ONE of Dunoon’s best-loved fish and chip shops has celebrated a major milestone, marking 50 years of serving generations of local families.
Anselmo’s, in Hillfoot Street, reached its 50th anniversary last week on July 9, half a century after Anselmo and Heather Franceschi first opened the doors to the business in 1976.
The couple moved to Dunoon from Helensburgh with their young daughter Eva, determined to make a new life in the town.
Heather recalls the frantic race to complete the shop in time for opening day, with the family working around the clock to get everything ready.
Money was so tight, she remembers, that Anselmo even improvised by using fish batter to stick up some of the final decorations after funds ran out.
The gamble paid off, and it wasn’t long before Anselmo had fallen in love with Dunoon and its people and vice versa.
The family grew with the arrival of daughters Marika, Lora and Anna, all of whom spent weekends and university holidays helping behind the counter, making Anselmo’s a true family business.
Over the years, the shop became a familiar part of everyday life for countless local people, with customers returning generation after generation.
Even after retiring, Anselmo remained a well-known figure around the town.
According to his family, he could barely walk along Argyll Street without stopping to chat with past customers and friends.
He was particularly fond of the children from nearby Hillfoot Street Primary School, who delighted in challenging him to deep fry increasingly unusual items.
By then, the once-novel fried Mars bar had become old news.
Many of those youngsters later returned with children and grandchildren of their own, allowing Anselmo’s to play a small part in the lives of three generations of the same families which brought Anselmo immense pride and happiness.
Since 2017, the business has been run by Mirco, Giulia and Giorgia Santamaria, who have continued the shop’s long tradition while introducing new ideas and building fresh links with the local community.
Heather and her family say they have taken great pleasure in watching the business continue to thrive under its new owners, while respecting the legacy of Anselmo’s traditional fish and chips.
Marking the milestone, the family thanked customers, past and present, for supporting the business over the past five decades.
Heather said: “We would like to thank all our customers, past and present, for their continued support of this family business. Here’s to the next 50 years with Mirco, Giulia and Giorgia.”
