Akaroa Fish Bar & Kebab is a fish and chips shop at 59 Beach Rd, Akaroa, on Banks Peninsula, that also does kebabs; it holds a 2.5 rating from 26 Google reviews, so reading recent visitor comments before you go would be sensible. With fish and chips, timing is everything: the good shops cook to order, so the batter shatters crisp instead of going leathery under a heat lamp. In a harbour town, it's worth asking what fish went in fresh that day, and expecting a queue at the height of summer — a wait usually means the fryers are working, not idling. Chips should be thick-cut and fluffy inside; thin, pale ones point to a rushed batch. Regulars walk straight to a bench or the sea wall and eat while it's still steaming, before the gulls make their move. On Beach Rd, a few steps from Akaroa's waterfront, Akaroa Fish Bar & Kebab puts that classic meal within easy reach of the harbour.