Fish and chips nation's favourite pub meal

The CGA Food Insights 2022​ report, based on a survey of 2,000 UK consumers who had eaten out in the past three months, showed 28% named the British classic as one of their top three pub meals, putting it ahead of other perennial favourites such as carveries and roasts (24%), steak (22%), pizza (21%) and beef burgers (17%).

Undimmed appetite 

CGA business unit director hospitality operators and food EMEA Karl Chessell said: “Britain’s consumers have never had such a wide choice of options when eating out, so it’s fascinating to see the appetite for fish and chips is undimmed.”

While fish and chips has been a classic dish for decades, the data from CGA revealed offering “twists” on the quintessentially British meal offered opportunities for hospitality businesses to further increase sales with three in five (60%) consumers stating they would pay more for a better-quality version of the dish.

Potential to grow 

Furthermore, diners were also interested in exploring new variations on the meal, and more than a quarter said they would consider ordering options like tuna (29%), lobster (27%) and crab (27%) if they saw them on the menu.

Chessell added: “Even in very mature parts of the eating-out market like this, it’s encouraging to see there is still so much potential to grow sales, especially by helping people trade up to new alternatives and making fish and chip shops destinations in their own right.

“With spending on eating out under mounting pressure, tempting consumers with exciting twists on popular favourites like fish and chips will be a crucial tactic in the months ahead.”