New Yorkers get fed, entertained at jerk festival

Dave Rodney, Contributor

New Yorkers came out in huge numbers to Roy Wilkins Park in Queens last Sunday to savour the dazzling array of treats that the fourth annual Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival had to offer.

The festival really is, as the name suggests, an exposition of jerk foods, and there certainly was an abundance of everything jerk, including ice cream, peanuts, potato chips, lobster, corn and fritters. But although there were over 40 food stations that offered mouth watering dishes, bringing back Jamaican memories from Boston Bay to Bluefields Beach, the event had something of compelling interest for nearly everyone.

First, the foods. Jamaicans love to eat, so the traffic on the food stations was immediate and started as soon as the gates opened at noon. From what I could see from visiting virtually every stall, corn reigned supreme. There weren't enough hands to sell corn done in various ways - roasted, boiled, jerked - and at least one person wondered aloud if a station called Caribbean Corns was selling yellow corn or issuing free green cards, based on the overwhelming demand. Next in popularity was jerk pork followed by jerk chicken, then fried and escoveitched fish. And those who wanted oxtail, curried goat, manish water, pepper shrimp, sweet potato and cornmeal pudding could find them all there for reasonable prices. An odd exception was the tiny cup cake-size fruitcake for a whopping US$6.

Cooking demonstrations and cooking competitions kept attendees engaged, and a pleasure for the palate was the jerk turn cornmeal. The Vendor Dish Call Competition was won by Boston Jerk City Restaurant.

Overall though, business was brisk and the vendors were happy. "This is how Jamaicans should live all the time", Trevor Smith, marketing representative with Tower Isle Patties, said, as he studied the vibe in the park and distributed samples of his chicken and beef patties.

If Jamaicans love food, they also equally adore reggae music and, for some, the jerk festival was really a concert with live performances by fresh-from-Sumfest Mr Vegas, Jamaican songbird Etana, and UK-based hit machine Maxi Priest. All three A-listers rocked the crowd with their impressive catalogue of hits, and the crowd sang along in the perfect Sunday evening summer weather.