Memories of Marie and Gino, and the best fish and chips in Amble
Gino’s fish and chip shop was on Albert St, where Pizza Bella is now. It was run by Gino and Maria (Marie) Conti in the 50s, 60s and early 70s. Thank you for all your comments, sorry we couldn’t use them all. For more, see Amble In Old Photographs Facebook page. Photo courtesy David O’hara
How many of us remember, as teenagers, going to Gino’s for our bags of chips and scramptions? Gino’s was the fish shop on Albert Street.
Living nearby, for me the smell of fish and chips or as we called them, ‘fish and six’, was just too tempting.
As well as Gino himself, cooking the fish and chips, you will probably remember his wife Marie, who greeted everyone with a smile and friendly words. She was kind and gentle. Marie died in January, aged 93.
A customer once commented on her lovely perfume and she replied that it was to counteract the smells of the cooking.
Ann Dawson
Some of your comments
“They always had a smile for their customers. We used to go along there after an evening playing to buy 6-pennorth of chips and some scranchums, which were eaten up by the time we got back along home to Central Ave. Also remember their two boys Tony and Peter.”
Lynda Crackett“Gino was my dad’s best friend…fab memories…used take me in there on a Saturday for a bottle of coke, bloody lovely people. You couldn’t get a nicer family.”
Sarah Hartles
“Friday night, fish and chips, bread and butter and pot of tea with the boyfriend who became the husband.”
Aline Wood“I worked in the top (Co-op) store. Kit Rollo was there then and was mad about cars etc, he spent his spare time doing odd jobs at Harry Breeze’s garage. One day he saw Gino working on his Ford over the road from the shop. When Gino came in to buy a few hundred cigs for resale in the shop Kit asked Gino if he had been adjusting the points and tappits, and did he know what he was doing. Gino’s reply knocked the wind out of Kit’s sails. He said “Oh yes, I work for Ferrari before coming to England”… I can still see the look on Kit’s face even now.”
Keith Armstrong
“They always got my Dad to paint the shop. It always had to be done when they were closed so they didn’t have to shut especially. Maria was always very welcoming. Gino never seemed to say a lot, he just worked.”
Bartle Rippon“Many times he showed me his car, A BIGGA DAM A LER. We used to say, rather disingenuously, but as a humorous quip, when we were youngsters, that Gino was the only man that could slice a fish into four pieces and still have a backbone in every piece.”
John Craiggs
