EEL PIE
See Also: FISH & CHIPS; FOOD
MARKETS, FORMER Billingsgate Market, Timely Eels; MENU
Eel pie
and mash is served with a day-glo green parsley liquor that is adapted by the
different chains. Originally, eel pies
were made with eels. However, with time,
the fish's population in the Thames declined.
Mince was increasingly used until it became the dominant protein
present. It is cooked only with salt and
pepper. Stewed and jellied continued as
accompaniments. Their stock was used in
the liquour, which was coloured with parsley.
The top is suet pastry.
There
have been a number of London pie'n'mash shop owning dynasties - the Cookes, the
Kellys, the Manzes, and the Robins.
The
shops that have survived tend to be located in the poorer sections of the
city. However, the dish is also reputed
to be a frequent feature on the menus of some of Essex's golf clubs.
There
are only spoons and forks in Pie & Mash shops in North and East
London. They have never had knives. In South London they do. During the First World War there was a knife
shortage. Customers nicked them. Pies were made so did not need knives.
In 2009
the Convention on International Trade In Endangered Species restricted the sale
of eels. Over the previous thirty years
European stock levels had fallen by 95%.
At the time, most eels that were sold in London had been caught in
Ireland.
In 2033
there were estimated to be about 40 pie and mash shops trading in London. Many of these were in financially challenged,
whereas the ones in the Essex were flourishing.
Some of the former ones that closed had listed status which meant that
decorative fabric was still intact, e.g.. the F. Cooke in Broadway and
the Manze in Walthamstow.
Robert Cooke
Robert
Cooke had a stall in the Horseferry Road.
In 1862 h opened his first shop on Brick Lane. He left 42,000 at his death.
The
Cooke's pie and mash business was founded in 1862.
A. Cookes
The A.
Cookes business was founded in 1899 by Alfred Cooke. The firm has been trading from its Goldhawk
Road premises since 1934.
Location:
48 Goldhawk Road, Shepherd's Bush, W12 8DH.
Closed.
Website:
www.cookepieandmash.com
G. Kelly
G.
Kelly trades in Bow. The business was
founded by Samuel Kelly in 1939. Its
original shop was on Bethnal Green Road.
In 1995
G. Kelly launched the first vegan eel pie.
Location:
526 Roman Road, Bow, E3 5ES
Website:
www.gkelly.london
L. Manze
In 2013
Grade II heritage listing was conferred upon the L. Manze pie and mash shop in
Walthamstow High Street. It had been
designed by Herbert Wright for Luigi Manze, who was Michele's brother.
M. Manze
The M.
Manze premises on Tower Bridge Road are London's oldest pie and mash shop. Michele Manze's parents, natives of Italy s
Amalfi coast, settled in Bermondsey in 1878.
The business was opened by Robert Cooke in 1891. It was purchased in 1902 by Michele Manze, a
native of Italy's Amalfi coast who had settled in Bermondsey. By 1930 the Manze chain had fourteen
outlets. The family are still active in
the business. Not only do they still run
several of the Manze shops but they also supply eels and pies for
Cockney-themed evenings and other social occasions.
Location:
105 High Street, Peckham, SE15 5RS. The
shop has a blue plaque to Michele Manze.
87
Tower Bridge Road, SE1 4TW. The flagship
M. Manze shop.
Website:
www.manze.co.uk
Robins
Robins
was in East Ham in 1929. In 2023 business
had six shops in London and Essex.
Location:
14 High Street, Wanstead, E11 2AJ
40
South Street, ROMFORD, RM1 1UP
50
Station Road, Chingford, E4 7BE
Website:
www.robinspieandmash.com
David
Backhouse 2024