This is the worst thing that has ever happened to me. The Golden Bite has ruined fish and chips for me forever. Because I will never - EVER - find a fish supper superior, or perhaps even equal, to the one I had this weekend from the Golden Bite.
I travelled to Portobello with Moray L on the express mission of trying the legendary Bite Of Gold after reading Justin G's review, and we were the first ones in when the doors opened at 16:45. The man who greeted us over the counter could not have been happier if he had been a dog in a field full of squirrels. It doesn't seem an exaggeration to say that I suspect frying fish has been his lifelong passion.
Because we were so early, we got the first haddock to go into the fryer - clean, white haddock of gobsmacking, Jonah-swallowing proportions which the chap wobbled at us playfully before setting about the battering and frying.
At this point - minutes after the doors opened - the shop filled. I mean it properly filled. I know not how many of these were pilgrims like us, and how many were locals, but it's clear that the reputation of The Golden Bite's fish suppers is widely renowned. I was reaching five stars simply from the cleanliness, the rich frying smell, and the chap's jollity before I'd even put anything in my mouth, and when a small girl entered and he pulled down a teddy bear to wave at her, I was smitten with the place entirely. But the food. The food. The proof of the poisson is in the eating.
Oh. My. Wrapped lovingly in paper and carried down reverently to the seafront for consumption, these piscine Midas fillets were battered to crispy perfection, but still with the softer underside that makes a fish supper truly sensational. The chips - proper chip shop chips - were glorious and plentiful, but not so numerous as to prevent one from finishing the lustrous, luscious fishywishy that so enchanted both me and Moray. I need to go back. No, you don't understand. I NEED to go back. Now. And I don't think I will ever love a fish supper in quite the same way that I love the Golden Bite's. read more