Belfast’s Fish City named fish and chip restaurant of the year

Fish City in Belfast has been named Restaurant of the Year at the National Fish and Chip Awards 2023.

The family-owned restaurant, which won the Health and Nutrition Catey in 2019, was recognised at a ceremony organised by the National Federation of Fish Fryers (NFFF). It beat second placed Malt & Anchor in Cirencester to the title, while Henry's of Hunstanton, Norfolk, was placed third.

Fish City also won the title of Environment & Sustainability Champion for its commitment to sustainable and environmentally friendly practices.

In a tweet, Fish City said: “Wow, what can we say! 🏆🏆 We took it home to Belfast! 🐟❤️ The UK's Environment & Sustainability Champion and Restaurant of the Year! What an honour to be recognised at the National #fishandchipawards by the @NFFF_UK So, so incredibly proud of our team! Over the moon!”

The awards also named the Fish and Chip Takeaway of the Year, with Whitehead's Fish and Chips in Hornsea, East Yorkshire, taking home the coveted title. It said it triumped thanks to “expert industry knowledge, outstanding customer service and strong environmental standards”. Fish Kitchen in Maesycwmmer, Hengoed, was second place with the Fish Works in Largs, North Ayrshire, in third.

NFFF president Andrew Cook said: “Fish and chips are such an important part of British culture, as iconic as London buses and known the world over. Our industry is comprised of thousands of individual businesses but we have shown that we can move as one when we have needed to.

“Working in our businesses we tend to forget that we have an important part in a much larger machine and it is great to have this event back to celebrate everything that is great about fish and chips.”