By Joe Walker

A takeaway boss claims to have created a fish and chips meal with fewer calories than a bag of crisps.

Hassan Hassan says the cod and chips at Mackaris' takeaway in William Street, Herne Bay, now has just 260 calories in it - three fewer than in a packet of chargrilled steak crisps.

The news will be music to the ears of lovers of Britain's favourite seaside treat.

Mr Hassan said: "I saw in the paper three weeks ago that someone had done it somewhere else in the country and we wanted to challenge ourselves.

"It's taken a while but on Saturday we finally got it right.

"It's been really hard and we've put in a lot of effort, but it's paid off. The food tastes just as good as before.

"If you eat fish and chips anywhere else in Herne Bay it will have about three times more calories than ours does."

Mr Hassan says keeping the calorie count down in the £5.65 meal is dependent on five things - the oil, the batter, the fish, the temperature it's cooked at and the person cooking it.

He said: "They are all as important as each other and have to be done right.

"There's no point having a lovely thin, crispy batter if the fish inside is uncooked and inedible. We're not doing sushi here.

"All of our fish is fresh and cooked to order, which also makes a massive difference.

"There will be slight deviations in the calorie counts because we can't get it spot on every time, but we'll be near enough there.

"It's great for Herne Bay because a lot of people are concerned about how much fat and calories they're getting in their fish and chips - and here's the answer.

"I used to eat cod and chips about once a month, but now it's about two or three times a week."