For many people, a trip to the seaside is not complete without tucking into the quintessential British comfort meal – fish and chips.

So why in arguably the most popular coastal destination in Kent are there just two chippies left? Reporter James Pallant went to find out…

There’s something undeniably special about eating fish and chips by the sea.

It might be how the salty air mingles with the savoury scents of vinegar and lemon. Or perhaps it’s the assumption - true or not - that being on the coast means the cod, haddock or plaice is fresher than that you’d find further inland.

Whatever the reason, in a seaside destination as charming as Whitstable - and one with a proud history of fishing and oystering no less - you’d think chippies would rule the high street.

But even as the town’s popularity among tourists has ballooned over the past decade, the number of fish and chip shops has plummeted.

In fact, just two now remain in the town – Ossie’s Fish Bar in the high street and Seven Seas Fish Bar in Canterbury Road – and Roland Birks, who owns the Ship Centurion pub a few doors down, believes he knows why.

“Whitstable has outclassed itself,” says the long-time landlord.

“AirBnBs are killing the town as the properties are getting so expensive that locals have nowhere to live.

“And I think a lot of the tourists who come through Whitstable nowadays maybe prefer to go to the fancy restaurants rather than the chippies.”

Bold red lettering on a sign outside the former V.C. Jones in Harbour Street reads ‘FISH Luncheons & Suppers’.

But peer through the shopfront windows and you’ll see the empty shell of the much-loved establishment that served the town for more than 60 years. It closed in January as the owners retired.

Whitstable Fish Bar, in the high street, looks increasingly derelict having shut in 2018.

Further afield, what used to be Mr Chips on Tower Lane is now a nail salon and Dean’s Plaice, off the Old Thanet Way, is also closed and widely rumoured to soon become a Starbucks.

But even as family-run Ossies has faced shrinking competition, its co-owner and namesake says the past few years have been particularly tough.

“Whitstable is busier than ever and people’s appetite for fish and chips hasn’t changed,” says Ossie Altun, 50.

“But in the last few years, the cost of running a fish and chip shop has gone way up.”

Ossie says between the war in Ukraine and complications from Brexit, the price of potatoes, fish, the oil they’re fried in and the energy needed to run the kitchen has rocketed.

Throw in the fallout from Covid lockdowns, and the cost-of-living crisis hoovering up households’ eating-out money, and it's no surprise Ossie and his brother and business partner, Ahmet Altun, have been forced to cut their own paycheque.

“As much as it has all affected our costs, we have been trying to keep our prices for customers as reasonable as possible,” said Ahmet, 38.

“But at the same time we are using high-grade ingredients and that’s something we will not change, even if it could save us money.

“I think our quality is one of the reasons why we’re still here.”

But it’s not only the higher costs of ingredients that make production of the classic British dish a challenge.

While other food industries have been able to save money through technological innovation, Ossie says the recipe relies on manual labour.

“The machines have become more power-efficient, but it doesn’t really matter - you still have to peel the potatoes, fillet the fish and fry the fish and chips by hand.

“Maybe in the future there’ll be robots doing more cooking, but we will never be doing that.

“Fish and chip shops are unique to other restaurants as we are making traditional food in a traditional method and that’s what people want.”

There are more risks and barriers to entry with fish and chip shops than other eateries.

With fires much more of a danger, Ossie says chippies pay higher insurance premiums and spend more time training their staff on how to work safely.

Coffee shops - of which Whitstable’s town centre now has four - don’t have this problem.

“There are coffee shops everywhere in Whitstable now,” continued Mr Birks, whose family has run the town centre pub for 28 years.

“You can produce coffee quite cheaply, the beans cost hardly anything and the more you buy the cheaper it is, plus you only need two people to run in.

“Another reason I think fish and chip shops are struggling here is the development of the harbour.

“This new mall they have there now (the South Quay Shed) takes a lot of customers away from the centre of town.”

By comparison, in neighbouring Herne Bay there are chippies aplenty - Starfish Bar, Britannia Fish Bar, Fish Inn Two and Sunset Fish Bar to name but a few.

Regardless of the location, solo fish frier Rob Weston has an advantage over brick-and-mortar stores.

Operating out of the Howe & Co fish and chips van, the 38-year-old drives from village to village – mostly around Ashford - following the demand for his piscine produce.

But even this more flexible business model has not been immune to the challenges of the chippy trade.

“When I first started five years ago I used to pay £5.95 for a 25kg bag of potatoes - now I pay £22 for a 20kg bag,” says Mr Weston.

“Even though I’m not making the fish and chips in a shop, there’s still rent on the van to pay, I still have to pay gas, electricity.

“The only advantage for me is that if it goes quiet in a certain place I can pitch up in a different location - wherever there’s customers.

“I charge around £12 for a fish and chips - some people think that’s a lot but most of it is swallowed up by the costs of making it. The job works out paying about minimum wage for me.”

As for Ossies, its future looks bright.

Ossie and Ahmet say they are looking forward to increasing profit margins once market conditions improve but for now are enjoying catering to Whitstable residents and tourists’ taste for quality.

The family have other shops in Canterbury, Sturry, Broomfield, Greenhill and Faversham, but say they have no plans to expand further.

“Although financially we could do, the more shops you have the thinner your attention gets spread,” said Ossie.

“Faversham is where we started almost 25 years ago, but Whitstable is special.”