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Calories · American & British

Calories in fish and chips

A typical restaurant serving of fish and chips (one chip-shop portion of battered cod and chips, about 450 g) is about 1,000 calories, usually 800–1,400.

Restaurant portions vary; this is a typical estimate, not a label. Also called fish n chips, battered cod and chips, fish and fries.

~1,000
Fish and chips

The usual range

Drawn on one 0–2,000 scale shared by every dish page, so plates compare at a glance.

Protein, carbs and fat

  • Protein42 g
  • Carbs104 g
  • Fat50 g

One serving

Serving
one chip-shop portion of battered cod and chips
Weight
~450 g
Per 100 g
~226

The dish

About fish and chips

Fish and chips is two fried foods on one plate: the batter on the fish soaks up oil, and the chips add a lot of starch plus more fat. The chips often hold half the energy.

What moves the number

Why one plate is 800 and another 1,400

  • Batter and frying oil
  • Chip portion size
  • Tartare sauce, mushy peas and bread on the side

Ordering lighter

If you want a lighter plate

  • Get a small or lunch portion
  • Share the chips
  • Have mushy peas or salad as the side

Side by side

Next to other American & British dishes

American & British · typical restaurant servingAll about American & British food →

  • Hot dog~300one beef hot dog in a white bun with mustard · usually 250–650
  • Mac and cheese~340one restaurant side, roughly a heaped cup · usually 250–1,000
  • Clam chowder~350one bowl of New England chowder, about 1½ cups · usually 200–900
  • Sausage roll~350one bakery sausage roll in flaky pastry · usually 250–550
  • Caesar salad~400one starter salad with about 45 g of dressing · usually 250–800
  • Grilled cheese sandwich~400one grilled cheese on white bread · usually 300–750
  • BLT~420one café or diner BLT, no sides · usually 300–650
  • Onion rings~420one side order of 8 to 10 rings · usually 300–1,000
  • Grilled salmon~440one restaurant fillet, no sides · usually 300–650
  • French fries~490one restaurant side of fries · usually 250–700
  • Shepherd's pie~490one pub portion · usually 350–750
  • BBQ ribs~530a half rack of sauced pork ribs, about 6 ribs · usually 450–1,400

In PlateDiary

A rough number for the dishes you save — only if you want one.

Off unless you turn them on

Calories in PlateDiary are off unless you turn them on. Switch them on and, when PlateDiary AI reads your photo of the table, each dish gets one rough “~” number. Accept it or change it; a number you correct is remembered for that dish. With Calories off, the app looks exactly as it did before.

A read sends small pictures of the cut-out dishes, with the place's name as a hint — never the table photo, faces or your location. Calorie numbers never go to analytics, and nothing is written to a health app. PlateDiary AI starts with free tries; here is how it works.

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How these numbers were made

Method and sources

Last reviewed

Restaurant portions and cooking vary, so these are typical estimates for one serving, built from the sources below. Treat it as a rough number: your plate may land anywhere in the range.

If you manage a health condition, ask a doctor or registered dietitian.

AI helped draft this page; every number was checked against the sources.

  1. UK CoFID 2021 (McCance and Widdowson's Composition of Foods) — Cod, in batter, fried, takeaway, code 16-368
  2. UK CoFID 2021 (McCance and Widdowson's Composition of Foods) — Potato chips, fried in commercial oil, from takeaway fish and chip shops, code 13-485
  3. USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) — Restaurant, family style, fish fillet, battered or breaded, fried, FDC 169846 (226 g serving)

Questions

Questions people ask.

How many calories are in fish and chips?

A typical restaurant serving of fish and chips (one chip-shop portion of battered cod and chips, about 450 g) is about 1,000 calories, usually 800–1,400. The number depends mostly on the portion and how it is cooked.

Why is fish and chips so high in calories?

It is two fried foods on one plate: the batter soaks up oil, and a chip-shop portion of chips often holds half the energy. A full portion is about 1,000.

Is a small or lunch portion much lighter?

Yes. The chips are the easiest part to cut, so a smaller portion or sharing the chips moves the number most.

Are mushy peas a lighter side?

They are lighter than extra chips or bread and butter; tartare sauce is the side that adds more.

What changes the calories in fish and chips?

Batter and frying oil. Chip portion size.

How can I order fish and chips lighter?

Get a small or lunch portion. Share the chips.

Can PlateDiary show calories for the dishes I eat out?

Yes, if you want it to: calories in PlateDiary are off unless you turn them on. Switch them on and each dish you save from a photo of the table gets one rough “~” number you can accept or change.