Food > The Big Eat Out: or IN
Hot Chip // Food Review
29/04/14
THE GEN: The humble chip has undergone something of a renaissance in recent years, ever since Heston Blumenthal cast his microscope over them and decided to improve on what was already becoming a widely flaunted ‘twice cooked chip’ by – wait for it – cooking them THRICE! Short of evolving that method in a Gillette Mach 3, 4, 5-type succession of adding stuff because they’ve had no better idea, what else could be done to elevate such a simply perfect mainstay of British Cuisine? Hot Chip, newly opened on Orford Place in Norwich, has the answer to this question. There is only one thing that leaves a bitter taste post-chip consumption, and that’s lingering guilt. Cooked in rapeseed oil, a ‘good fats’-rich equivalent, it’s like the Hot Chip chips have been encased in the golden fields of Norfolk and heated to a crisp. They profess that there’s virtually no saturated fats either, which will abate even the more cautious health-conscious concerns. The other thing that’s given more than adequate consideration is what on earth you put with them, which we will get to below…
ATMOSPHERE: Sat next to the teeming megalith that is Primark, footfall passed Hot Chip is constant and high, with people making a dive into Hot Chip for some respite from the bustle, although on the lunchtime we went in, it was almost as busy inside as out. Hot Chip is the brainchild of local foodlovers, Lord Somerleyton and Toby Marchant, which gives you confidence of the providence of the potatoes (all local), but it has the appearance of being nationally branded. It’s a smart lookin’ cookie. Outline’s Lee remarked that it feels like you’re inside a bag of newspaper-wrapped chips, with old print-press type newspaper murals covering the walls. I think it’d be super cool if it was plonked in Norwich’s lanes, to give it the space and surroundings it deserves, but it’s good to see it busy, so why argue?
THE MAIN EVENT: New Yorker // Italian Stallion Chips can, of course, be enjoyed tout seule - completely unadulterated - bar the odd smattering of S&V, but they don’t have to be left alone. Hot Chip offers an extensive menu of accompaniments, from the brilliantly named Cowboy, to the True Brit, Gallic Flair or even the Italian Stallion, which I opted for. It’s a smorgasbord of dustings, sauces and full meals. The Italian Stallion saw a rich, tomato-fresh Bolognese heaped on top, with a generous sprinkling of parmesan. By contrast, the New Yorker was sweet and sharp, with those authentic NY flavours of pastrami and gherkins generously heaped on top. With both pots, it took some Zen discipline to leave some topping for the last few chips at the bottom. I guess a testament is that the toppings stood on their own as something to be celebrated, before even considering the proud chip.
VALUE: Increasingly, even an uninspiring ham and mustard supermarket sandwich is creeping past the £2 mark, and will leave you feeling like you’ve failed at lunch. With a ‘Naked’ pot of Hot Chip chips at the unquestionable price of £1.80, you can have a satisfying chippy lunch without the usual afternoon slump of calorie remorse. For the full meal, as we had – that left us nicely at food coma level – they were £3.75 and £4.40 apiece. Bargainous luncheon, sir.
OVERALL: As the weather gets gruesome and we start to crave the carbo-licious satisfaction of the spud, Hot Chip provide enough justification for my impressionable self to get a pot of chips – HOLD the side order of guilt. New seasonal toppings are promised for later in the Autumn, which’ll keep us coming back. I’ve got a sneaky feeling that a lot of the hidden calories will be in those rich toppings, but y’know what… I’m blissfully ignorant for now. And why should that ever change?