Yellowknife (Jun 21/06) - Only one eatery in Canada can claim it has the best fish and chips in the country and that honour goes to a Yellowknife landmark.

Bullocks' Bistro was named the top shop by Readers Digest magazine.

Sam and Renata Bullock sit on the picnic table outside of Bullocks' Bistro, which was recently awarded the honour of best fish and chips in Canada by Reader's Digest. - David Ryan/NNSL photo

Sam Bullock, co-owner of the Bistro, said he was proud to see the business be recognized by the magazine.

"There's certainly a feeling of gratitude," he said.

He was quick to point out that one award will not make or break the 14-year-old restaurant in Old Town.

"We certainly don't enjoy working here any more or less," said Bullock who found out about the award in January.

The honour attests to all of the people who have worked at or visited Bullocks' for a one-of-a-kind dining experience, said co-owner Renata Bullock."We get the greatest fish from fishermen every day," she said. "It's like having the world at your dinner table."

Taking the time to develop relationships with fishers in order to get the best fish has been key to the eatery's success, said Sam Bullock.

"We filet between 100 to 175 pounds of fish in one day," he said, adding a variety of fresh fish from Great Slave Lake including whitefish, pickerel, northern pike, lake trout and coney are used daily.

The Bistro prides itself on the ambience created for customers whether they are tourists or residents of Yellowknife.

People are what have made the restaurant, he said, adding the staffs tries to complement the ambience.

"It's a little bit like stepping back in time," he said of the Bistro and its help-yourself policy.

Sam Bullock still holds the same philosophy he's had since day one: "If we could do one thing well, that's all that we wanted to achieve.”