... Mango Tree Restaurant?

During The Gleaner-sponsored Restaurant Week 2010, diners can have their palates tantalised by a fusion of Jamaican and International flavours while listening to the soothing, lapping sounds of the pool at the Mango Tree Restaurant at the Altamont Court Hotel on Altamont Terrace.

Food and Beverage Manager Jermaine Scarlett told Food that for six years they have wanted to be a part of Restaurant week. Now that they have a new menu, it's the perfect opportunity to show the public just how much they have to offer. With a 'warm rag' service, there is something on the menu for everyone - even vegetarians.

And the man in charge of all that is chef Duane McDonald. A chef for the last 12 years, he has only been at The Mango Tree for eight months. He told Food his mother was a very big influence in his career choice. He notes that she makes very good Christmas cakes, and he used to help her with those. A past student of the Runaway Bay HEART Academy and the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), McDonald simply loves to cook and is the only one who does at his home. "Sometimes, I'm fatigued but once I'm in the kitchen something comes over me," he told Food. "I see food as a science. Putting the ingredients together, there is a lot you can do with it."

On his days off, he enjoys a good steamed fish. "There are so many things that can be added to it to take it up a notch, especially if you use the right fish." And for this chef de cuisine, the right fish is Butter.