By From May 15-21, 40 restaurants from 20 cities across Canada are participating in this year's 2023 Spring edition.
Several of the restaurants participating specialize in Jamaican Cuisine, here are our top 3 recommendations.
Owner: Tobias Brown
5337 180 St, Surrey, BC
Tobias Brown's love for food (especially Jamaican Cuisine) and people led to his wanting to be in the restaurant industry. When customers try his jerk chicken, he wants them to imagine themselves enjoying the 30-degree weather on the beach in Kingston, Jamaica.
"Once you take a bite, that's what you're experiencing," said Brown.
Although jerk chicken is the number one dish at the restaurant, with Mama's Rice and Peas coming in second, customers can find innovative dishes like jerk tacos, burritos, and nachos, made with boneless jerk chicken thighs.
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Brown says he appreciates seeing people from other cultures enjoying his food, as it has often led to those people encouraging friends and family to try the food.
His goal is to spread his love of jerk chicken to everyone in the province of British Columbia. And as the #1 jerk spot in BC and top 3 in the country, he’s well on his way.
Owner: Sharon Johnston
6 locations: 4 in Mississauga, one in Waterloo, Ontario and one in downtown Toronto.
"My passion is for food and people," says Sharon Johnston.
The first Potluck Restaurant opened over 20 years ago, with the first being in Mississauga, Ontario.
Besides enjoying the restaurant's popular dishes such as jerk chicken, rice and peas, oxtail, and their famous coleslaw, customers revel in the restaurant's ambiance.
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As a female-led business, Johnston enjoys the opportunity to create jobs for people in various communities. She wants to continue seeing her business become an integral part of community development by providing jobs and helping those in need.
She also wants to continue contributing to the Jamaican culture through food and maintain a presence for years to come as one of the restaurants of choice for catering needs and cravings for authentic and delicious Caribbean food.
Owner: Christine Allen
1567 Grafton St, Halifax NS
Before Christine Allen became a restaurant owner, she would cook food for friends who told their friends which led to people ordering food from her.
While selling her dishes at the Farmer's Market, people told Christine she should open a restaurant.
Jerk, stews, and curries are what people can find at Brawta's Jamaican Jerk Point.
Allen also likes to create her dishes with influences from other cultures. She has occasionally done dishes like jerk chicken and oxtail poutine.
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She looks forward to continuing to add a Jamaican touch to the food offered in Nova Scotia. So jerk fish and lobster are a few items to look out for in the future.
Besides the jerk chicken, Allen said their BBQ, pepper sauce, patties, oxtail, curry tofu, and chickpeas are also popular items.
What customers enjoy the most about the restaurant is feeling as if they're in the Caribbean when they savour the food. With some menu items displayed in Patois, Allen enjoys seeing customers place their orders in their language.
"They're getting the whole Jamaican experience," said Allen.
Allen is now looking at making the business efficient enough to run without her daily input, to have some more quality time with her family.
