Fish and chip shops used to be the province of Greek and Italian immigrants to Australia. It never occurred to me, way back then, that these hardworking family entrepreneurs, slaving away over vats of bubbling lard, were not cooking according to any recipes of their own, or even any overall approach to cooking. Rather, they must have learned the ropes from a previous generation of small family entrepreneurs, and they must have been English. Only the colonial masters embraced the kind of cuisine that fish and chips were: pieces of old shark, dipped in heavy beer batter, and then deep-fried in animal fat that seemed to have been in use for months or even years. The chips that accompanied them met the equivalent fate, and if you were lucky, about 15% of them were overcooked, so they at least were crisp and quite tasty, even if only because saturated with fat. For special treats, one could also buy potato scallops, as they were, and are still, called. These were round slices of potato, dipped in the same batter as the fish, and fried the same way. Tasmanian scallops, prepared the same way. In Canberra these did not appear always to be particularly fresh, although my parents, both Tasmanians, did eat them when they thought a splurge was in order. Prawn cutlets, so-named for reasons that are not apparent, also were available, but were generally considered beyond the reach of our budget. Then there was the crowning glory of Australian cuisine of the time, the chiko roll. Why "chiko," I have never seen explained. I must research the issue.
Well, here is a full explanation edited from an entry at www.upfromaustralia.com/chikoroll.html

The humble Chiko roll made its first appearance in 1951 at the Wagga Wagga show in New South Wales. Its creator, a Mr McEnroe, was a Bendigo boilermaker who combined fresh vegetables with meat to create a unique Aussie snack. It was conceived as a hot snack to be eaten with one hand leaving the other free for the cold beer stubby. In appearance, it resembled a giant Chinese spring roll wrapped in its quintessential trademark serving bag. Contrary to public opinion, its ingredients do not include chicken! This misconception stems from the fact that Chiko rolls were originally called chicken rolls. Today the Chiko roll is exported to Japan. The Chiko is usually sold from the fast disappearing corner milk bars and fish 'n' chip shops. As far back as the 1950s, Chiko roll posters featured female models in suggestive pose perched on a motorbike. This has continued with their latest outdoor campaign featuring a leggy blonde with an abundance of cleavage sitting on a Harley-Davidson with her hand strategically placed in front of her crotch. After receiving several complaints from the public, this poster has been withdrawn.

In any case, these days fish 'n' chip shops are almost all operated by a new generation of immigrants, this time from Asia. The new owners have retained all the old food offerings, and introduced none. They even make steak sandwiches, which more usually are sold in milk bars and country cafes than fish'n'chip shops, without innovations. This means: a small, usually gristly piece of steak between two pieces of toast, with tomato sauce, lettuce, tomato, a little onion, a slice or two of beetroot (yummy), and perhaps a little bacon, and a fried egg, which I always decline. Eating them is a challenge, and usually requires sacrificing at least some of the skin on one's palate.

I ate one, with some disappointment today (the city version never equals the country one) after swimming 20 laps of 50 meters, which seems the minimum necessary to avoid putting on weight due to my failure to avoid the foods of my wretched childhood and youth. Finally it's genuinely hot here – 93 or so, with hotter on the way for the weekend. Unfortunately, this means that the pools are crowded with particularly nasty youths who don't seem to suffer at all for scoffing at the regulations against pushing people into the pool, dunking people, and generally acting the goat. Some of the more spotty of them seem to have discovered, as I certainly did not at that age, that they can attract the affection of the bikini-clad females of their age and limited intelligence by saying completely ludicrous and obnoxious things to them, apparently much to the young ladies' delight. I must make sure that Harry is aware of this odd feature of the teenage female mind.