One of the biggest household names in cooking, Gordon Ramsay has built a culinary empire spanning from Michelin-starred restaurants like Restaurant Gordon Ramsay to competitive cooking shows like “MasterChef.” Born in Scotland and brought up in England, Ramsay is arguably the most famous British chef in the U.S. With dozens of restaurants around the globe, one of Ramsay’s U.S. endeavors has been a fast-casual restaurant chain called Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips. Not to be confused with potato chips, British chips are what Americans consider french fries, and are often paired with battered white fish in the U.K.
Fish and chips is a quintessential British dish, so it seems inevitable that Gordon Ramsay would bring the classic over to the States. Specializing in $20 combo boxes, the fast-casual restaurant serves up classic British meals, made to order and served with a variety of dipping sauces. For nearly a decade, Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips restaurants have popped up in major cities across the United States, including a prime location in one of the most visited places in the country, Times Square. We decided to check it out and see for ourselves if this $20 British meal is worth the hype of the name backing it.
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About Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips
Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips sign outside restaurant – Haille Griswold/Tasting Table
The first Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips location opened in Las Vegas in 2016. Since then, the Vegas spot has sold over 750,000 fish and chips. Following the success of the Vegas location, the fast-casual chain expanded across the U.S., with locations in Reno, Washington, D.C., Orlando, and New York City. The New York City location, which is situated in the heart of all of the action, Times Square, has been operating since its opening in late 2022. With a small menu, the restaurant chain has a focus on sustainable, quality ingredients and consistency.
A series of combo boxes is sold, ranging in price from $15.99 for the Chicken Combo to $19.99 for meals like the Gordon’s Combo or Fish & Shrimp Combo. Each combo box includes natural sea salt chips, which can be made “dirty” with different seasoning toppings for an additional $4. If you are wondering what kind of fish Gordon Ramsay uses at his restaurant, the chain serves sustainable true cod covered in a custard powder batter. They also serve chicken, shrimp, and chips at the New York restaurant. Since the majority of the menu consists of fried food, the oil used for frying is strained twice a day to ensure freshness. The chips are made with potatoes sourced from small farms in the Pacific Northwest, further emphasizing the commitment to high-quality ingredients.
Dining experience
Interior of Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips restaurant – Haille Griswold/Tasting Table
The New York branch of Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips is located in Times Square, right behind Good Morning America and across from GAP. Since Times Square can get pretty packed, I decided to go on a Thursday in the early afternoon in hopes of evading some of the crowds. If you are someone who struggles with directions, like I do, I promise you won’t have any trouble finding this place, largely because above the restaurant is a massive photograph of Ramsay himself.
Inside, the decor is pretty on the nose. Everything is blue, red, and white, with Union Jacks on the pillars and signs throughout the venue. A few other customers were seated, enjoying their meals, but otherwise it was relatively empty. Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips is considered a fast-casual restaurant, and the interior, along with the plating, definitely match that description. The interior is clean and modern, a place you wouldn’t mind sitting down to dine in for a quick bite, but not somewhere you’d seek out specifically for the ambiance.
Ordering was a quick and easy process. I ordered a combo box and received a number in return. I only had to wait a few minutes for the meal. There’s a section where you can grab as many salt, pepper, or malt vinegar packets as your heart desires. Overall, this was an enjoyable, streamlined process.
Gordon’s Combo taste test
Fish and chips in box – Haille Griswold/Tasting Table
I chose to order Gordon’s Combo so that I could try a few different food options. Gordon’s Combo includes one piece of cod, one piece of chicken, and three pieces of shrimp as the protein options. The combo comes with chips and two sauces. The sauce options are tartar, curry and mango, sriracha aioli, Southwest ranch, Dijon mayonnaise, or cocktail sauce. I opted for tartar sauce, because it’s a must with fish and chips, and curry and mango sauce, since chips and curry sauce are another British classic.
I started off by trying the chips on their own. I thought they were crispy, warm, and well-seasoned. I followed that with the shrimp. The shrimp was coated in a crispy batter that wasn’t too thick, and the shrimp itself was juicy, although I wish it had a springier bite. It felt slightly underseasoned, but once I dipped it in the tartar sauce, I thought it was an enjoyable bite. The tartar sauce was creamy with a really nice level of acidity to it, which cut through the slight greasiness of the shrimp batter. I tried out the chicken next, which ended up being my least favorite of the proteins. It definitely had a good crunch level to it, and the meat was moist, but it also felt a bit underseasoned. The sauces I chose didn’t really amplify it as much as the seafood options.
As for the fish, I enjoyed this the most out of the three. Texturally, it’s what you’d want from fish and chips. There was a light, crunchy batter with a good fish-to-batter ratio. The fish itself was flaky, but still juicy, and paired well with the tartar sauce. The curry and mango sauce also complemented the fish really well. It had a creamy consistency and prominent curry flavor that was cut by subtle sweetness from the mango. Towards the end of the meal, I couldn’t ignore the fact that all of the fried food felt a bit greasy and heavy. Overall, it wasn’t the best fish and chip platter I’ve had, but it was also far from the worst.
Final thoughts
Exterior of Gordon Ramsay Fish and Chips restaurant – Haille Griswold/Tasting Table
If you are looking for the best fish and chips you’ve ever had, or you’re a fish and chips connoisseur, this likely won’t be the spot for you. However, if you are a casual diner who wants quick, efficient service and a filling, quality meal, you will likely be satisfied with Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips. Although the meal came out to $21.76, which I consider a bit pricey for fish and chips, Times Square is a well-sought-after location with high rent levels, and the meal itself came with a solid portion of food.
This is a place that would appeal to tourists over city locals, but I think that is exactly what it is intending to do. I wouldn’t necessarily add this to my restaurant rotation, as there are plenty of local independent restaurants in New York City with great fish and chips. However, I would see myself going again if I were in the area and craving a quick, filling bite. Next time around, though, I’d skip Gordon’s Combo and go straight for the classic Fish Combo.
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Read the original article on Tasting Table.