Golden times as chippy celebrates 50th anniversary

BUSINESS WAS OPENED BY GREEK CYPRIOT FAMILY FLEEING INVASION

- By LYNETTE PINCHESS

A FISH and chip shop, opened by a Greek Cypriot family fleeing a war in their homeland, is celebrating 50 years of serving the community.

A former laundrette in Sneinton was bought and converted by a relative living locally so the Konstandi family could build a new life here.

The Dale Fish N Chips opened in Sneinton Dale, in July 1975. It was later renamed Georgio’s Plaice in honour of the man who built the business and today it’s simply Georgio’s.

The chippy is now run by Mike Konstandi, the son of the founder George. He was just five years old when the family fled their homeland after the 1974 Turkish invasion.

Mike, who turns 56 on July 30, said: “We were caught up in the war. When our village got invaded we became refugees. We went into the British Army base where my dad worked as a labourer.

“We ended up coming to the UK, to Nottingham, because my mum's brother was already over here, an established businessman who had his own fish and chip shop.

“We stayed with him for six months. He put us up, looked after us, and because we came over with nothing, just the clothes on our backs, my uncle bought the building that we're in now, that used to be a laundrette, and converted it to a fish and chip shop because that’s what he knew. He put my mum and dad in to run it and trained them up and over the years they paid my uncle off and became the owners.”

A competition was held to name the chippy. “They had to put names in a hat and the winner got plucked out. I think they got free fish and chips for a year,” said Mike, who started working there when he was 14 in an era when the chippy stayed open until 12.30am.