WHEN you grow up near the seaside fish and chips is a serious business. With Anstruther, Crail and St Andrews on the doorstep, enjoying fresh local haddock while the sea breeze rustles your chip paper is an almost religious experience which can be enjoyed on the regular.

So, I have to admit, when I moved to Glasgow I had snobbish preconceptions about fish and chips. If the chippy wasn’t located right on the harbour, I wasn’t interested. Don’t get me wrong – over the years I’ve enjoyed plenty chippy teas in the East End. I was just never convinced about the seafood element.

Glasgow Times:

I’ve been living close to Benny’s Fish and Chicken Bar for a while but had, until Monday night, only ever ordered chips. The takeaway has been in business for more than 40 years and its retro signage has always brought me joy.

The name of the place is written out in old-style cursive font, and it features a cartoon green fish and tangerine chicken. A 7-Up advertisement which must be older than me glows under night-time street lighting.

On a rainy August night I craved nothing more than a trip to the coast for a fish supper. But who would travel on public transport for an hour just for their tea during a pandemic? I decided to cast off my snobby Fifer preconceptions and order a fish supper here in Dennistoun.

There was an effective queueing system in place which suited me and my Covid paranoia. I barely had to wait any time for my meal to be prepared – another perk, since the smell alone in there was making my stomach rumble like nothing else. I walked home clutching onto the warming paper bag with a joyous sensation in my heart, and salivation in my mouth.

I have to report that I have never felt more ridiculous than when I tucked into my golden battered fish and realised all my preconceptions were built on lies. The fish itself was crisp, while the chips were perfect. Crunchy on the outside, soft like a cloud on the inside. The flavour hit the spot. When a chippy has been there for 40 years – and is permanently busy as I have observed from my living room window – there’s got to be a reason.

Benny’s massively impressed me. For a significantly lower price than my usual seaside chippy haunts, there was minimal difference in quality. I could have been eating this for years now. More fool me.