Two Sisters In The UK – Part 2
We knew we wanted to explore London’s food scene, so before we even landed in the UK, we had roped in our long-time ‘bredrin’ Aaron Johnston, of Port Royal Patties, to take us to some of the hot spots around London town.
We wanted to take in some laid-back, easy and authentic Jamaican vibes and we kept hearing that Boom Burger was the best spot to do just that. So Aaron agreed to take us for dinner to visit this cooler-than-cool Notting Hill burger joint owned by Josh de Lisser, who hails from Montego Bay. From the moment we walked into Boom Burger we were surrounded by sweet yard vibes — from the pounding bass of reggae music, to the white rum and D&G ginger beer, to the red, green and gold touches that enhance the space, this burger joint certainly lived up to its name. Simply put, every burger was the BOOM! We can’t stop talking about the jerk aioli, the bacon jam, the fried plantains and the Scotch bonnet sauce. The mouth waters at the mere thought! Boom Burger gives patrons a wide range of burger options from beef to escoveitch fish, jerked chicken to pork belly, each accompanied by the house’s home-made sweet potato or plantain fries.
Burgers aside, if you’re longing for an authentic Jamaican patty when living in London, you need look no further than Port Royal Patties. Conceptualised and run by Edward Johnston, elder sibling to our key childhood spar Aaron, Port Royal Patties started out as a simple business idea to bring the best of Jamaica’s authentic patty goodness to the UK. Years of research, development and, quite frankly, some good old-fashioned blood, sweat and tears, led to a business that is considered to be the most successful purveyor of authentic Jamaican patties in the UK. The fact that Port Royal Patties is universally accepted by the diaspora as producing the patty of choice, both for local markets and Caribbean cook shops, is evidence of the authenticity of the flavour profile. It is the availability of its gourmet patty line in mainstream restaurants like Dub Jam in Covent Garden, however, that shows that this is a brand perfectly poised to cross over into the mainstream marketplace — as well it should. We wanted to explore more…. and so we went to the source…
Maybe it’s the family/friend connection, maybe it’s because they just have some plain old good sense, but Aaron and Edward were happy to invite us to explore their patty factory, a feat that we were remarkably unable to accomplish in Jamaica, despite repeated attempts. Once we got access to this treasured secret “cave” we quickly realised why a Port Royal Patty is the epitome of pure, delicious ‘moreishness’ to the last bite. Using top quality, fresh and innovative ingredients (like salt fish, lamb, curry goat and jerked chicken), the Johnston boys ensure that nothing but the best is put into each and every patty. We marvel at the way they have managed to maintain a consistent quality of the product, despite mass production; in fact, that is exactly what customers have come to expect and depend on from a Port Royal patty. And let’s be clear here, we tried (and devoured) every single one! All were equally delicious, but our absolute ‘fave’ still held strong, with the ever-faithful beef patty coming out on top.
Hanging with the Johnstons brought a delicious end to our journey and as we wrapped up our London escapade, we were reminded, once again, that our ‘Caribbeanness’ extends beyond borders and is ingrained in all the fibres of our being. No matter how far we Caribbean people travel, even if we live in another country, home is where the heart is. As far as we are concerned, the essence of being Caribbean comes from being “at home” in ourselves; at home in our hearts, at home in our spirits and at home in our souls. Whether you live in Jamaica or choose to ‘lay your hat’ abroad, we are all connected by our ties to “home” and we all share in a common love and yearning for our culture, our history, our food and our music…. And oh, what a wonderful heritage it is to share; it unifies us demonstrating that, irrespective of where we live, we are much more alike than we are different. Indeed we are blessed!
Tune in next week Sunday for yet another spicy episode of Two Sisters and a Meal as
we touch back on The Rock and head out to Walkerswood for a taste of some real Jamaican jerk! Join us, Sunday at 5:30 pm on TVJ.