Creamy white fish in a crispy batter, served with crunchy melt-in the mouth chips, and a side order of mushy peas – welcome to Jana’s Chippy, a pop up restaurant in the Kisharon Noé School dining room.
School Headteacher Adina Collins turned a normal Friday lunchtime into an eatery inviting Trustees, directors, parents and head office staff after declaring Catering Manager Jana Gocova’s fish and chips the best in Hendon.
Jana and her team Judy Wise and Vani pulled out all the stops. Not only was there kohlrabi soup for starter but lunch was accompanied by tartare sauce, plenty of vinegar for the oven-baked chips, salad on the side and served in greaseproof paper ‘newspaper’.
Vani had the unenviable task of frying 100 pieces of haddock on the day in a batter that caused some anxiety.
Jana explained: “We couldn’t use beer batter and so tested an alternative recipe using flour, milk, water, baking powder and salt. It came out well.”
Planning her school lunch menus months ago, Jana steered clear of fish fingers, despite their popularity. “I wanted to offer the children a proper fish and chip experience and to enjoy fresh produce.
“At our first fish and chip lunch children came back for seconds and teachers who don’t normally come for lunch decided to that day.”
“The haddock we used wasn’t the cheapest fish but it has more flavour. It was sourced from a local fishmonger who portioned and filleted it. It’s good to support a local supplier.”
Last word comes from Trustee Yitzy Lerner who said: “It was a delicious lunch on Friday – glad I was able to pop in.”
Fish and chips is next on the school menu on January. Any invites? There’ll probably be as scarce as gold dust.
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