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Green chips? This Michelin chef is on to a good thing
Amar Singh, Media Correspondent4 Feb 2008
A Michelin-starred chef is attempting to reinvent the traditional chippie - but one that is kind to the environment.
Tom Aikens's latest venture, an environmentally sustainable fish and chip shop, opens this evening off King's Road in Chelsea.
The fish is sourced from small businesses, the potatoes are organic, the chairs are made of recycled plastic and Aikens has done away with traditional menus to save paper.
Diners at Tom's Place can choose cod and chips for £12.50, or a chip buttie for £3.50, knowing they are doing their bit for the environment.
The 37-year-old restaurateur said he had spent months on research to make sure the food he serves is both ethical and sustainable.
"We know exactly where all the fish comes from," he said.
"You can track our cod all the way from the Pacific to the suppliers and the processes it's gone through to get to your plate.
"It's about getting a better deal for the small fishermen and promoting eco-friendly practices as well as educating-people. I would say 95 per cent of London's chefs don't know where their food comes from."
A film on how the fishing industry works has been made by Aikens and will be played at the restaurant.
The green theme extends to the chips - cut from Maris Piper potatoes sourced from a farm in Lincolnshire. The takeaway boxes are made from recycled cardboard and the cutlery is bio-degradable.
Aikens, who became the youngest British chef to be awarded two Michelin stars in the mid-Nineties, said: "This is not a gimmick. In five to 10 years it will be a given that when a person goes to a restaurant he will expect the chef to be sourcing products ethically. Once we have had this up and running for a few months we may look at doing some more."
Richard Harden, co founder of Harden's Restaurant Guide, said: "There is clearly a back-to-basics trend for good British fare such as fish and chips. There is also no doubt that the more educated end of the market do care about issues such as sustainability. A prominent chef showing explicit concern for eco consideration can only be a good thing."
