For a first time visitor taking a trip to Trinidad & Tobago, please share a couple of must-do jaunts on each island where locals go for an authentic cultural experience.
You must go to Maracas Bay to get our legendary ‘Bake and Shark’, my favourite vendor is Miss Patsy or Uncle Sam’s, Ariapita Avenue is what I would call our ‘hip strip’ and you can get all kinds of street food there.
Debe for the doubles experience at D’ Green Shed and of course fly across to Tobago and spend some time at Pigeon Point or go up the coast to Speyside and have lunch at Jemma’s Treehouse.
What are your signature dishes that your clientele demand over and over again?
I don’t get a request for one specific dish, but people do love what I do for cocktail style events/ make small food beautiful.
What food trends do you find overrated and abhor?
It’s not a food trend, but in Trinidad, I abhor the way we undervalue ourselves particularly when it comes to food, we place a higher value on foreign cuisine when we can present our local options just as beautifully.
As for food trends, I think Chicken and Waffles and Chicken Alfredo could get a rest
Every Caribbean island excels at particular dishes, what are your favourites around the region?
- Jamaica – Escoveitch Fish and Ackee & Saltfish, I can’t get enough of it.
- Barbados – Fish Cutters
- Grenada – Oildown
- St. Lucia – Green Fig Salad
Post pandemic, what’s next for you?
Post-pandemic, wow my mind isn’t even thinking that far ahead. Hoping to bring some new culinary delights to Jamaica
Jacqui ‘JuicyChef’ Sinclair, founder of Nyam & Trod, is a British Jamaican award-winning chef, writer, and food culturist. She is a co-founder of Kingston Kitchen, an annual food event supporting food artisans. Jacqui has been an advocate of the Meatless Monday Global movement in Jamaica since 2011. Jacqui’s work has been featured in such publications as the Huffington Post, the Jamaica Observer, Saveur, The Jewish Post and numerous blogs. She has appeared on the Travel Channel’s ‘Bizarre Foods’ with Andrew Zimmern and Food & Wine’s Jamaica episode with Kwame Onwuachi.