[vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]Good old Uncle Maam!
By Chantelle Wright
Recently we held a “Chipnic” here in the US to celebrate the Queen’s Birthday. We met at Legend’s Distillery (which is owned by several Brit’s) where we were given an informative tour and a few cocktails to toast Her Majesty the Queen.
Afterward’s everyone headed to Wright’s fish and chips for some absorbent good old Fish & Chips.
Her Majesty made an appearance in the morning to help the royal kitchen servants with potato prep. In the afternoon she put on her glad rags for her special party. We sang along to “God save the Queen” before tucking into our meals. She certainly stole the limelight and didn’t mind having a photoshoot with her people!
The Wright Way!
Born & raised in glorious South Wales. My childhood idol was the singer Howard Jones. At Aged 8 myself and brother were in the HoJo fanclub. He, his wife, children & dog were vegetarian. My brother and myself decided we would go veggie too. My brother lasted 3 days but caved on the smell of our Mam making bacon butties. I remained stubborn and to this day not eaten meat. My parents did not really know what to feed me, so we very regularly frequented local fish n chip shops so I could eat chips. I loved them! On both my pregnancies I craved “mushy peas, gravy & chips”. So every lunchtime I’d seek different chippies to get my fix so no one knew that was all I ate. Both my boyo’s became avid fans of everything fish & chips.
Following the passing of my beloved Father, my husband got offered a fantastic career opportunity in America. After a short while we soon became aware of a niche for British food. We have so many UK expats living here. Hubby bought me my first deep fat fryer as a Christmas present. From here my obsession to bring to America proper fish &chips transpired and the idea for The Wright Chippy was conceived.
Quality:
Anyone can think they can fry real chips! It is actually an acquired artistic flair. I could bore you all day long about selecting potatoes & cod! Kelzey (son) & myself were invited to a celebratory kitchen to cook them the real deal.
Together we searched and tested the No.1 USA grade potato & Cod. Our selected varieties are best of the best! What sets us apart from everyone else is our passion for getting it Wright. I am a registered importer so ship all our chippy products that are produced in the UK.
Plans:
I am sole owner of the company. But down the line I plan to pass on the business to my sons, Bradley & Kelzey. They work with me full time. The bigger picture, my vision. Is to open a restaurant for each of them in the next 12-18 months. After this we will roll out the business model across America for franchising opportunities.
Opening & Covid:
As you can imagine it hasn’t been an easy ride. I bought the restaurant early January expecting to open by mid-February. It seemed everything was against us. Kelzey fell ill and needed emergency surgery. And boy, that comes at a high price over here! We are still getting bills for it. Treasure the NHS I wish we had the same thing here!
Then, after his recovery we were ready to move along with the business. Boom! Covid19 hits the world! This dramatically held up our shipments from the UK, and also increased shipping costs to more than three times more expensive.
We watched the UK go into lockdown and stayed in contact about the precautions & measures you were all Adhering to. Face masks became the new fashion accessory along with salt & pepper roots. I suddenly became Chief Officer Germ’s. I bleached EVERYTHING that came through my door. People thought i’d gone bananas. I’d be bleaching all items in my trolley (cart)at Walmart before it was placed in the boot (trunk). Soon enough Americans started to follow suit. And we had a much more relaxed lockdown.
Then one day our head of state announced we can all go get haircuts, manicures, tattoos and even go to the bowling alley! And if your 15-year-old kid wanted to jump on their laptop, they could buy a full driving license without sitting a theory or practical driving test!!! Anyway, normality started to return, and Inspections were able to commence at Wright’s. We scored 100% on all inspections and very quickly opened.
Day 1 was crazy. We had queues around the building, across the road and single filed in lines in the next car park. The support from fellow Brits and Americans wanting to try us was incredible. Every day since we are smashing it. We are serving up the perfect cod in batter & real chips just like back home. We have some customers coming back every day for our food. And so many people messaging us thanking us for bringing a taste of the UK to America. I’m so proud of how we fought every challenge and obstacle in our way. And super proud to have my lads in the business. There are so many people in the UK that we are grateful for in the industry. You all know who you are. Best wishes, Chantelle Wright. The Wright Chippy.
Cooking you fish & chips the WRIGHT way!
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