New York wasn’t for JFDF’s 2022 Top Hog Chef Jamie Allen, but Jamaica is
Published:Thursday | November 3, 2022 | 12:08 AMAinsworth Morris/Gleaner Writer
When the pandemic hit and restaurants in New York, ‘the city that never sleeps’, were forced to close their doors, Jamie Allen – Jamaica Food & Drink Festival’s (JFDF) Top Hog Chef for 2022 – knew it was time to return to his home in Jamaica.
After doing that two years ago, the 30-year-old executive chef at OMG Restaurant & Coffee Bar in Mandeville has no regrets.
When returning home from New York after spending nine years, not only did he take a wealth of experience and knowledge about the catering industry from the Big Apple back with him, but he also had the drive to share his culinary crafts locally.
The Jamaica Food & Drink Festival presented Allen with that opportunity. He was invited to participate in the festival’s annual kick-off event, Pork Palooza, sponsored by Copperwood Pork and Worthy Park Select Jamaican Rum.
At the event, held on the grounds of Hope Gardens in St Andrew, Allen chose to showcase one of his signature dishes, ‘Ugly Buns’, which afforded him the most popular vote across all patrons, and winner of the sixth annual Pork Palooza Top Hog competition – an achievement that has him elated.
“The reason it’s called Ugly Buns is because while working throughout those 16 days to master that recipe, there’s something I couldn’t rectify. I could not get the buns to come out pretty. It just wouldn’t happen, and then I got fed up,” Allen explained during an interview after he copped the top trophy.
“I also had a significant epiphany. Not everything has to be pretty, or pretty is related in its own sense, so we just decided to accept the buns for what they were and name them based off of that, and the name landed, and it worked,” he continued.
Ugly Buns were definitely a hit at Pork Palooza and had patrons returning to his booth, some six or more times, to grab hold of the juicy and delicious Copperwood Pork-based product.
“I feel great. We came out here with something very simple, but it was extremely delicious. It was actually a recipe that took me about sixteen days just to get everything sorted and actually perfect. Once it was perfected, I knew it was something great, so that’s what we decided on coming here and using it as our showcase item,” Allen explained.
Allen said he is a trendsetter and has always tried to do things differently from the local population, which is what made his Ugly Buns product stand out.
Ugly Buns is on OMG Restaurant & Coffee Bar’s Happy Hour Menu on Fridays between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m.
While in New York for nine years, Allen “hopped around a bit in different kitchens”, but he had his most significant experience at the now-closed downtown chic Vintage New York Lifestyle restaurant on 3rd Avenue in New York.
He also worked at another restaurant which hosted all-day brunch parties on the weekends.
Allen holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from the Caribbean Maritime Institute, where he graduated in 2018. During that period, he took advantage of the summer work-and-travel programmes and started as a dishwasher in The Hamptons.
Choosing kitchens over engineering because of his love for fire, Allen said, “Ever since I was a kid, I’ve just always loved to play with fire. Between my love for playing with fire and my love for kerosene, that drove me into the kitchen,” he explained, while noting he is happier at OMG Restaurant & Coffee Bar as opposed to being in New York.
“More importantly, I’ve always wanted to come back to Jamaica and start my own business with the experience that I’ve learnt, and OMG was the place to be or to hang out when you were in Mandeville when I was in high school and sixth form,” Allen said.
He continued, “So while I was in New York, in the back of my head, I knew I wanted to come back and be a part of whatever it is OMG was at that point. They were still something great, so after a couple of conversations with our owner and CEO, we decided that some greatness could definitely happen.”
The Jamaica Food & Drink Festival 2022 will continue to feature great dishes and creations of chefs such as Allen, who are making significant contributions to the development of Jamaica’s gastronomic experience.
The festival continued on Friday with the signature seafood Crisp event held at Festival Market on the waterfront of downtown Kingston and spicy and Scotch Picante event at Hope Gardens, and Brunch and Jazz at a private location on Sunday.