mix sausage and mash menu
Daisy Jackson
There’s a Peak District pub that’s turned one of Britain’s most beloved comfort foods into a full-on pick’n’mix.
Tucked away in the postcard-perfect village of Castleton, Ye Olde Nags Head is serving up a fully customisable menu of sausage and mash dishes.
We’re talking near-endless combinations of proper pub grub.
You start by choosing your sausages from a daily rotating selection (not a sentence you hear every day, but we’re into it).
Expect classics like Cumberland alongside more adventurous options like venison and mustard, or even wild boar and orange, plus a veggie sausage daily.
Then it’s onto the mash – you can go for flavours like cheese and onion, wholegrain mustard, or even black pudding mash.
Classic cumberland, mustard mash, and mushroom sauceVeggie sausage with cheese and onion mash and classic gravyTucking in
To finish? A choice of rich, hearty gravies and sauces to bring it all together, whether that’s a classic onion gravy, a peppercorn sauce, or a creamy wild mushroom sauce.
And if that wasn’t enough, you can even upgrade your bangers and mash pick’n’mix by having it all served inside a giant Yorkshire pudding.
Ye Olde Nags Head is a historic 17th-century pub, with a roaring fire in every room and cosy bedrooms upstairs.
Inside Ye Olde Nags Head pub in the Peak DistrictYe Olde Nags Head pub is near Mam Tor
It’s one of those flagstone-floored, beamed-ceilinged, mismatched-furniture type pubs that welcomes everyone in every state, whether you’re caked in mud from a hike or popping in on a coach tour.
Another of the pub’s specialties is the Derbyshire Breakfast, a hearty plate of sausage, smoked bacon, black pudding, free range egg, grilled tomatoes, field mushrooms, baked beans and fried bread.
The pub also offers takeaway breakfast butties, so you can use it for both a pre-hike stop and a post-hike pint.
Given it’s just minutes from the ever-popular Mam Tor hike, this is one pub you’ll definitely want to add to your next Peak District day out itinerary.
The hillside farm in the Peak District making its own ice cream
Daisy Jackson
Did you know there’s a 300-year-old farm in the Peak District serving up some of the freshest ice cream you’ll ever taste? And yes, you can meet the cows that made it while you’re there.
Welcome to Hope Valley Ice Cream, a family-run gem where things are kept refreshingly simple: happy cows, proper farming, and seriously good ice cream.
Set in the heart of the Peak District countryside, this place is about as wholesome as it gets.
The ice cream is made on-site in the farmhouse, literally just metres from where the dairy herd are out grazing.
You can watch the animals, wander around the farm, and then tuck into a scoop or three perched on a milk pail stool, or a picnic bench (or even a decorative tractor).
Hope Valley Ice Cream has some amazing seasonal ice creams, like lemon curd, elderflower, and blackberry, alongside all the classics and a rather delicious tiramisu.
You can grab a cone, sit down with a coffee (again, made with milk from the nearby cows), or go all in with a freshly-made waffle if you’re feeling fancy.
Takeaway tubs from Hope Valley Ice CreamYou can get a mini pail of ice creamMeet the newborn calves at Hope Valley Ice CreamTuck into your ice cream on a milk pail stoolHope Valley Ice Cream
And if you’re the type who really loves ice cream? You can actually order a full pail of it, with four huge scoops plus whipped cream and sauce.
The farm itself is run by the Marsden family, who’ve been working this land for generations. It shows in everything – they’ve created a place that feels genuinely welcoming, not just another tourist stop.
Beyond the ice cream, you’ve got plenty of reasons to stick around. There are calves (including the newest tiny arrivals), plus donkeys and pigs to say hello to.
Whether you’re heading out on a hike or just fancy a drive into the Peaks, this is one pitstop that’s absolutely worth it – and honestly, it’s worth the trip on its own.
Daisy Jackson -
12th May 2023 
