# The Chippie



## Alxmrphi

Is this just a British thing?
When I was looking for a translation, I imagined other cultures and I haven't seen a "chippie" when abroad.. and we have a stereotype of the "Ooh British, fish and chips"

Is "The chippie" a British thing or not?


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## french4beth

I've never heard of it in American English (in the US, that is).


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## Alxmrphi

Well, it's a British thing, the name, "chippie", but it's a chip shop basically, we have them everywhere and "going to the chippie" and having very unhealthy food, is what we do, now that I reflect on it, it's a culture thing I guess.

I know a lot of places have restaurants, and eastern places will have fast food places for spicy food, and America has Pizza Parlours and Subways etc. 

I wasn't sure about "The chippie"


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## zebedee

I guess the Chippy is the British version of your basic greasy fast food outlet present in most cultures.

I would hazard a guess it only exists in places outside Britain where there's a large percentage of Brits living. For example, I know that there's at least one in Benidorm in Spain but none here in Valencia.

For anyone who's unfamiliar with the term, here's an example of a chippy. Even the most elegant chippies are still pretty rudimentary in style. It's part of their charm.

The most famous dish served in a chippy is fish & chips, but may also include sausages, chicken, pies or even pizza or spring rolls. All greasy stuff, all served with chips (hence the name) and normally to take away and eat on a park bench/in your car/at home in front of the telly. The portions are served in paper - used to be newspaper - and eaten with fingers or plastic forks.


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## diseña

I would say that most chippies in urban areas these days are owned by non-native Britons (usually Chinese, Indians or Greeks, where I live), so there is usually a lot more on offer than the standard fish & chips, sausages, pies, etc. In fact, speaking from my own recent post-pub experiences (obviously a very popular time for going to the chippy), I've noticed that less and less people order traditional British grub, as there is so much other stuff available now (although it often comes with chips too, lol).
Personally, though, I still prefer the classic "cod and chips".


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## cuchuflete

In AE there is a similar term, "greasy spoon".  What these dispense is most often consumed on premises, rather than taken away.  Chips are optional.  Grease comes standard, at no extra charge.


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## don maico

Chippie is also a slang term for a carpenter


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## PedroAznar

It's the chippers not the chippe. In Ireland anyway.


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## diseña

In England it's "chippy"..."chippies" would be the plural.

We have "greasy spoons" here too, by the way, but chippies usually always only serve take-away food (i.e. you don't consume the food on premises).


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## Layzie

OH! So chips are what they call french fries? I didnt know that.


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## diseña

Layzie said:


> OH! So chips are what they call french fries? I didnt know that.


Not exactly... French fries are like the ones you get in McD... Chips (as in the chips you get in chip shops (chippies) in the UK, are like this: reporter.leeds.ac.uk/492/images/chips.jpg ).


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## GenJen54

Chips are similar to the US French Fries, but they are certainly *NOT* US French Fries.  THIS THREAD gives a rather hearty description of what true British "Chips" should taste and look like.  I'm hungry already.


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## rsweet

Doesn't chippie also refer to a prostitute or loose woman? I've heard this meaning in AE.


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## la reine victoria

rsweet said:


> Doesn't chippie also refer to a prostitute or loose woman? I've heard this meaning in AE.


 



It's never reached my shell-likes over here, RSweet.  



LRV


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## Alxmrphi

Not that I know of.


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## rsweet

It's in the Oxford American Dictionary.


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## djchak

To answer your question...yes.

There are some fish and chip shops here and there in the US...but not many.

The best are probably in New England, where the catch is fresh....

ExPat brits pretty much have to to the the grocer and fry up the fish themselves.

Although "steak fries" and oven fries" are easily found.... in the frozen section.


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## don maico

djchak said:


> To answer your question...yes.
> 
> There are some fish and chip shops here and there in the US...but not many.
> 
> The best are probably in New England, where the catch is fresh....
> 
> ExPat brits pretty much have to to the the grocer and fry up the fish themselves.
> 
> Although "steak fries" and oven fries" are easily found.... in the frozen section.



No fish and chips shops in the US??? you lucky so and sos


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## geve

cuchuflete said:


> In AE there is a similar term, "greasy spoon". What these dispense is most often consumed on premises, rather than taken away. Chips are optional. Grease comes standard, at no extra charge.


And that would probably be close to what we call a boui-boui in French... If you can read (colloquial) French, make sure you check the link posted by LV, for an accurate image of what a boui-boui is: greasy food in a cheap style restaurant. It doesn't imply a specific category of food though, it's really about the place; it can also be a bar as a matter of fact.


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## Victoria32

Alex_Murphy said:


> Is this just a British thing?
> When I was looking for a translation, I imagined other cultures and I haven't seen a "chippie" when abroad.. and we have a stereotype of the "Ooh British, fish and chips"
> 
> Is "The chippie" a British thing or not?


We have the concept but not the name in New Zealand Alex, except for British immigrants such as my father... When I was younger they were run by New Zealanders or English people (known here as "Poms" AE Brits, as NZers now say). 
But now, as someone has observed, they're mostly run by Chinese (and very well, too).


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## fenixpollo

djchak said:


> The best are probably in New England, where the catch is fresh....


 If the whole thing is fried to a pulp, what does it matter how recently the fish was caught? 

