THE "Holy Grail" of secret faggot recipes has been put up for sale but potential buyers must purchase a Cradley Heath food shop to get their hands on it.

The Cook Shop has been serving up Black Country delicacies like faggots, chitlins and groaty dick for 125 years but owner Nigel Brazier is preparing to retire after 49 years behind the counter.

With a heavy heart Nigel has put the High Street shop on the market for £120,000 which includes some of the family's treasured recipes.

He said: "There are half a dozen recipes which have been handed down the generations.

"No-one else has been able to recreate them the same as us."

He added: "They include our pastry recipe, and meats that have no preservatives, and our sage and onion stuffing.

"But the Holy Grail is the faggots we produce - a lot of butchers make faggots, but not like these."

The grandad-of-three is the fourth member of this family to run the deli since his great gran Eve Billingham founded the business from her front room during the 19th century.

The 64-year-old said: "We are an old fashioned shop the likes of which hardly exist anymore.

"The business has been going 125 years but my sons have taken their own careers and are doing very well so are not really in a position to take it over."

Nigel wants any prospective buyer to keep the 125-year-old name and keep the business up and running with their seven members of staff.

The family have built a famous reputation but always kept their recipes for their signature dishes a secret.

But he has promised to throw in half a dozen of them so the new owner can continue to make the perfect faggots and bread pudding.

Nigel, who is retiring to spend more time at his home in nearby Clent, Worcs., with his librarian wife Anne, 62, added: "Initially we didn't have much interest but now there are people beginning to have a think.

"Instead of me leaving and closing the door, I want to leave it running in the hands of someone who is prepared to take it on.

"They must be keep the name and keep the secret recipes.

"It's been an extremely emotional rollercoaster ride - it's not a decision I came to easily.

"Our customers are all our friends, 300 to 400 customers that we know on a personal basis. We share their lives, we listen to them, laugh and joke with them."

Nigel sells his famous faggots - which are usually made from pig offal and parts of the animal usually discarded, such as the heart and liver - for just 50p.

Nigel added: "Lots of butchers make the mistake of throwing any cuts of meat in when making faggots, but there’s a real art to the perfect faggot."