fish and chips

I’ve driven by Chris’s Fish and Chips on First Street in Los Altos many times and never stopped. I’ve always wondered how good it is,, and tonight I satisfied that curiosity. The quick answer: its great.

Chris’s has been right next door to Applewood Pizza for a number of years. It is small (5 little tables inside, 2 outside under umbrellas) and it has a limited menu and a tiny open kitchen, but these are signs of its focus.

Chris’s is all about the food. We ordered the combo plate ($9.50): 5 jumbo prawns, 1 fillet and a basket of chips (fries) and we added an extra piece of piece of fish as a side ($2.75). This was a perfect amount of food for two. Fish and chips with 2 pieces of fish are $6.50 and a side of slaw will add $.50 to your total, refreshing prices for any Bay Area neighborhood.

What happened next surprised us. Our cook reached into his refrigeration unit, grabbed two nice cuts of Alaskan Pollock and then battered and deep-fried them to order. He repeated the process for our large, butterflied prawns and then added uncooked steak fries to a separate fryer.

Everything is cooked in peanut oil (changed daily) and the batter is secret, but the results are tasty. Beautiful color, good flavor, light crunch on the outside, less grease than you would expect, and the Alaskan Pollock is a nice alternative to the traditional Cod or Atlantic Pollock. Perhaps best of all are the homemade tartar and cocktail sauces – a perfect compliment to a simple (if not necessarily healthy) meal.

Chris’s Fish and Chips 209 1st St, Los Altos, CA (650) 948-6155