eat em on the way home

Today I ran my first workshop session of the new project 'working memories'. Age UK Bakewell hosted the session, a fantastic day full of laughter and stories that will inspire artwork another day. Our conversations were based on work. Irene shares her experiences here:

Irene

‘A few scraps on, I’ll have em open and eat em on the way home.’ Their not the same wrapped. We had a fish and chip shop. It was spotless. ‘Bills Fish and Chip Shop’, well known, there used to be queues. 1930s/40s. They were good, ‘leave em open’ used to wait for us opening, liked em fresh and that.

I could do anything, used to scrap batter into tin, too much not nice. They were made proper. Drain em well, don’t let any fat get on them, don’t like them get too greasy. I could just eat em now. Wrapped in Grease Proof paper, then newspaper, salt and vinegar on the counter. Put salt on em as you cook em. I’ve served a few of em. An everyday food- except Sunday of course. Cod. Tail end of cod, the sweetest part of the fish.

Made our own fish cakes and rissoles, their like the crumbly part of the fish, and potatoes mixed up, beat up like. Used to enjoy it. ‘Leave it open, I’ll eat if on the way home- and a few scraps.’ Rissoles, you boil the potatoes, mash em up, parsley or sage mixed up with the fish and potato. A fish cake, the fish was boiled first, 2 slices of potato that you put the fish between. Dipped the fish cake in the batter, wiped it on the side of the pan and dip it in to cook. ‘I’ll have it open, my Love’. Lovely fish n chips an all. Only put scraps on if the want em on.

There’s dripping, there’s oil, we used both. A block of dripping in the pan to melt. A canister with hot water at the bottom to keep it hot, and peas at the top. Would ask for peas on top, and they’d enjoy em.

Vinegar in a bottle, take em home if they wanted sauce.

Counter had a marble front and top that was easy wipe down. Chips and fish or chips on their own, ‘leave em open please… served a few of them. Eat with their fingers.

Some brought a pot basin for their chips, put em in a paper 1^st then pour into a basin. On the shop window ‘fish and chips sold here’. The fish man came everyday, it were fresh fish. Used to cut it up how you want it.

Me mother had the fish and chip shop at first, then retired and we took over. A bottle of vinegar and salt on the counter.