We’re settling a debate (or starting a new one) on the region’s best chips. Photo: Jo Staveley.
Roasted, baked, mashed or distilled into vodka, the humble potato — arguably the world’s most versatile vegetable — is always delicious. However, (and I am aware I’ll cop it on more than one front for saying this) nothing beats the glory of the hot chip.
As the nation where the hot chip falls into the favourite foods category for more than half the population, “the best” hot chip is a subjective and highly divisive topic no matter where you go — and the Illawarra is no exception.
In fact, we can’t even agree on the criteria. To me, a good hot chip is crispy outside, but never dry, fluffy, but not floury and always, always, fresh. And yes, you absolutely can tell the state of the oil in which it’s fried.
Chippy puritans will tell you that a good chip should stand on its own two feet, without needing to be “tarted up”.
As something of a (self-proclaimed) chip connoisseur, I take a more contemporary view.
I do not discriminate between the hearty thick-cut steak chip and the crispy, well-seasoned French fry: each chip has a time and a place. Equally, bring on the chicken salt, I say, the vinegar, the paprika.
“Heathen!” my colleague Zoe Cartwright cried. “Shun!”
My other colleague, Kellie O’Brien, comes from a family of spud growers and her mother used to certify seed potatoes.
“I know a good potato needs nothing added for it to taste amazing,” she says.
Hmph. Fine, I’ll cede the Spud Queen title to her, but only because her credibility went up a notch when she explained that the usual “white, red, old and new” selection we get at supermarkets is a total rort.
“It’s the strangest concept in the world,” she says. “For us, you choose Nicola, Kennebec, Russel Burbank, Desires, King Edward or Dutch Creams depending on what you want to do with them – chips, mash, baked, scalloped…”
She informed me King Edward’s are the best for chips. Desires are a close second. Who knew!
Dirty Fries caters for chip purists and the “more is more” crowd alike. Photo: Dirty Fries.
In any case, what we can all agree on is that not every chip is created equal. But in a country where there’s hardly a café or restaurant that doesn’t serve some form of hot chip, how do you find the best?
I took to a bunch of Illawarra Facebook community noticeboards to crowdsource recommendations and combined with Google reviews, devised my own super-sophisticated algorithm that is definitely not arbitrary, to find the best chips in all the region.
Special mentions go to Woonona Beach Shop, Billy’s Fish n Chips in Warilla, George’s Take Away Food in Mount Warrigal and Jemfish in Kiama, who all got multiple shout-outs.
Dirty Fries in Lake Illawarra also got its fair share of mentions, along with an intriguing description.
“Dirty fries all the way. Hand-cut proper old school chips taste brilliant and great value for money — not this $10 for five chips that seems to be the case at a lot of places,” one comment said.
The menu confirms the shop caters for chip puritans, but also the “more is more” crowd, happily empowering its customers to use chips as a vessel for other delicious things, including pulled beef and pork and fried chicken.
Not to be outdone, the northern suburbs have their own frontrunner.
“You’ll need to trek to Coledale to Rosie’s Fish & Chips,” one comment declared. “Southern Highlands potatoes, triple-cooked in beef tallow to golden crispness. (Yes, they also do a vegan option, cooked in oil.) They taste like nostalgia – in the best way!”
According to Graeme Burrill’s Region Illawarra article, co-owners Tania and Ben make the chips in-house. They’re washed, peeled, chipped and soaked overnight, steamed the next day, cooked twice in the fryer and blanched at a low temperature before the final cook (which happens only when they’re ordered).
The aforementioned tallow, which has its own dedicated fryer, is 100 per cent grass-fed beef fat, which Ben says is “not only better for you, it just gets the most amazing flavour as well”.
Rosie’s has a strong following for their chips, which are steamed, blanched and fried multiple times. Photo: Rosie’s Fish & Chips.
Down south, coming in hot (ha!) with the most endorsements was Riggsy’s, a good old-fashioned takeaway shop in Barrack Heights.
Riggsy’s, too, uses beef tallow and offers regular or chicken salt or a loaded option.
Owners Matthew and Melissa reckon it’s a “no frills” kind of place, with a focus on two things — good taste and good value.
“We just give people a good portion for the price, and we just keep it simple,” he says.
Keep it simple, stupid — a chip philosophy that’s helped Riggsy’s amass a loyal following. Photo: Riggsy’s.
At the end of the day, whether you agree or not on which shop makes the ultimate hot chip, one Facebook comment might just have nailed the one thing we can all agree on.
“The best chips in the Illawarra? Easy, they’re the ones you eat in your car before you even get home. Hot, salty and stolen straight from the bag like a seagull on holidays.”
Didn’t see your local favourite on the list? Give them a mention in the comments.