When you visit Phoenix, you'll be pleasantly surprised to find that we have an excellent *fish & chips shop* (that's what they're called here... I'd never heard of "the chippie" until 5 minutes ago).


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## Trina

don maico said:


> Chippie is also a slang term for a carpenter


In Australia it is also commonly used in the building industry to mean carpenter.


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## .   1

They are boringly called 'Fish and Chip Shops' down here and they are everywhere.
Towns that are almost a thousand kilometres from the sea will have at least one Fish and Chip Shop.

A chippie is also a prostitute and a carpenter and yes she is very busy and is not sure which of her services are more expensive 

.,,


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## Brioche

There are plenty of small shops in Australia which sell Fish & Chips.

When I was very small child, there were a few fish & chip shops which sold _only_ fish & chips. Now they all sell hamburgers [with beetroot!],too, plus a few other deep-fried delicacies.

To tempt the palate we also have plenty of take-aways selling chicken, pizza, yiros, kebabs, Lebanese or Chinese. Plus of course, KFC, McDonald's, Hungry Jack's [= Burger King], Wendy's, &c., &c.

A chippie in Australia is a carpenter.


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## Victoria32

. said:


> They are boringly called 'Fish and Chip Shops' down here and they are everywhere.
> Towns that are almost a thousand kilometres from the sea will have at least one Fish and Chip Shop.
> 
> A chippie is also a prostitute and a carpenter and yes she is very busy and is not sure which of her services are more expensive
> 
> .,,


Yes! A friend of mine was married to a Maori carpenter and she used to call her husband "The Chocolate Chippie"...


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## .   1

Brioche said:


> There are plenty of small shops in Australia which sell Fish & Chips.
> 
> When I was very small child, there were a few fish & chip shops which sold _only_ fish & chips. Now they all sell hamburgers [with beetroot!],too, plus a few other deep-fried delicacies.
> 
> To tempt the palate we also have plenty of take-aways selling chicken, pizza, yiros, kebabs, Lebanese or Chinese. Plus of course, KFC, McDonald's, Hungry Jack's [= Burger King], Wendy's, &c., &c.
> 
> A chippie in Australia is a carpenter.


The Fish and Chip Shops sell the best hamburgers and a hamburger absolutely must have beetroot and be so sloppy that you have to eat the burger so that it can drip to the ground between your knees.

I quite like the 'chocolate chippie' he sounds like a good bloke.

.,,


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## la reine victoria

don maico said:


> No fish and chips shops in the US??? you lucky so and sos


 


How disloyal to a British institution, Don Maico. Shame on you.  

There is nothing wrong with eating fish and chips occasionally. Moderation in all things.



LRV


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## don maico

la reine victoria said:


> How disloyal to a British institution, Don Maico. Shame on you.
> 
> There is nothing wrong with eating fish and chips occasionally. Moderation in all things.
> 
> 
> 
> LRV



I was joking la Reine. I do eat them myself---------------------very occasionally.. Dont go much on fats that have been kept at high temperatures for prolongued periods of time


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## geve

la reine victoria said:


> How disloyal to a British institution, Don Maico. Shame on you.
> 
> There is nothing wrong with eating fish and chips occasionally. Moderation in all things.
> 
> 
> 
> LRV


I concur with Sa Majesté. I'd more gladly eat fish and chips from a chippie once in a while if there was one in my neighbourhood, than a hamburger from McCompany. I find that side-effects are "less worse"...


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## Alxmrphi

The McCompany... lol.
Yes, and how very disloyal! There is nothing better than a chippie meal once in a while (I had one just before I started the thread) and it was DELICIOUS...
Constantly aware of how unhealthy it is..

But all delicious foods are... right? lol.


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## la reine victoria

> Fish and chips shops hide their light under a bushel, the fact is this is a healthier meal than either Indian or Chinese takeaway.”


 
Source




LRV
In support
of the
chippie!


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## la reine victoria

Take a look at what is served up in some chippies in Scotland.  

I always thought it was an urban myth but it is actually true.





LRV 
who suddenly feels
slightly unwell.


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## geve

la reine victoria said:


> Take a look at what is served up in some chippies in Scotland.
> 
> I always thought it was an urban myth but it is actually true.


Oh yes, I've seen some of these... not tasted them, mind you!! 
I've always wondered if they dip it in the same oil where they prepare the chips.


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## sarcie

PedroAznar said:


> It's the chippers not the chippe. In Ireland anyway.


 
Second you on that, Pedro. And the best chipper in the country is in Tramore, where the chips are deliciously greasy and the fish is fresh (the only chipper I've been to where the two are not mutually exclusive!)

Have also heard carpenter's called "chippies" in Ireland.


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## equivoque

In Australia a Chippie is a carpenter (a Sparkie - an electrician).

In my experience, 'chippies' is also juvenile slang for chips, as in crisps. There was an advertisement that featured a chippie monster - he'd eat all the chippies in the bag, if I recall correctly.  (Probably a take-off of the cookie monster in Sesame Street.)


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## zebedee

Moderator notice:
This thread is in danger of getting too chatty.

Please remember that the ideal of this forum is to post threads that "_promote thought-provoking, insightful conversation_" and "maintain an atmosphere that is _serious, academic and collaborative_". Source

Collaborative though this thread is, it's becoming less serious and less academic as it bumbles along. 

Any future posts should answer the original question please.

Thank you.

zebedee
Culture moderator


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