The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 plus 4 letter word FISH CAKE
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
F
I
S
H
C
A
K
E
More clues leading to the result FISH CAKE
Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "food" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case food = fish cake.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does FISH CAKE mean?
FISH CAKE noun- A mixture of flaked fish, mashed potato and seasoning made into a patty and shallow fried.