Day 130 - For Cod's Sake

Sadly, we had to say goodbye to Stuart today. It feels like he just arrived, and yet by early afternoon we were seeing him off at the train station as he made his way back to Paddington Station and then on the Heathrow.

Before he left, we enjoyed one final British must-have delicacy with him: a lunch of fish and chips from our local shop, The Mermaid Fish bar. It's a take-away only restaurant that is open every day for a couple of hours at lunch time and then until about 10 pm each evening. There is always a steady line up at the place, particularly on Friday nights.

Since the rest of our day involved hiding away in the flat and avoiding the all-day rain, here are a few facts and stats about fish and chips courtesy of the National Federation of Fish Friers and a few other sources:

• There are about 10,500 specialist fish and chip shops in the UK (far outnumbering McDonalds at 1,200 outlets and Kentucky Fried Chicken at 840.
• Brits eat 167 million meals of fish and chips from shops each year, with 22% of people visiting a shop an average of once per week.
• Fish and chips are a valuable source of protein, fibre, iron and vitamins, and provide a third of the recommended daily allowance of vitamins for a man and nearly half for a woman.
• Fish and chips were served in newspaper until the 1980s.
• Fearing a possible drop in morale, fish and chips were not rationed during the war.
• Each year, one shop is awarded as having the best fish and chips in the country. This year the award went to Miller's Fish and Chips in Haxby, York.