The Fish & Chips Shop

I almost ordered the burger, truthfully, homesickness was right there on the QR menu and it nearly won. Then the fryer hissed and I remembered why I came. This place does the British seaside thing with more polish than the name suggests, and the room has a happy, clattery noise to it: families, expats mid-argument about vinegar, oil crackling somewhere behind the counter. It's loud in the good way, the way that means nobody is performing. The batter shatters like it should, the chips are thick-cut and salted right, and nothing on the plate is trying to impress anyone. Transcendent? No. It's a craving with a dining room. There are a few of these around town now, and they run tidily. Once a year, when the gray weather hits and I need salt and vinegar and noise, this is where I end up.