Frying high! Popular fish and chip shop in Louth celebrates 50th anniversary

Parkinson’s, based on Eastgate, has been a family-run stalwart of Louth’s retail scene since 1976 and has continued to thrive ever since under the expert stewardship of co-owners Sharon Foster and her husband Marcus.

"It takes a long time to get a good name in Louth, but we hope we are still doing a good job,” says proud Sharon, 60.

"There is tough competition, but we are still here and we still keep trading. We would like to thank all of our customers over the years.”

To mark the 50th anniversary, Parkinson’s is decorating the shop with banners and balloons, and also giving their dedicated supporters a special treat. For on Friday, July 24, the first 50 customers will receive a £5 discount on their orders.

The Parkinson’s story began when Sharon’s mum and dad, Dave and Edna Parkinson, ran a chip shop in Leigh, near Manchester, where they came from.

They scoured the country searching for bigger and better – and landed in Louth where they opened their first business in 1976 on Brackenborough Road.

Sourcing the best fish from Grimsby Docks and perfecting their batter, Dave and Edna’s fish and chips took Louth by storm.

Nine years later, they switched to the current Parkinson’s premises on Eastgate, and Sharon and Marcus took over the reins in 1988 when her parents retired.

Edna died four years ago, but 88-year-old Dave is still living in Louth and taking a keen interest in the business’s progress.

Open from 11.30 am to 2 pm and 4 pm to 8 pm on Mondays to Fridays and all day Saturdays, the shop, which doubles up as a restaurant, prides itself as a traditional chippy.

While accepting the world is moving forward at a rapid pace, Parkinson's has yet to embrace the order-and-delivery platforms such as Just Eat, Deliveroo, Food Hub and Uber Eats.

“Everything in this country has changed since Covid, but we’ve not gone down that road,” says Marcus, 65. “We are more traditional.

"Some customers phone through with their orders, but not many and we don’t take online orders at all.”

One change Marcus has had to accept over the years is the price of fish, which he describes as “horrendous” and the like of which “we have never seen before”.

"Potato prices are also up and, like any business, we are finding everything so expensive.

"We try and keep our prices as low as possible, but we still need to make a living. We are lucky that we are still going strong – thanks to all the people who support us.”

Among those supporters are many loyal customers, including two who have been Parkinson’s devotees for at least 30 years.

Roy Hodder has been enjoying the restaurant every Friday since the 1990s, while Alan Simpson is always the shop’s first customer on a Saturday.

“We are proud to run a place where we see our regulars return every week,” says Sharon. “And we welcome new customers who try our fresh food for the first time.

“It is a family business through and through, and many people have joined our team over the years, including our daughters and nephews.”

Those daughters are Becky Foster, who lives in Newcastle and is expecting a baby in September, and Hannah Foster, who lives in Lincoln. There are two grandsons too – three-year-old Ari and one-year-old Rio.

Making up the Parkinson’s family are the many members of staff the business has employed over the years, including nine at present, all well versed in asking: “Open or wrapped?”

Singled out for special praise by Sharon and Marcus are the two longest-serving, both from Louth. They are fryer Vicky Hadley, who has worked at the shop, on and off, for 26 years, and Emma Clarke, who has overseen the restaurant for the last ten years and lives in a flat above the shop.

As the birthday celebrations begin, Sharon and Marcus have one final message: “We continue to fry and serve our food with the same passion as when it all began.”