Eels are extremely nutritious and are of course, low carb. They are the traditional accompaniment to pie and mash, which has been a much loved fast food dish for Londoners for centuries. .
Here’s Chef Gordon Ramsay out on the River Thames, for The F Word, back in May 2011.
Frank Bradley, of Bradley’s, shows Ramsay how to kill the eels. Just two years after this video, Tesco contributed to a big revival in sales.
Britain falls for the joy of jellied eels | Fish | The Guardian
Bradley’s Fish (bradleysfish.com)
Bradley’s has been supplying Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons with 200g pots of jellied eels for some years. Currently unavailable at Tesco 25/10/21. Still showing on the other websites:
Bradley’s Jellied Eel Pots 200g | Sainsbury’s (sainsburys.co.uk) 2.75 25/10/21
Bradleys Jellied Eels | Morrisons £3 25/10/21
Per 100g: <0.01g carbs, 7.99g fat, 4.3g protein, 89 kcal. Rich in Omega 3.
In 2015, Rory Bremner wrangled eels at Mick’s Eel Supply in Billingsgate Market, with fishmonger John Chilvers, for Rory Bremner’s Great British Views on ITV Daytime. Micks Eel Supply ¦ Wholesale Specialist in Live, Smoked & Jellied Eels and Shellfish
John Chilvers of Mick’s Eel Supply, also featured in a Great Big Story video, in June 2017
American YouTube channel, Eater, visited G.Kelly, in Bow, in July 2017 to sample both jellied eels and pie and mash.
Yet another YouTube channel, Munchies, interviewed Joe Cooke, great grandson of Robert Cooke, founder of F. Cooke, London’s oldest pie and mash business, founded in 1862.
In November 2020, F. Cooke opened their first eel and pie house outside of London, in Chelmsford, Essex. They deliver via Deliveroo.
Pie and Mash | F. Cooke – Chelmsford | Essex | Est. 1862 (fcookepieandmash.co.uk)
Goddard’s opened their first pie shop in 1890. The shop in Greenwich has jellied eel on the menu (£4.20 on 25/10/21) and can deliver via Uber Eats in London, but they aren’t available for UK delivery via Pie mash & liquor | UK delivery (pieshop.co.uk)
Goddards at Greenwich | Traditional pie and mash restaurant
In January 2021, Claudia Romeo of Food Insider, visited Billingsgate Market and talked to Mark Button of Barney’s Seafood Jellied Eels | barneys-seafood
M. Manze opened their first eel and pie shop in 1902, in Bermondsey. By 1930 there were fourteen M.Manze shops. Over the years, they declined in number. One of the two remaining shops, was burned down during the Peckham riots in 1985 but the shop re-opened in 1990. In 1998, a third shop was opened in Sutton and it celebrated its’ 20th anniversary in 2018.
M. Manze does home delivery across the UK, including jellied eels, but these were unavailable on 25/10/21.
In Kent, you’ll find jellied eels where Londoners traditionally congregated. Two such places are Leysdown, on the Isle of Sheppey and Dymchurch, a village on the A259 between Folkestone and Rye. (In Folkestone Chummy’s seafood stall also sells jellied eels)
Beach review: Leysdown on the sun-kissed Isle of Sheppey (kentonline.co.uk) 15/06/21
Lamby’s Seafood – Ocean Inn Dymchurch
Home – Chummys
And if you live in the USA, here’s a video from Maine about a glass eel farm.
How an Eel Farm Grows and Smokes Eels for Top Sushi Restaurants — Dan Does – YouTube