Owner Alex Povalyaev and his wife Natalia. (Archies Fish and Chips via SWNS)
By Isobel Williams
A fish and chip shop is attracting food lovers from across the globe with an enormous, battered fish for $86.
Archie’s Fish and Chips in Minster, Kent, is offering a super-sized cod dinner weighing in at between 1.6-2kg.
Owner Alex Povalyaev, 44, says the shop currently cooks about three to four of the massive meals a week and they are only available via pre-order.
He says the fried dish- which comes with four sides, four portions of chips, four drinks, and some slices of bread- is mostly ordered for special occasions such as birthdays.
@archies_fish_shop#creatorsearchinsights#fyp#cooking#fishandchips#foodtiktok#dinnerideas⬠original sound - Archie’s Fish&Chips in Minster
The item, which costs a whopping $86, is estimated to serve around four people- though some have tried to tackle it solo.
Alex, who has owned the shop for over nine years, said: “It all started because we had some friends coming and we wanted to surprise them, so we took one of the biggest fish we had and tried to fry it.
“It came out very well and they did like it. They were very surprised. It was something new, so we decided to post it on TikTok, and people loved it.
“We got lots of comments, so we decided to put it on the menu.
“It is very popular. It is a very big fish, and it is something special. Everyone is in shock when they see it come out.
“Nobody has ever seen anything like this before, so it surprises them and makes them happy. The families come and have fun.”
@archies_fish_shop When the portions are as big as the smiles! Our lovely guests are enjoying Skate and Cod at the restaurant #myd#archiesfishchipsrestaurant#fishandchips⬠Song for You - Myd
The menu item has attracted so much attention that people are now visiting from across the globe to get a taste including California, Germany, and Peru.
The videos of the fish have gained almost 12 million views on TikTok, with influencers now coming in to try and tackle the dish as a food challenge.
Alex added: “It feeds four and people usually take leftovers with them.
“We have done a food challenge where if people finish it by themselves they get it for free. Two people have tried but they both failed.
“But it is possible, and we would love to see someone come and finish the meal.
“We get a lot of customers who say they are from TikTok and we are always happy to see them.”
Customers are given a bread knife and tongs to help to carve up the enormous piece of cod, which was added to the menu around a year ago.
So far, the trickiest part has been sourcing and cooking the fish which the owner says takes a lot of care.
He added: “It is slightly different to cooking a normal sized fish. It needs a lot of attention. The difficulty is sourcing fish that big, as even the suppliers don’t know what is in the boxes.”
