Enjoying a chippy tea is often seen as an integral part of being a northerner and they have long been the Friday evening meal of choice for many families.
In some people's view you cannot beat it, whether that be in the form of a chip barm, a jumbo sausage, or even classic fish and chips. Perhaps controversially (as someone born in Bolton and who has spent all but about six months of my 28 years living in the north west of England) it is far from my favourite dish.
Firstly, I always find that the size of the fish can be very hit and miss and you do not always know what you're paying for. As for the chips, they're regularly paler than I would like and not as crispy as I would have them if I was making them at home.
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Without wanting to attract a pitchfork-wielding mob to my front door, I just think that without the liberal helping of salt and vinegar that I always request, the whole thing would just be a bit bland. That may be missing the point but I never feel the need to add salt and vinegar to any other meal that I order, so why should this much loved staple of Great British cuisine be any different?
I have written in the very recent past about my love for Indian food so when I spotted a Greater Manchester takeaway offering something called 'masala fish', I was instantly intrigued. Based at the border of Broughton and Cheetham Hill, Jolly Rogers' menu consists of popular takeaway fayre such as kebabs and burgers, alongside the aforementioned masala fish that had piqued my interest. It does also serve up 'traditional' chippy dishes if that is what you fancy.
The restaurant is hard to miss when driving up Bury Old Road - a bold blue facade, with flashes of red, standing out between an opticians and a convenience store. There is also a big central sign, featuring a playful font, an anchor, and skull and crossbones, as well as another neon sign in the window advertising something called 'tasty tandy chicken'.
Inside, there is something of a nautical theme, in keeping with the name of the restaurant. The blue and red colour scheme remains throughout the seating area and there is a large treasure-style map on the wall.
A masala fish meal, including chips, a choice of dip, and a can of pop sets you back £10. It's certainly not the cheapest chippy tea in the world, but when you factor in the sauce and drink, it isn't too far away from what you'd expect to pay. Encased in a cardboard box rather than polystyrene, I was slightly concerned that my meal would not still be hot after the 20 minute drive back from the chippy to my house but it survived and I did not waste anymore time in getting into it.
Upon opening the packaging, the scent of the spicy batter that the fish had been coated in wafted towards me. It looked great as well; a darker colour than traditional chip shop batter and garnished with spring onions. The size was also a winner - lengthways, the fish took up around three quarters of the box and it almost filled the width.
When I ordered it, I was asked if I wanted salt and vinegar, and after taking my first bite it was clear that I had made the correct choice not to bother. The batter offered a kick of heat and flavour that meant that I didn't have to drown it in condiments as I usually would. The fish itself was soft and flaky, with the taste of the spices lingering on the meat even after the batter had been removed.
With it being an Indian-inspired dish, I felt that the natural choice for the dip was curry sauce and this made a great accompaniment for the fish, even though it was tasty enough not to need it. It also came in handy for the chips, which I did not have any particularly strong feelings towards but probably were missing the salt and vinegar that I had turned down. As this is a Manchester-based news publication, it only seemed right that I washed it all down with a can of Vimto and this also proved a good complement (as it always is because Vimto is superb).
Now that I've tried masala fish, I have no doubt that I will get a hankering for it long before I next crave traditional fish and chips and I am now on a mission to find somewhere that does it closer than a 20 minute drive away from me; however, I will also be giving Jolly Rogers another visit, because I want to see if the 'tasty tandy chicken' that they boast about on their neon sign is as good as this.
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