Camelon's Lemetti's set for '˜Scotland's top chippy' glory

Flashback to last year when Camelon fish and chip shop Lemetti's won The Falkirk Herald Chippy of the Year trophy. Pictured are Cara Black, counter staff; Djlan Vettriano, licensee; Hannah Ironside, manager, and owner Gino Notarangelo.

Declared the Falkirk Herald’s Chippy of the Year last year. Lemetti’s is one of just a handful of outlets in the running for the title of Best Fish and Chip Shop in the Scottish Italian Awards.

To reach this stage the Main Street business has had to fend off competition from all over the country, and has been judged against high-fryers from all the major cities.

However last year Lemetti’s amply proved it has maintained the winning form established over generations by the original owning family.

As regular readers will know, highly-respected local man Joe Lemetti, grandson of the shop’s founder, sadly passed away last year.

Earlier in 2016 the business had been sold to Gino and Gloria Notarangelo, but the iconic Lemetti’s name was retained – both as a mark of lasting respect and as a hallmark of quality to maintain.

Now, with the Falkirk Herald title already gained, the staff and their legions of local well-wishers will have to wait until November 12 to find if shop has won the top national title.

The Scottish Italian Awards were created to recognise “the significant contribution of Italian restaurants to the Scottish hospitality industry” - which some may think is putting it mildly.

Italian pizzerias and fine dining restaurants are among the finest eating out venues in Scotland, but in the Awards the fish and chip shop category is one of the most popular categories.

It also recognises that it was Italians who brought this all-time favourite to Scotland in the first place.

And many would argue that while many people of all sorts include fish and chips in their fast food offer it’s the Italo-Scottish shops which still do it best.

Lemetti’s recently announced that they can now offer their food cooked in oil that suits vegetarian and vegan customers - a small but important example of an innovation that accommodates modern expectations.

Also in the finals, in two different categories, is the multi-award winning Falkirk Italian restaurant Gambero Rosso, whose previous honours have included the title of best restaurant (any category)in the country.

This time - supported by a large and loyal local clientele - it is in the running for the titles of Best Family Friendly Restaurant and Best Wine.

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