Monday 11 November 2013

A London Lunch No 12: George's Portobello Fish Bar



From July to October I had the pleasure of working with a lovely team over in Westbourne Park – an area that was completely alien to me in terms of food spots.

Being amongst fellow food-lovers, I was happily introduced to a number of great lunch spots whilst working there and George’s Portobello Fish Bar was one such venue.

A local chippie that has stood the test of time, having been open since 1961, George’s avoids the almost ‘yuppified’ version of what I think of as a chippie in central London and at any given lunch time you can find queues out of the door, which are alone testament to the food on offer.

Both Jamie Oliver and Victoria Beckham have been photographed/quoted as being fans of the food here, and I am happy to join them in their appraisal of this fish and chip mecca.

I have to say I must have picked up lunch time food from George’s at least six or seven times in the mere three months that I worked in the area – whether it be a hungover Friday, a miserably cold and wet Monday or just a bored Wednesday, I needed no excuse to partake in the deliciousness George’s has on offer.

Thick cut, crisp on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside chips are a constant here and topped with a flurry of vinegar and salt, they are quite frankly perfection.

Now during my Westbourne Park stint I tried a number of accompaniments, from saveloys, sausages in batter and other, less traditional, fare, however, the crème de la crème here really is the fish. The cod is just fantastic, again perfectly cooked to flaky deliciousness, full of fresh flavour and coated in a crisp, light batter with just the right amount of grease. They claim to collect their fish daily from Billingsgate market, and this really does show.

Fish and chips will set you back around £7.00 which is reasonable, especially considering the quality of the fish and the decent size of the portion – so what are you waiting for?

Aside from George’s Portobello Fish Bar, here are three other chippies worth a try in London:

1.    Fryer’s Delight, Theobald Road, Holborn
2.    Golden Union, Poland Street, Soho
3.    Poppies, Hanbury Street, Spitalfields



George's Portobello Fish Bar on Urbanspoon

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