There is simply nothing better on a balmy summer’s night than having a perfectly-cooked yellow dinner of fish and chips. Very little comes close to sitting by the ocean (or a large lake perhaps) with a little cardboard tray of battered and fried fish, some calamari rings, a couple of potato cakes (or scallops, if that’s your choice), and a metric fucktonne of chicken-salted chippies all wrapped up in butchers’ paper. Now, we know where we can get the best of the best in Australia.
Seafood Industry Australia’s Great Australian Fish & Chip Awards have been announced for this year — perfectly timed for the holiday season and all its picky dinners and salty beach lunches. After a whopping 300,000 votes, the best fish and chip shops for every state and territory are here for your perusing and meal planning for those warm nights when you truly cannot be arsed to cook.
Though each winner across the country is the top dog in their respective state or territory only, there was one that was apparently head and shoulders above the rest in the polls.
Costa’s Seafood Café in Capalaba, QLD reeled in the most votes after Queenslanders hit the polls pretty hard. Judging by the look of their Instagram (and how much it’s making me salivate) it’s no surprise it has won back to back awards.
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Down on the NSW south coast (AKA God’s country), the state’s best fish and chips is a day trip south of Sydney. Something Seafood in Callala Bay took out this year’s gong, with an offering of delicious crumbed and fried dishes. They also have a bunch of fresh sushi packs and trays of local oysters available daily, if you’re after a bougie addition to your yellow dinner.
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For the first time in the awards history, the ACT is now on the map with a top-voted spot. The Fish Shack in Civic has made fishy history in the landlocked territory, narrowly beating its rivals to win by a mere 10 votes. It’s also the only one on the list this year to be largely plant-based, so there are options for all the veg friends in our lives, too.
I mean, sure, there’s absolutely no beach or seaside to go and sit by to scoff down fish and chips in the nation’s capital, but I’m sure you could park up next to Lake Burley Griffin when the breeze is just right and it’d be just like you’re down the beach. Less sand, too.
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Trident Fish Bar in Queenscliff is the big winner for Victoria this year, which is no surprise considering they make their own potato cakes (and pumpkin cakes) in house. There’s really not much that beats a perfectly-battered and fried potato cake — and a stodgy one can really ruin a good fish and chip dinner.
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You can find South Australia’s finest at Fish Out Of Water in Hyde Park, pipping Henley’s Stunned Mullet and the Ceduna Oyster Barn at the post this year. Considering they’re serving up ridiculously delicious-looking fish and chippies like this, it’s no surprise it’s the most-loved bite in the bight.
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Out west, Pinjarra Fish & Chips has taken home the trophy yet again for the whole of Western Australia, backing it up from winning the last awards in 2019. There seriously must be something in the batter over there, or maybe it’s the fact they dish up crumbed onion rings too? Whatever it is, they’re clearly not messing with the format, and I have to respect it.
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Up the top end, where I’ve personally had some of the best seafood of my God damn life, it’s Frying Nemo Fish and Chippery in Stuart Park that’s won everyone over in the Northern Territory. I’m firmly believing it’s a combination of the incredible pun work and the fact they serve up local produce (including crocodile burgers) that got this Darwin spot over the line because I’m sure there would have been plenty of stiff competition here.
Finally, off the mainland, Tasmania’s best fish and chip shop is Fraggle’s Fish & Chips in the Launceston region of Invermay. Ahh, Lonnie. You’ve got monkeys in the park and the best fish and chippies on the island. How good.
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So there you go, that’s the crumbed and fried creme de la creme around Australia. Consider your lazy dinners sorted for the summer with the best fish and chips the country has to offer.
