A CHESTER chippy is in line for two top national awards.

Fish and Chips @ Weston Grove, Upton, is into the final three of both the 'best new chip shop' category and the 'Field to Frier' honour for serving the perfect chip.

Both accolades are being dished out as part of the 2019 National Fish & Chip Awards, organised by Seafish, the public body that supports the £10bn UK seafood industry.

To reach this stage of the competition, finalists have been appraised across a variety of judging criteria including how owners and staff approach running a new fish and chip shop, promotional activities, and approaches to the responsible sourcing of key ingredients. They also received mystery shopping judging assessments by industry expert judges, evaluating product quality and customer service levels.

Finalists have also been assessed on their policies and procedures in the responsible sourcing of potatoes, plus their potato knowledge, including types and seasonality, storage and preparation of raw ingredients.

Finalists will now face further in-depth judging visits from an awards auditor, assessing both front and back-of-house operational aspects of respective businesses.

This final stage of judging will determine the overall national winner of these awards, to be announced at The National Fish & Chip Awards’ 31st anniversary ceremony, held at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London on January 24, 2019.

Marcus Coleman, chief executive at Seafish, said: “The future of the fish and chip trade relies just as much on new entrants coming into the industry as it does on the sustained success of longer established shops. The calibre of entries in this category continues to get stronger every year which is very encouraging.

"It’s no easy feat starting a new business, especially in an industry that is relatively niche and specialised, extremely reputable and already populated with many thriving, long-established businesses."

He added: “Often overlooked, delicious fluffy chips play an important role in producing the perfect portion of fish and chips – and it all starts with sourcing the right potato. Filled with vitamins, minerals and organic compounds, potatoes offer many of the healthy nutrients required for a balanced diet.

“This award [Field to Frier] not only measures the quality of the chip, it also recognises each business’ efforts to source responsibly, providing customers with traceable and sustainable products. I’m pleased to say that our finalists have excelled in all areas.”

It is the second year in succession Fish and Chips @ Weston Grove has been nominated for an accolade at the the annual awards event.