A true taste of Jamaica

It wasn't until my birthday last April when my flatmate and I decided to get some food from this place. Firstly, we wanted to celebrate my birthday in a different and exotic way; and secondly, we were curious to finally taste the food from that little place at 120 Cheltenham Road that seemed to be very popular: Rice and Things.

We have never had Jamaican food before. We just knew it would be spicy, exotic and very different to what we've had so far. We joined the queue and read the little blackboard full of choices, trying to make up our mind to order in the tiny desk they have right at the entrance. It was our turn and we still didn't know what to order. The waiter, who told us we were two of the few Spanish speakers coming to the restaurant, helped us with the choice. 'Are you vegetarian? Are you used to spicy food?', he asked. Our answers were "No" and "No" and he suggested a bunch of options to ease the selection process. All dishes are served with Rice with Peas or White Rice.

I chose a Jamaican Capital Ackee and Saltfish with Rice & Peas  (£7) in medium size (for just £1 more, the waiter said the medium size was really worth it). My flatmate ordered Spring Village Fried Chicken with White Rice (£7), also medium size. We also ordered some St Thomas Fried Ripe Plantain Slices (£1.50) and the waiter added some coleslaw (£1.5) for free, as it was our first visit. They ask you if you want them hot (best option if you're going home straight away) or cold (you can warm it up later).

Once at home, we realized why the place was so popular! The food was very tasty, full of flavour. The fish was tender with the softness of the ackee. The saltiness of the fish was perfectly conteracted with the rice. Just perfect. My flatmates dish was also really good, probably slightly more spicy than mine, but also with a very interesting mix of flavours.

If you are looking for authenticity, I suggest you go try the food in Rice and Things. It is exceptional value for money. The company which started as a take-away now it has become into a Jamaican Restaurant. Open 7 days a week offering lunches and dinners in take-away service as well as sit down. 

Apparently, every last Friday of the month, they have an all-you-can-eat for £10. Booking is essential due to the popularity of the event. There are two-hour slots (18.30-20.00 or 20.30-22.00) and although the calendar at their website has not been updated yet, I guess next all-you-can-eat will be the 27th June. Looking forward!

WEBSITE: http://www.riceandthings.co.uk/

Lunch at the Canteen

The Canteen is around the corner from my place, and everytime I go there to have some coffee and I see somebody having lunch there, I always get green of envy. So, I finally convinced my friends to go there for lunch. One of them was a little hungover and he just had a coffee, while another friend and I were having our lunch. 

The Canteen serves lunch everyday between 12-3pm and dinner between 5-9pm. They promote local and organic food above all: the organic fruit and vegetables are supplied by the Community Farm, fish comes from Cornwall, they have  Gloucestershire pork and the beef is from Herefordshire. They serve a special roast dinner on Sundays too. 

The Canteen has a nice outside terrace that gets completely full when the sun shines. There are around 20 all-size tables inside, most of them occupied lately, probably because the weather is getting worse, and the terrace is now empty. There is a reading area in one corner with comfortable sofas where you can borrow a book and read, and there is also a music are at the opposite corner, where you can buy local music artists' works. All artworks hanging on the walls are for sale as well as the lamps and tables!

There were 6 main dishes to choose from today, all of them local home-made dishes, making the best out of simple ingredients. The menu is written in a blackboard next to the kitchen, which changes every day and prices are quite low (main dishes cost between 6.50-11 pounds). I ordered Linguine with a side salad, and my friend went for the Roast Beef. We ordered and paid at the bar, and they brought the food to the table when it was ready.

Any main dish includes the soup-of-the-day. Today, we had a homemade tomato soup (top left picture), very tasty, which arrived within 7 exact minutes, and we were having our main dish 10 minutes after the soup.

My linguine (lower left picture) had an interesting mix of flavours: the sweetness of red peppers with the hotness of the jalapeños, and goat cheese on top. My friend's Roast Beef (top right picture) had good size cuts of meat and he was very satified with the portion of food (I must say that this does not happen very often).The only small inconviniences we had were regarding the vegetables, which we would have cooked for a little longer (onion in my case, leek in his case). We had coffee to finish, which was as good as always.

Overall, good and fast service, tasty local food for a very affordable price. Very recommendable! 

More info: http://www.canteenbristol.co.uk/

Caribbean Cuisine @ Turtle Bay

The other day I had lunch at Turtle Bay, in Broad Quay. The restaurant group was founded by Bristol-based Ajith Jayawickrema in 2011 and has other restaurants in Milton Keynes, Nottingham and Southampton. This has been my first experience with caribbean food. 

Although it was Friday lunch time, the place was not busy. Some curious people approached and checked the menu, but did not make up their mind. Customers inside on the other hand, it was obvious that it was their first time in the restaurant; they were checking the decoration, taking too long with the menu...

When I went into the restaurant, waitresses were very attentive and nice. They told me I had to take a seat first and then go to the bar to order the food. As I love duck, I chose Duck Rolls as a starter and the main course 'Pulled Jerk Pork Bun'. (Check the menu here) 

They asked me whether I wanted to pay at that moment or after having lunch. I chose the second option. To my surprise, they asked my credit card anyway and store it in a plastic case whose key was given to me. Confusing. Maybe they had loads of customers that ran away after having lunch and before paying the bill, I don't know. The fact is that my credit card was not in my wallet anymore.

I sat outside as the weather was good. I didn't have to wait much before rolls arrived. Rolls were very tasty, although not many in my opinion, for the price I paid (almost 4.95). There was a very nice and tasty orange chutney to dip rolls in. The main dish arrived right after finishing the starter, which was basically a burger. Nothing special, really. In my opinion, 6 pounds for a simple pork burger was excessive.

I have heard very good comments about the restaurant and perhaps I didn't choose the right dishes, but this first experience with the Caribbean food has been far from what I expected.

Turtle Bay website: http://www.turtlebay.co.uk/