The Wetherby Whaler is a chain of
fish and chips restaurants in the
United Kingdom. The first restaurant was founded in 1989 in
Wetherby with six more having been subsequently opened across
Yorkshire in Guiseley, Wakefield, York, Pudsey, Empire Outwood and Tadcaster (takeway only).
History
Phillip and Janine Murphy founded the Wetherby Whaler restaurant in 1989 having worked in fishery in
Tadcaster
Tadcaster is a market town and civil parish in the Selby district of North Yorkshire, England, east of the Great North Road, north-east of Leeds, and south-west of York. Its historical importance from Roman times onward was largely as the ...
since 1969.
The second restaurant in the chain was opened in 1990 in
Pudsey.
More branches were opened thereafter;
York in 1996 (which was expanded in 2014),
in 2001 and
Guiseley in 2012.
Guiseley fish and chip shop
Harry Ramsden's was acquired by the Wetherby Whaler in 2012 for £500,000.
Considered by reviewers in
The Metro and
The Guardian to be the "spiritual home" of fish and chips,
Harry Ramsden's had gone into administration six months before the sale due to financial issues.
A charity
musical
Musical is the adjective of music.
Musical may also refer to:
* Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance
* Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...
performance with a storyline based on fish and chips was held at the Guiseley restaurant in 2016.
Reception
Reviews of the Wetherby Whaler restaurants have been generally favourable. Yorkshire Life identified the Wetherby Whaler as one of the best fish and chip shops
and the best gluten-free restaurant
in Yorkshire. The
Yorkshire Evening Post also placed the Leeds branch among its list of top restaurants in the city.
The restaurants' gluten-free menus have received praise from several
coeliac restaurant reviewers.
On
National Fish and Chips Day
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, ce ...
, the restaurants offer a large meal as part of the "Impossible Fish 'n' Chips Challenge" which is traditionally attempted by local news reporters and restaurant reviewers, to varying degrees of success.
In January 2017, The Wetherby Whaler won the National Federation of Fish Friers Fish and Chip Quality Award after an inspection based on hygiene standards, staff training and food quality.
Charity involvement
The Wetherby Whaler regularly sponsors regional awards including the Yorkshire Choice Awards
and the Yorkshire Young Achievers Award.
In 2015, the Yorkshire Air Ambulance awarded the chain a corporate sponsor recognition award for the fundraising they have done since 2012.
References
{{Wetherby, state=collapsed
Wetherby
Restaurants in Yorkshire
Restaurant chains in the United Kingdom
Fish and chip restaurants