Chips! No French Fries Here!

My fish and chips meal from A Salt & Battery
When I looked over the syllabus at the beginning of this class, I was particularly excited for the food assignment. I think food and the manner in which it is eaten says so much about a culture, and I’ve always been amazed by how easy it to experience a culture or region through eating (regardless of whether the food is homemade or is eaten at a restaurant). I love going out to eat, and one of my favorite things about New York is how there is such a diverse selection of international or “ethnic” restaurants that serve authentic food from some other region of the world (of course, not to say that there isn’t a fair share of Westernized or “inauthentic” options as well). I knew I wouldn’t have much difficulty finding a great British restaurant.
The English aren’t particularly renowned for their cuisine, but rumor has it that things have been vastly improving over the past few years. I found out in doing the map assignment that London is filled with Middle Eastern restaurants, and they seem to have almost—if not just as much—variety with international cuisine as New York. In terms of traditional British fare, it seems as if much of it has remained the same and has stuck to its traditional roots. These simple, carbohydrate-filled dishes are actually the kind of things that I love: savory pies, Welsh Rarebit (toasted bread covered with a cheese sauce), and all sorts of puddings and tarts. I even found something called a Chip Butty (which they had at the restaurant I went to) that is essentially a fry sandwich (or “chip” sandwich I should say), with fries sandwiched between two pieces of bread.
I’m also a huge tea fan and the idea of participating in afternoon tea (with cakes, scones, sandwiches, the whole nine yards) thrills me to no end. The one problem I think I might encounter is that the British diet is very heavy on meat, which I don’t eat. Luckily, however, I love fish and the British do too; when I looked at some London restaurant menus online, there was almost always a seafood alternative to the meat dishes (and I even noticed that many restaurants are now incorporating completely vegetarian options).
As soon as I read the assignment, I knew exactly where I wanted to go. Most authentic British restaurants are in the Little Britain section of the West Village that I mentioned a few posts ago, but the challenge was that I wanted to try something new. I had already visited Tea & Sympathy with a friend for some traditional tea and crumpets, and I had stopped earlier at Myers of Keswick for my English Breakfast tea and McVities biscuits. I had seen a restaurant next door to Tea & Sympathy called A Salt & Battery, and later found out online that it was a partner British shop that served authentic fish and chips. I hadn’t had fish and chips since elementary school, and I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to try something quintessentially British and something I don’t typically order (and stepping away from the tempting British sweet dishes that I’m familiar with).
The shop had a large selection of fish like Pollock, Sole, and Whiting, but I decided to go with the Haddock, which I had read was one of the more traditional fishes for the dish. I ordered a side of “Chips! No French Fries here!” as the menu proclaimed, along with a Dandelion & Burdock soda (which I had never heard of). The shop had a variety of British soft drinks and beers that aren’t sold in many places in the U.S., so I spent a long time reading the labels and trying to decipher what exactly the cans contained. I took my order to go and when I opened my meal up back at my dorm, I realized they gave me a huge amount of sauces to go with it: lots of traditional ketchup, but also malt vinegar and two containers of an unidentifiable homemade sauce. I dug in and was very impressed; the chips were soft and tasty, and the fish was flaky and had a delicious flavor, especially when eaten with the homemade sauce (which I later discovered was tartar sauce). I didn’t like the malt vinegar and the soda was a bit too sweet for my own taste, but overall I enjoyed the meal and intend to order fish and chips frequently when in London. I have a feeling it will be a good and consistent standby, especially when I need a meat (or carb) alternative!