Eric's Fish & Chips in Thornham has been named today as one of the UK's top six fish and chip restaurants in the 30th National Fish & Chip Awards.
Whittled down from organisers Seafish's top 20 shortlist, Eric's Fish & Chips will now compete against five other businesses around the country to gain the illustrious title.
Dan Mooney, manager of the restaurant said: 'We're excited beyond belief.
'We nearly got to the final of Best Newcomer last year and were disappointed when we didn't make it through, but seeing the email last night that we'd got to the top six was just a feeling of total elation.'
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o reach this stage of the competition, the finalists have been judged by industry experts across a wide variety of criteria including responsible sourcing policies, diversification and innovation, restaurant facilities and appearance, staff training and development practices, and marketing and promotional activity.
They have also received mystery shopping assessments to evaluate customer service levels and the quality of the fish and chips on offer.
Mr Mooney added: 'We're so pleased to have got this far, but we're ambitious and we think we have something special to offer here- and that's something that all our staff really feel too. We'd love to win the title.'
The Thornham branch will now battle Poppie's Fish & Chips in Soho, Something Else Fishy in Dorset, The Cod's Scallops in Nottingham, The Pelican in Devon and Trenchers Restaurant in Whitby.
Over the coming weeks, the shortlisted restaurants will face additional in-depth judging audits to assess both the front and back–of-house operations.
This final stage of competition judging will determine the overall national winner who will be announced at the 30th anniversary awards ceremony early next year.
Mr Mooney added: 'We just need to be ready for the next mystery shopper, and keep our fingers crossed come January!'
Marcus Coleman, Chief Executive at Seafish, said: 'Fish and chips have always been one of Britain's best loved dishes. With changing trends, it's encouraging to see that our long-standing tradition has evolved with the rise of the fish and chip dining experience.'
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