Carrick fish and chip shop up for UK-wide award

The Friary is one of seven Northern Ireland ‘chippies’ shortlisted as part of the 2017 National Fish and Chip Awards.

It will now compete for the ultimate accolade of Independent Takeaway Fish and Chip Shop of the Year.

Hailing from every part of the country, the UK contenders have had to fry at the top of their game as they faced rigorous judging to secure a top spot.

To reach this stage they have been appraised by industry experts across a variety of judging criteria, including menu development and innovation, sustainable sourcing policies, customer service and staff training processes, marketing and promotional flair, and how they attract new customers to fish and chips.

Over the coming weeks, shops will be subjected to further judging as they receive mystery shopping assessments.

This next stage of the competition will whittle down the line up, establishing a UK top 20 that will subsequently compete to be crowned with a prestigious ‘regional’ title.

Following a further judging stage, the overall national winner will be announced in January after a seven-month long judging process.