A Penygroes fish and chip shop has won the South Wales Guardian’s competition for the best local takeaway.

Mel’s Chippy, located on Waterloo Road, received the most votes, with the trophy on its way to owner Sarah.

Sarah, along with her husband, bought Mel’s Chippy around a year ago, adding to their chain, as the couple also own and manage Mermaid Fish Bar in Llandybie.

Sarah said: "Thank you so much to everyone who voted for us, we really appreciate it."

She then joked: “I’ll be able to tell my husband that this is my award, not his. I’m always down here at Mel’s Chippy, and he’s located at Llandybie.

“We’ve ran the Mermaid for about 15 or 16 years, which we love, but the opportunity came up to buy this last year. I knew the people who were selling it, and they wanted us to have it.

“They knew we would take good care of it, it was their family business, and they knew we would continue running it as a chip shop.”

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Even in such a short space of time in Penygroes, Sarah has really got to know the community well.

“My husband and I have been local and in the trade for a long time, and everyone knows him because he’s local,” she added.

“But since I’ve been based here, everyone has been so lovely, and it’s been great getting to know the locals and our regulars.”

Over the half-term earlier this month, the chip shop ran a scheme of offering free soup to everyone, to help with the cost-of-living crisis and to combat isolation in the local area.

“We had a massive variety of people come in to collect soup, from children, parents, to older people. It was fantastic. We gave away well over 100 tins of soup, while also breaking the blender.

“A few local businesses supported us and got involved in that scheme, and they said they’d love to get involved in something similar in the future.

“It is definitely something we’d love to do again. It’d be great to do over half term so the kids have access to hot food when not in school, but it’s not just for the kids, it’s for the whole community.”