Harden's says
The third London outpost of this fish & chip chain (with sites in Shoreditch and Camden) takes over 2i's Coffee Bar in Soho's Old Compton Street. Owner Pat Newland - a fish & chip old-hand who ran a jellied eel stand in Rupert Street in the '60s - describes the interior as '1970s Soho café'.
Harden's survey result
Summary
“Proper fish ’n’ chips” is the order of the day at this self-consciously old-school trio from Pat ‘Pops’ Newland, an 81-year-old East Ender with a lifetime in the trade behind him. The fish arrives daily from Peterhead in Aberdeenshire, and 1950s memorabilia adorns the walls. Sceptics say it’s “not bad, but expensive for what it is”.
Summary
Fish trade veteran Pat ‘Pops’ Newland started out cutting up newspapers to wrap portions at the age of 11, and has kitted out his three tourist-friendly chippies (in Soho, Spitalfields and Camden Town) in 1950s memorabilia to commemorate the era. The “no-frills” fish he serves is “excellent” and “consistently fresh” – but even fans can find it “overpriced by a long way”.
Summary
Fish trade veteran Pat ‘Pops’ Newland started out cutting up newspapers to wrap portions at the age of 11, and has kitted out his three tourist-friendly chippies (in Soho, Spitalfields and Camden Town) in 1950s memorabilia to commemorate the era. The “no-frills” fish he serves is “excellent” and “consistently fresh” – but even fans can find it “overpriced by a long way”.
Summary
Founder Pat “Pops” Newland, who started working in the East End fish trade at the age of 11, has decorated these venues (Soho, Spitalfields and Camden Town) in 1950s memorabilia, so “it feels like Poppies has been around since London’s rock’n’roll days”. It’s not as bad as it sounds – you get “proper fish and chips”: “all the classics are here, together with some welcome additions (seafood platter, lemon sole)”, but “most importantly, the chips are great!”.
For 31 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).
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Restaurant details
Opening hours
Last orders: midnight
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