Trinidadians like it big!
Published:Sunday | September 26, 2010 | 12:00 AM
Daviot Kelly, Staff Reporter
So there we were, hungry as hell, and needing sustenance before collapsing.
'We' refers to the Jamaican journalists who telecoms provider Flow were hosting for a few days at a swanky hotel. Under normal circumstances, we'd just identify an eating establishment that we trusted and chow down. Only problem was we weren't in an unknown part of Jamaica. In fact, we weren't in Jamrock at all.
The four us were in Port-of-Spain, as in, Trinidad and Tobago's capital. Flow's Trinidad folks were hosting their consumer expo and our schedule was so tight, we missed lunch at the hotel. Port-of-Spain has the usual fast-food outlets (KFC, Subway and the lot) but time was of the essence because the evening session was fast approaching. So we needed food fast. Hmm, what to do?
We asked the locals at the Hyatt Regency hotel where we could find something fast.
Cooked food
"Try the Breakfast Shed," they told us. It was close by (just along the waterfront where the hotel is located) and it had 'cooked' food. So off we went and after a few minutes worth of walking, there it was. It's more than a shed, more like a food court, just not within a mall or plaza.
Not sure what to expect, we browsed the food shops. Soon, a portly woman (who we called Big Mama), realised we weren't from around here, and asked us "soup dahling?" Broth sounded like a good bet so I inquired what type it was expecting to hear chicken, beef or even bean.
"Oxtail soup," she remarked.
"Huh?" I responded.
"Yes man, it nice," she assured. I'm not a daredevil when it comes to trying new food, but technically this wasn't new. I eat oxtail and I drink soup so why not combine the two?
"I'll have a small," I declared boldly and her helper went to prepare it. Cam and MJ went looking for something else, but me and good friend Nikki had a seat waiting for soup and looking around. The Breakfast Shed does most of its business early (as the name suggests) so at 3:30 p.m. we were near closing time. Young and old utilise it and it pleasantly reeks of good, old-style home cooking.
In a few minutes, Big Mama's aide came with what to me, looked like a 'serve-mi-long' - a medium-sized foam cup. I wondered if I had told her medium by mistake, but I was too hungry to complain. I dug in and to my delight, it was quite good. Nikki tried some of the corn and ordered one for herself. By this time, Cam and MJ returned empty-handed so MJ went for the soup. This time we're sure the orders were small but again, the containers were medium.
Unforgettable
Nikki remonstrated, "no I wanted the small."
"Dat small," said Big Mama. "Your small not di same like our small," she grinned. "Wi serve big!" That might explain her size. Cam went for 'Jamaican-styled' patties and he didn't get sick so I guess it was fine. No way we'll forget 'the shed' now, not after it saved our travelling lives.
It was good to 'eat Trini' for a little although the roti, daal, curried mango and other favourites will have to wait for our next trip. Still, from what we had, Trini food is good with us. But dem nuh beat di pan chicken man!