Let’s be honest here: fish and chips is not something I ever crave, want, think about, or even recognize as real food. For one, it’s English and nothing great has come from England since, well, America. Second, chips are what you eat with salsa, queso, or out of a mustachioed cylinder. They’re called fries because you see, we’re in America (a.k.a. England 2.0). And third, fried food hasn’t really been my thing, including, but not limited to, fish. That is, until I went to Bits and Druthers over in the burgeoning East Side Drive-In food trailer park. That’s when my whole world was flipped on its bonce.

The giant British flag is the first sign that you’re entering a different world country cuisine. Approaching the window, I was going on faith that the recommendations of total strangers would result in some delicious food. Thanks to these recs all I had to decide was a small (one piece) or large (two piece) order. Showing an atypical amount restraint I went with the small, paid my fee, and awaited my order.

An eternity Seven minutes later my name was called and the friendly face behind the window handed me a cone of food. It went straight from fryer to cone to me in seemingly 2.5 seconds based on the near-lava temperatures. I took my cone back to the crew, showing off the golden, crispy fish atop a bed of beautiful fries chips. It took awhile to realize that the cone of food was actually meant to be used as the place-setting, and the food itself was actually in a smaller cone. We’ll blame that one on user error.

The fish was dangerously hot, so I cracked it in half and let it come back to a reasonable temperature. In the meantime I had some fries chips to hold me over. I’ll say this (realizing the connections back to potato chips): betcha can’t eat just one AND once you pop, the fun don’t stop. What I’m saying is these fries chips are outstanding. Seasoned perfectly, still tasting like their former potato selves, and delicious when dipped in tartar sauce. I’d say these fries chips are worth the trip alone.

But then you taste the fish. All golden brown and delicious looking. What you get is good ol’ authentic American British-style goodness, battered with love and fried with even more love. There’s no sogginess here folks. Just cod wrapped in a beer-battered armor, crispy but delicate,

and exploding with flavor. I’m not a malt vinegar fan, so I left that aside and dealt only with the tartar sauce. I feel like I need to write a sonnet, iambic pentameter and all, just to convey how good this is… but I’ll spare you.

I can say, without hesitation, that Bits and Druthers will impress anyone looking for high-quality pub food. By the way, I didn’t mention it, but they also make and sell their own ice creams at the trailer. Yep. I haven’t had any yet, but it’s only a matter of time. So in all seriousness, go get some outrageous fish and chips immediately. It just might flip your world on its bonce.