If you want the best fish and chips shop in south London, it would be hard to go wrong with a finalist of the National Fish and Chip Awards.

That honour has gone to Brockley’s Rock, which has been shortlisted for the Fish and Chip Shop of the Year Award organised by Seafish.

The acclaimed fish and chips shop opened in 2011 and owner Kyri Karoulla reckons part of its success is due to cooking techniques passed down through generations.

The Greek Cypriot chef said: “We have a way of frying that has been taught to us by my wife’s grandfather.

“As long as you have a fresh fish and fresh oils your customers will always come back. He taught us back in 1988 and we carried on the same practice here.”

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Brockley’s Rock is also a forward-thinking restaurant, being one of the first in the country to serve the newly certified North Sea cod.

North Sea cod came close to collapse over a decade ago, but in July their status had been changed to sustainable and Mr Karoulla said its very important to put British fish back on people’s plates.

He said: “For a fish and chip shop, sustainable British fish is as good as it gets so it’s great we can put cod from our own waters back on the menu.

“We can trace all our certified fish back to the boat it was caught from. It also means we and our customers are doing our bit to protect fish stocks and the oceans”.

Most of all though, he said it’s down to the people of Brockely who have kept him busy from day one.

“It used to be a rundown Chinese takeaway. When we opened in 2011 we didn’t know what to expect.

“We opened on the Monday. I figured it would be good since it wouldn’t be too busy so we could get used to the machinery, but then it turned five and the floodgates opened and it has been packed ever since.

“The people in Brockley really looked after us, they were really supportive from day one.”

The winner of the Fish and Chip Shop of the Year Award will be announced at The National Fish and Chip Awards’ 30th anniversary ceremony in London on 25 January 2018.