Regional Finalists Named In National Chip Shop Competition

5 September 2011

Regional Finalists Named In National Chip Shop Competition

Eighteen chip shops from around the country have been named as being amongst the country’s best chippies in the 2011 Best Chip Shop Competition.

As regional finalists, the shops are now in the running to take out the top spot in the national Competition which hunts for New Zealand’s tastiest and best quality chips.

The Chip Group Chairperson, Glenda Gourley, said a combination of public text voting, mystery judging and laboratory analysis determined the top 18 shops.

“After the public text voting, the top shops were visited by a mystery judge who assessed them against a range of criteria including: the quality of chips on offer, adherence to key Industry Standards, customer service, and fat and sodium (salt) content of the chips.”

In order to participate in the Competition, chip shops had to have completed The Chip Group’s online training which teaches operators how to cook chips according to the Industry Standards.

“These guidelines cover chip size, oil temperature, cooking/deep-frying, basket drainage, oil maintenance, filtering and cleaning, salt, frying oils and chip portion size. By completing the training, shops are able to serve up healthier chips that consumers also really enjoy.

“A chip sample from each shop was collected by a judge and sent away for analysis at an independent laboratory.”

Glenda said fat analysis is a core component of judging and reflects one of the aims of The Chip Group which is to reduce the level of fat in chips.

With the Competition almost complete, judges are now deliberating on who the six regional winners and overall Grand National winner will be. Details are expected to be announced in October.

The 2011 Best Chip Shop Competition is the country’s only national chip shop competition and this year is supported by: Potatoes New Zealand, The Heart Foundation, McCain Foods, Mr Chips, Bakel’s Edible Oils, Groenz, Food & Beverage Today, Catering Plus and That’s Life.

The 2011 Best Chip Shop Competition Regional Finalists are:

ENDS

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