CHIP SHOP OWNER
I’VE been in this business for more than 30 years, and learned the ropes from my dad, who was a cook in the merchant navy. The reason I’ve stayed in the industry so long is that I really enjoy the interaction with customers.
My wife and I own the Alhambra in Bellshill, near Glasgow, and bought the Townhead Cafe in Biggar, Lanarkshire, five years ago.
When we opened for business a year later, in 2005, local resident Ann Thorburn was our first customer. She’s been supportive of us and comes in twice on a weekend and several times through the week. And no, she’s not at all fat. She’s very slender and lively. Fish and chips have fewer calories and fat than you might think.
Ann has become a good pal of my wife Sandra, who often stops what she’s doing to have a chat with her, even when we’re mega busy. She told Ann about our daughter’s pregnancy when it was still a secret, and Ann never breathed a word.
She’s a very friendly, chatty person and even when we had problems when we first came here, she stayed with us. People accused us of being incomers because we don’t live in the town, plus when we replaced the old sash-and-cord windows upstairs we got on the wrong side of the council because this is a conservation area. But Ann has been on our side from the start. Her grand-daughter worked with us for two years when we first opened.
We get very busy with visitors from the US, Canada, China and Holland. We also get lots of bikers coming in, following a favourable review in the Motorcycle News last year, when we won Fish and Chip Shop of the Year.
But Ann is a constant, and she’s very popular in the town. She always asks for a special fish supper, which is breaded haddock rather than battered. Sometimes she’ll get a split black pudding supper. Having said that, 80% of our sales are fish.
We tried bringing in more sustainable species such as hake and pollock but nobody wanted it and since we always buy fresh, not frozen, it went off. So we don’t buy it any more.
We need to give our loyal customers like Ann what they want. She always gets the same things for her husband and her mother, although the funny thing is I’ve never met either of them.
ANN THORBURN, 65,
RETIRED BAR WORKER
WHEN I first went into the Townhead cafe, I immediately decided I’d stop going to the only other chippie in town. I’ve lived in Biggar for 30 years and I found Gordon and Sandra to be so friendly and hard-working I just admired them so much. Their place is huge and takes a lot of dedication but it’s always sparklingly clean. Also, they make the best fish and chips you can get.
I always have a special fish supper, which they make just the way I like – crispy on the outside and meaty on the inside. It’s really, really good. You get two pieces of fish, which makes it great value for £6.
Gordon does the cooking and I get chatting to him and Sandra. Most of my family also come here. We always have fish and chips on a Saturday because my husband Richard, who worked in Biggar’s betting shop until he retired, plays golf and I never know what time he’ll be coming home. He prefers chicken and chips, though.
Nipping out to the chippie is so handy. Then we’ll have another on one evening through the week if we’ve been out and I can’t be bothered cooking. I always get a single fish for my 90-year-old mother, who lives in the town. The rest of the week I cook at home – plain fare such as stew and potatoes.
What I like about the Townhead is that they have at least six boys behind the counter, and they are pleasant and polite, no matter how busy they are. Some of the girls around here could take lessons from them.
They can get very busy but the most I’ve had to wait is seven minutes. There’s always a really cheery atmosphere. It’s a credit to Gordon and Sandra because it’s all down to them.
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