A village chip shop in Kent is offering a fillet of cod so large it’s served with tongs and a bread knife.
Archie’s Fish & Chips in Minster is behind the supersized fish, which typically weighs between 1.4kg and 1.7kg, but has been known to reach 2.2kg. Priced at £65, it is served as a meal with four portions of chips, four sides, four drinks and bread and butter.
Promoted on the menu as an “extra large cod and chips special meal”, it is designed to be shared between three to four people, and began as a surprise for regulars.
Alex Bovalyaev, who has run Archie’s for 11 years with wife Natalie, said: “The first time we did it was for friends and family, and they did really like it. After that, we thought it would be a good idea to start selling it in the restaurant, something to surprise the regulars and encourage more customers.”
After uploading a video of the giant fish to TikTok – which has now racked up 3.7 million views – the couple decided to make it a permanent item, available for preorder only.
“Once, twice a week, we have people coming in to order it who have seen the big fish on TikTok,” said Alex. “Occasionally we do have people just come in and ask for it, but we’re not always ready for it. We buy 32oz+ frozen at sea cod, and sometimes we don’t have that good size of fish, that’s why we say to preorder.”
Cooking the fillet is no easy task, and it requires frying at a lower temperature for slightly longer to ensure it comes out crispy rather than oily.
Though designed for sharing, not everyone treats it that way. Alex added: “We had a couple of fellas turn up to have one each. We said to them, ‘If you eat it all, you don’t have to pay anything. If you don’t eat it all, you have to pay’. So the two of them did try. None of them did finish.”
Alex and Natalie moved to the UK from Russia in 1999. Alex began his career in a chip shop in nearby Herne Bay, peeling potatoes and washing up, before working at various shops across Thanet. Along the way, he learned from different chefs and developed his own approach to frying. He believes he may be the only Russian fish and chip shop owner in the UK.
The extra large cod has become a valuable marketing tool for the business, which, like so many, is struggling with constant price increases. Alex added: “In the old days, we used to advertise ourselves in newspapers and local magazines. And although we do still do a bit of that, more or less all the advertising now is through the internet and social media. TikTok and YouTube have helped us a lot, especially with the big fish.”
That online presence has brought customers from London, Germany, and even California.
Still, the Bovalyaevs haven’t lost sight of community needs, offering value options like a chip butty for £1.50 – which Alex says is “really for kids but anyone can order” – and five free meals a week for anyone in need.
Alex added: “Prices for the past two years have risen so much that fish and chips is not a meal that people buy daily to feed themselves anymore. It’s more or less a treat now. Even chips, they used to be £1.50 a portion and now they are £3.50, so we do what we can to help our community.”
