Although a wide variety of fish are caught in British waters, the English tend to mainly eat only a few species. Cod, haddock, plaice, huss, and skate are the fish-and-chip shop favourites. (The unadventurous approach and the tendency to eat fish battered were mocked by Keith Floyd with the phrase "unidentified frying objects"). A few other species, such as coley and pollock are found in the anonymous form of bread crumbed fishcakes and fish fingers. Pilchards (large sardines), feature in the Cornish speciality, Stargazy Pie. Otherwise, a typical fish pie consists of white fish and prawns topped with mashed potato. Whitebait, the young of a number of species, are traditionally eaten fried as a starter. Sardines, pilchards and mackerel are often seen in tinned from, as are imported species such as tuna and anchovies. Sea bass, lobster, scallops and monkfish are among the expensive and highly-esteemed species that may be found on fine dining menus. Salmon, haddock, mackerel or herring may be smoked, the last in the form of kippers, buckling or bloaters. Herring may also be served pickled as rollmops. Salmon and trout are the most popular freshwater fish. Eels were once baked into pies and served with a herb sauce or "liquor" at pie and mash shops in urban working-class areas, but the dish and the shops are now both near extinction. Popular non-English fish dishes include Scottish cullen skink soup, Spanish paella, French fish soup, Thai fishcakes, moules frites and various Asian prawn dishes.
A kipper is a whole herring that has been split from tail to head, gutted, salted or pickled, and cold smoked. They are often eaten for breakfast.
Many seaside towns have shellfish stalls located at the beach, harbour, or seafront. Traditionally these sell snack-sized pots of cockles, mussels, jellied eels, shell-on or peeled prawns, crab meat, whelks, winkles (small and large sea snails) and oysters. The shellfish are served cold and the customer adds condiments — salt, pepper, lemon juice, malt vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, cocktail sauce or tabasco — to taste. Many stalls make their own chilli vinegar by infusing chillis in malt vinegar. In recent years, surimi and Mediterranean squid and octopus preparations have been added to the menu. Mobile shellfish stalls sometimes set up near inland pubs, particularly in London's East End.
Oysters, once a mainstay of the poor, were baked in a savoury pudding with beef. As they became more expensive, they were replaced with kidneys to form the traditional dish steak and kidney pudding. Oyster bars are now an up market variation on the seafood stall. Whitstable in Kent is noted as a source of good quality oysters. Crab is traditionally eaten cold in salads or sandwiches. Cromerin Norfolk is a famous exporter of crab. More cambe in Lancashire is renowned for its potted shrimps.