Food: A Taste of Jamaica, Mon

The Reggae Mama and I decided to venture north of SOG City today to treat our eyes, ears, and taste buds to the sights, sounds, and flavors of Jamaica. We loaded the Peter Tosh Mystic Man CD in the player and headed to The Jerk Hut at 926 E. Fowler. No problem mon, all is irie!

 We were greeted by the hostess at the door and promptly directed to the Guyana booth (other booths, other countries). Our server appeared as if by magic and took our drink orders. Rather than opting for the ubiquitous Red Stripe, which never tastes as good here as it does while rafting on the Rio Grande out of Port Antonio, we chose the Red Ale draft. This ale had a faint sweetness that perfectly complimented our somewhat spicy entrees. And, to completely frost the cake, so to speak, we arrived during the two beers for two dollars special.

Sunday The Jerk Hut has a buffet which judging by the number of people going through the line must be very popular. We took a look at the buffet, but decided to order from the menu. There were too many "typical American" breakfast items (scrambled eggs, grits, hash browns, sausage) to suit me...no ackee and saltfish that I could see.

My dining companion ordered the Reggae Ribs, but sadly they were not ready. Instead, she chose the Jerk Pork with a semi-sweet dipping sauce and side of smashed potatoes. I had the Jerk Platter which came with the dipping sauce and a side of rice and peas. The platter is a combination of two meats. I chose the jerk chicken and jerk pork. Both meals came with a, ho-hum, iceberg lettuce salad.

The jerk chicken brought back fond memories of a jerk shack near the blue boose (bus, for you crackers) along the beach road at Negril. We were both a little apprehensive about the pork. Lately all we seem to get in area restaurants is a fat-free pork loin...dry, tough and devoid of anything resembling flavor. Were we ever surprised! This pork was tender, juicy, and flavorful with just the right amount of heavenly fat and reminiscent of a jerk shack at Boston Beach near Port Antonio.

You can order your jerk either mild or spicy. I chose spicy. As I mentioned to our server, I grow Scotch bonnet peppers at home so I am accustomed to the heat...as in, "nothin' is too hot or spicy for me."

The decor is up-town jerk hut in as much as they have a roof, walls, ceiling, and air conditioning other than that cool breeze from the Caribbean. A nice touch during our visit was the live reggae music. I did sorta miss the dirt floors and roaming chickens, but hey mon...no problem. Irie!