Caribbean Fast Food

[MarketStEl]

I was up in Olney this morning for a job interview at La Salle when I spied a no-longer-White Castle serving up something completely different.

The now-colorful former burger joint at Broad and Olney is now one of three Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery & Grill locations in the city.

Yep, you read that right--a chain of Caribbean fast-food joints!

The parent company is based in the Bronx and the leading maker of Jamaican meat patties (turnovers) in the United States. My first experience with their fare was at the Penn Relays several years ago; the Relays are one of the main highlights on Jamaica's sports calendar, as many of the country's best young track and field athletes participate, and up until recently, it was only at the Relays that you could find lots of decent Caribbean fare.

I guess the West Indian presence is now large enough in the Northeast for enterprising islanders to launch chains to meet their demands.

I promise I will return to sample their full meals--like any good fast-food restaurant, they offer several "combo meal" choices that come with rice, veggies and a Pepsi. All the Jamaican staples are represented: jerk chicken, curried goat, curried chicken, fish escoviche, oxtails and more.

But I was in the mood for a snack, and the company's reputation originated with its patties, so I ordered three: spicy beef, jerk chicken and Chee-Zee beef (their newest addition).

I'd recommend either of the beef patties as a tasty alternative to hamburgers. They feature spiced ground beef enclosed in a flaky pastry crust. The Chee-Zee version adds melted Cheddar cheese to the mix.

The jerk chicken patty didn't taste much like chicken or jerk seasoning to me; the consistency of the meat seemed more like ground chicken, and the meat was a little more highly spiced than I associate with jerk seasoning, which IMO is flavorful but not that hot. The Golden Krust Web site identifies their chicken patties as curried chicken, which may account for the cognitive dissonance.

The setup was pretty efficient: the sides were all in steam table trays and the cooked patties kept warm in a display oven. (The store is equipped with protective armor against lawsuits--two large signs warning customers that "Freshly cooked patties are EXTREMELY HOT and may cause SEVERE BURNS -- Allow patties to cool off before eating.".) I thought I saw grilled jerk chicken breasts in another tray, which suggests to me that their system relies on precooking most of the food in advance. The one woman serving customers (the only person behind the counter) was pleasant enough. It might have been nice if there were someone there to assist her with the assembly of the orders, as the line moved a little slower than I'm used to at a fast-food joint.

Then again, this is slow food served fast-food style. And it's a welcome change of pace from the usual burgers and chicken.

Edited to add: If this sounds like a golden business opportunity, the company's signing up franchisees. They currently operate in eight states, all on the East Coast; the bulk of the locations are in New York City.

Edited December 9, 2005 by MarketStEl (log)

[GregD]

We've eaten at the one in Upper Darby, which sounds smaller in size than the one you mention but is also pretty good. There was one on 52nd Street in West Philly but it closed down. Whether this was because of competition from the Brown Sugar Bakery down the street (which is excellent) or something else, I don't know.

[mrbigjas]

The jerk chicken patty didn't taste much like chicken or jerk seasoning to me; the consistency of the meat seemed more like ground chicken, and the meat was a little more highly spiced than I associate with jerk seasoning, which IMO is flavorful but not that hot.  The Golden Krust Web site identifies their chicken patties as curried chicken, which may account for the cognitive dissonance.

i'm pretty sure jerk chicken is supposed to be fiery hot--the main ingredient in jerk is habanero (along with shallot, thyme, allspice, and a few other things).

thanks for the report on golden krust--i've heard of them but didn't realize there were any around here.

[MarketStEl]

i'm pretty sure jerk chicken is supposed to be fiery hot--the main ingredient in jerk is habanero (along with shallot, thyme, allspice, and a few other things).

I guess my taste buds must be permanently singed by the much spicier fare I used to eat. Or maybe the jerk chicken I've eaten so far has gone easy on the Scotch bonnet/habanero.

thanks for the report on golden krust--i've heard of them but didn't realize there were any around here.

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Check out the tune on their home page. It's a very catchy promo for Golden Krust that sounds almost as much Latino crossed with hip-hop as it does Jamaican.

[KatieLoeb]

Thanks for the heads up on this Sandy! Sounds really good. Mummer, Herbacidal and I had some really good Jamaican food at a little placed called Negril in DC on the drive down to Raleigh for the Pig Pickin', but I've been seeking an alternative to Jamaican Jerk Hut up here to satisfy my jones since then. (Nothin' bad about JJH, I've just eaten my way through their menu many times since I used to live right around the corner!)

[Greg Ling]

They got one in Grand Central Terminal,I used to get a bunch of those patties and some red stripes for the two hour ride to L.I.,sometimes they have these shrimp steamed in ziploc bags with limes, clove,allspice and scotch bonnets .

You need more red stripes if you get those though.

[Kris]

There's a ton of Golden Krusts in NYC and I've been to many of them.

So far, I haven't had a bad plate of oxtails (my favorite), rice & peas and veggies.

The beef patties are okay.

The fruitcake (also known as black cake) is hit and miss...sometimes it's good, other times it's dried out.

I love the kola champagne in the glass bottles too.

[shacke]

There's a ton of Golden Krusts in NYC and I've been to many of them. 

So far, I haven't had a bad plate of oxtails (my favorite), rice & peas and veggies. 

The beef patties are okay. 

The fruitcake (also known as black cake) is hit and miss...sometimes it's good, other times it's dried out. 

I love the kola champagne in the glass bottles too.

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I recently had posted in my search for beef patties and despite the responses which including Golden Krust, I have yet to go. Not enough days in a week it seems.

I am now putting it on my to do sooner list. thanks for the bump.

Evan

[NYC Mike]

The mothership on White Plains Road in the BX is by far the best patties and coco bread ive ever had.

Mike

[MarketStEl]

They got one in Grand Central Terminal,I used to get a bunch of those patties and some red stripes for the two hour ride to L.I.,sometimes they have these shrimp steamed in ziploc bags with limes, clove,allspice and scotch bonnets .

You need more red stripes if you get those though.

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Of course, you do know that here in Philadelphia, it'd be BYO Red Stripe -- and you'd probably be lucky to find a place that sold it in quantities smaller than cases.

A friend who passed by the Broad and Olney location on the way back from the northern 'burbs brought with him a curried goat platter and red beans and rice. The curried goat--itself served over rice with a side of cabbage--was quite good, with a moderate amount of spiciness.

The red beans and rice were, as my friend would say, bangin'. Well-seasoned and hearty.