Northside does East
As we anticipate the races – and ultimately our boys’ performances – in Beijing tonight, it’s a great time to visit the corporate area’s answer to China Town. Thursday Food treks to Northside Plaza with its multiple offerings of choice Asian cuisine for a winning report!
The Jamaican palate has had a long-standing passion for Chinese fare.
In fact, it’s even safe to say that Chinese became the first ethnic cuisine to gain mainstream popularity among locals.
And the Northside enclave has always been a haven for those with a taste for the East. think back to the famed-now-defunct Mee Mee Restaurant.
Today, only three Chinese restaurants – the eldest being the 20-year-old Dragon City – line the narrow roadways of Northside. Still, the cuisine these eateries dish daily is in much demand.
“We prepare about 50 pounds of rice every day,” says Paul Wong, Golden Gate restaurateur, as testament to the mostly takeout volumes during weekdays. Though he’s not certain of the exact amount, Wong tells Thursday Food that large amounts of fresh vegetables and meats are also cooked daily – starting around 11:00 am – to feed guests who mostly stop in for lunch.
On a weekday, lunch can be Wong’s busiest period and it’s easy to see why – Golden Gate offers beef, chicken, fish, pork and vegetable options for only $360 with plain rice and $390 with fried rice.
Lunch special aside, Wong shares too, that takeout as opposed to in-house dining is the preferred way to enjoy his food.
“Especially now during Olympics people go home, sit in front of the TV and eat.”
It’s Monday afternoon, and Bookophilia executives Andrea Dempston and David Thomas have decided to go against the norm and dine in.
“I love having their salt fish and vegetable rice,” Dempston quips, who adds that Golden Gate is her preferred lunch stop at least twice per month.
Today, she’s decided to have Wonton soup as appetiser and the Seafood War Bar as entrée.
But though some Jamaicans are comfortable eating Chinese, they’re unwilling to try something new.
“Jamaican people love sweet & sour, mallah and roast chicken,” Wong says, explaining the difference between the Jamaican and Chinese person’s menu favourites.
“Chinese people are [fond of] the crispy roast duck, choy sim or vegetables and seafood,” Wong says. His brother Peter who operates the neighbouring Dragon Heights Restaurant adds that the main difference between cooking for the Jamaican and the Chinese is the level of spiciness.
“Here (in Jamaica), the food is more spicy; more tasty,” Paul shares, “the Chinese love light, smooth tastes; they want to taste the natural flavours of whatever they are eating.”
The Wongs inform that the Chinese food served locally is somewhat of a hybrid – that fosters the fusing of the normally potent flavours found in Indian and African cuisine – of namely Mandarin, Sichuan and Cantonese cooking methods.
Paul, like his brother, tells Thursday Food that Dragon Heights also prepares large amounts of rice and noodles daily, especially since the various Chow Mein are favourites among those locals not desirous of rice meals.
Though weekdays are light for the Wongs, it’s a different story come weekend.
“We have more people dining on weekends. especially on Saturdays and Sundays, we’re at capacity, at about 60-70 guests,” Paul shares, noting that they also open for Dim Sum, traditional Chinese breakfast on Sundays. He notes, however, that Dim Sum isn’t terribly popular since some Jamaicans fancy the cultural mindset of staying in for breakfast.
In Frank Lo’s experience, many who visit his Dragon City Restaurant are open to trying new things.
“Some Jamaicans love the original Chinese food,” he says, struggling to form the English words, “they love eat the Lo Han Fish Puff” – a seafood dish with vegetables and vermicelli noodles.
He asks staff member Malik Hall to finish the interview. Hall, who has been working at the establishment for four years, shares that the two-decade-old restaurant has what he terms “solid customers” who have supported the business for as long as it’s been open.
Hall shares that while locals must be warmed up to try new dishes, after doing so they eventually become favourites.
“All our meals are prepared by Chinese chefs, so when you come here you’re getting the real thing.”
