Owners of one of Britain’s best fish ‘n’ chip shops believe the nightly queue outside the chippy could now be a thing of the past.
Banico and Jodie Zeniou, whose Fylde Fish Bar was runner-up in the National Fish & Chip Awards, says the Coronavirus pandemic has led to changes which make life much easier for their diners.
And they believe the changes could be here to stay, with new contactless payments, door-to-door deliveries, a new app and ordering ahead meaning that the traditional long line out of the chippy door on a Friday night could now be long gone.
Banico said: “We believe we are the only fish ‘n’ chip shop in Merseyside which is doing click and collect with fully contactless payments.
“We don’t want our staff handling any cash at all at the moment. We have gone cashless. The big question is are businesses going to accept cash again? We may reconsider that in the future. But not until the R rate really falls.”
“We have made a few other changes too.”
Fylde Fish Bar runs award-winning sit-down chippy restaurants and takeaways at Fylde Road in Marshside; Southport; Weld Road, in Birkdale, Southport; and at the Ringtail retail park in Burscough.
The restaurants were among thousands of UK businesses which closed when the Coronavirus lockdown came into force on March 23. While some other food businesses stayed open, Banico and Jodie wanted to forge new plans and ensure that they had everything in place to guarantee the utmost safety for their staff and customers.
The changed the way they operate – and accelerated changes that may have been due to come in a few years down the line.

Banico said: “How we are operating now is where we probably would have been in 10 years’ time.
“I will never forget the first day when the Coronavirus outbreak hit and they announced the lockdown.
“There was a look of fear in people’s faces. People who owned businesses were really scared about what was going to happen. It was a scary moment in time.
“We were closed for four weeks at first. We were busy getting our app built and then had the idea of stating a click and collect service. Customers order and the food is ready for then to pick up when they arrive.
“We have reduced the size of our menu, due to the smaller team we have in our kitchen.
“We have also changed how we work and put essential safety measures in place. It was hard at first for staff to learn how to work while wearing visors and operating with the two metre social distancing rule, but they are great now.
“Through the app, we are also raising money for NHS Together Donations.
“I never thought we would have an app! But when lockdown came in we worked very quickly to get one built which our customers would find easy and convenient to use.

“People can use it to order their meal, drive down and by the time they arrive it is ready for them to pick up. No more queueing, no more waiting.
“It is a lot more convenient for people and a lot quicker to get served.
“The days of turning up and having to queue in line to get your fish and chips are gone, I think for good now.
“The lovely thing is that customers are ordering for other people too.
“We have families ordering fish ‘n’ chips and then ordering for their parents too, so although they are in different houses and still aren’t allowed to see each other at the moment, they can still sit down and have fish ‘n’ chips at the same time and carry on that tradition.
“We also deliver to customers who are shielding. We have lots of loyal customers who have been coming to see us for a long time.
“We truly appreciate the support from our regulars, we are really missing them.
“We are doing regular Facebook Lives so we can say hello to them all and keep in touch with everyone. Click and collect is great and convenient, but you don’t get that interaction that you normally would, so this is a way of keeping that going.”
While the Fylde Fish Bar takeaway service has been thriving, Banico and Jodie are still waiting on guidance from the Government over when their sit-down restaurants can open and how they should operate.

Banico said: “We are still waiting for news over when we can open our restaurants again.
“Our Fylde fish bar app is ready and waiting for diners to order their meals and pay for them through our app so that when they arrive, their food is ready for them when they sit down at their table. We are trying to think ahead.
“Right now our customers are enjoying the changes we have brought in already.
“It looks like they may be here to stay.”
To order via Fylde Fish Bar in Birkdale, Marshside or Burscough, please visit their website: https://www.fyldefishandchips.co.uk/ or download the Fylde Fish and Chips App via Google Play or The App Store.
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