Wednesday's child is good to fry

Masters Super Fish, 191 Waterloo Road, SE1 8UX

Fish supper and beer for one: £15

Occasionally I try to resist the fact I am slowly turning into an East London stereotype: I cycle everywhere, my shoes are always flat and, if ever further confirmation were needed, I have become hooked on blogs - including my own. It is fair to say that I am a fan of the East. Which makes it all the more disappointing that, in one respect, the East End has failed to live up to my pre-Dalston conceptions: the restaurants. 

It is not that the East is lacking in the culinary department - far from it. Without a doubt, we have some of the finest Turkish, Vietnamese and Pakistani restaurants in the capital. What it lacks is the food of its more distant history. Finding good old-fashioned British food in the area is harder than it might seem. Having already established that the best fried breakfasts in London are to be found in Pimlico, it is with a small measure of sadness that I confirmed what others have already reported: the best fish and chips are in Lambeth.  

I knew from the number of police cars and cabs parked outside that Masters would be good. Bobbies and cabbies, those two indomitable pillars of London society, are reliable barometers for detecting the proximity of fuss-free grub. They, and the others who have praised Masters, are not wrong. 

Without being asked, we were presented with three delicate and juicy cooked prawns to start - an expected and welcome treat. We all opted for haddock and chips. Perfectly golden, light and crisp: the soft flakes of fish are encased in a batter that achieves a level of deep-frying excellence that I have only previously encountered at a traditional tempura joint in Japan.

The chips are also fantastic: fat, crispy and fluffy. But best of all are the pickles: a great dish of pickled onions and gherkins is offered around with the fish, and there is clear favouritism on display and the regulars have their favourite heaped on their plate. And proper mushy peas, not a tiny, dry mint-seasoned afterthought but a proper bowl of slightly grainy, well-seasoned green mush. 

Fish and chips, as with a good fried breakfast, are something that all British restaurants and cafes should, but often don't, cook well. Cornerstones of this country's cuisine, they can be wonderful when prepared with skill, particularly as now, when the weather is cold and sky is grey. For what could be better for driving out the encroaching damp, than fried fish and a vat of mushy peas?