Rival brothers battling it out for first plaice
TWO brothers who own rival fish and chip shops in the same town are battering it out to be named the UK’s best chippy.
Tony and Liberato Forgione’s shops are among the top 20 entrants in the National Fish and Chip Awards 2019.
Tony, 44, who has run Captain’s Fish and Chips in Hoddesdon, Herts, for 20 years and narrowly missed out on a top-three position in last year’s contest, said: “It wasn’t just a flash in the pan. We’re back in the running this year and hope to do even better.” Big brother Liberato, 47, who only opened Sidney and Sons Fish and Chips, less than a mile away from Tony, in March, said of his ranking: “After five months I think it’s a great achievement.
“You could say it was an ‘Oh my cod’ situation.”
Tony added: “There’s a rivalry because obviously we both want to be good. I’ve been here for 20 years so I know what my customers are having before they open their mouths.” But Liberato says his range of offerings, which includes grilled sea bass and salmon, could give him the competitive edge.
Despite the rivalry, neither brother has a chip on his shoulder. Tony said of Liberato: “If he wins, good luck. The person who really wins in the end is the customer. For Hoddesdon to have two fish and chip shops in the top 20 is brilliant.”
Liberato said if Tony landed the title “I’ll say congratulations”.
The Forgione family has been in the fish and chip business for more than half a century. After moving to England from Italy in 1957, Sidney Forgione set up his first shop in East Finchley in north London in 1963.
Tony said: “Dad’s 81 and he goes from shop to shop and tells us where we’re going wrong.”
A third brother, Luigi, runs Luigi’s Fish and Chips in Harlow, Essex, which was among the competition’s top 60 entrants.
The finalists will be scaled down to 10 in September, with the winner revealed on January 24.