Staff at a reopened fish and chip shop in Abingdon have been busy all day serving customers.
In November, it was announced Smarts Fish and Chips on the Peachcroft estate had closed after 30 years as a result of the cost of living crisis, and residents said high rents and increased overheads had resulted in closure.
Now new owners have bought the lease and are trading as Smart's Fish Bar.
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Paulo Pestana and Alvaro Gouveia are running the business, together with another fish shop called Monica's in Evesham, Worcestershire.
Mr Pestana said: "Smarts shut at the end of last year and we bought the lease from the previous owners.
"We spent quite a lot on refurbishment and we are very pleased to be open.
"It's only our first day but already we have been busy - there were lots of customers at lunchtime.
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"I think the shop looks much better than it did before and we have added to the menu - we think our hot baguettes will be popular as well as fish and chips."
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Mr Pestana's business partner, Alvaro Gouveia, has form at the fish fryer - he helped to run the Lemon Plaice fish bar in Abingdon precinct for about six years before it closed.
Mr Gouveia said: "I really enjoyed working at the Lemon Plaice before it closed over 10 years ago.
"I went on to work elsewhere but I always wanted to come back to Abingdon and I'm very pleased to be working at Smart's."
One of the first customers at the reopened fish bar was Brett Caporato, 70.
He said: "I like in south Abingdon but we drove across to try out the fish and chips.
"I'm really pleased it has reopened - it's good news for everyone on the Peachcroft and people will come from across town."
The new fish bar will give a boost to the row of shops on the estate which also features Bugdens supermarket and a Barnardo's charity shop.
Other fish and chip shops in the town include Reeves in Ock Street and Abingdon Fish and Chips in The Square.
In 2019, Salamis fish bar in Ock Street was refurbished and renamed Reeves.
The Reeves family ran the Ock Street fish and chip shop in Ock Street up to about the 1980s but it had been called Salami’s Fish Bar since the 1990s, until it reverted to the Reeves name.
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This story was written by Andy Ffrench, he joined the team more than 20 years ago and now covers community news across Oxfordshire.
Get in touch with him by emailing: Andy.ffrench@newsquest.co.uk
Follow him on Twitter @OxMailAndyF
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