|
|
|
|
|
Articles |
|
|
Fast
food hang out LINES OF well-dressed citizens, 'dibbi dibbi' teenagers,
'dancehall' characters, dreadlocked brethren, 'sketels and montels',
children of all sizes... everybody dressed in an array of colours with many
squeezed into mind-boggling new 'barrel' fashions (according to my
Kingstonian friend) with hair styles that defy gravity. They patronise the
halls of Mother's, Island Grill, Wendy's, Burger King and MacDonalds daily,
settling down to their bounty of burgers, grilled steak; chicken or fish;
little colourful bags of fries of all types, large icy drinks with fat
straws and boxes and paper. Lordy! Lordy! paper and more paper strewn everywhere!
Isn't there something we can do about all that paper? Is it really necessary
to have every individual fast food order wrapped in reams of rain forest? I am not a fast food freak but when in Rome ... so I
joined the long queues nightly in my quest for that Hmmm Hmmm Good!
mind-boggling 'special taste'. You know -- the one that causes kids to
suffer temper tantrum syndrome with voices that can whine like sirens and
beg unmercifully all in one fell swoop forcing adults to capitulate without
a fight? Yep! That's the one! Wars could be won with that strategy! In the world of this ever expanding commodity which is in
our face constantly through radio and television ads, there is so much to
take into consideration and, of course, an endless choice of fare. It was
really difficult task to pit US concessions against 'local names', so I
relied not only on my taste but on patrons to help me decide. Island Grill I saw Norma Shirley, the famed Jamaican Chef (and now -
shhh! fast food connoisseur) with the food editor of 'de other' newspaper at
Le Island Grill, digging into some fine jerk fish! On sampling same and
trying my best to be fair -- decided without a doubt that the Roast Jerk
Fish at Island Grill hits the top of the chart for taste!! And at J$130
totally affordable. Yes! Go Island Grill! Ray! Ray! Ray! And a special prize for the Half Way Tree Branch for
having the best 'barrel' fashions in the world of
in-house-fast-food-haute-couture. It was a joyous sight to behold. Seriously though I love everything about your design
concept Island Grill, even the boxes. Very, very innovative and very
Caribbean -- no wonder you were able to branch out beyond your shores.
Spotted your peppery delivery vans on the streets too! Congratulations. I am crazy about your (I can hardly believe I am writing
this!) seasoned fries, the green banana and plantain ones in particular. The
Pumpkin Rice is divine but you do need to have another look at the Jerk
Burger. Could be wonderful, I am sure. Back on the drawing board I hope? Oh!
the wooden Suggestion Boxes are a great consideration. Wendy's I dropped into Wendy's at Liguanea. Cool, clean, friendly
staff, amazing array of grub. Healthy salads and just love those baked
potatoes! I really enjoyed eating there actually and have since returned.
Not as much as I have gone back to Island Grill for that fish 'though. Had a chat at Wendy's with a gentleman whose wife was in
hospital after a serious operation. He highly recommended their salad bar as
he prepared a take-away for her. Nice touch, a much better gift than
chocolates, flowers or magazines when faced with hospital food. Another Kingston family told me they are not allowed by
their father to eat anywhere else! Okay then! 'Not even at home kids? Your
Mom must be an awful cook.' So Miss Wendy, that square burger in the round bun was
delicious. Where did that little spark of genius come from? Reminded me of
Eddy Murphy in his famous video 'Raw' describing how poor his family was
growing up in New York, the horror of having to face neighbourhood kids. He
with his mother's fat hamburger patty, oozing with greasy onions, slapped
between white square bread, soppy from the gravy, they with Big Mac's in
hand and whiny taunting words "We have MacDonald's! We have
MacDonald's." Experiences like this can change a child's perception of
life forever! Hey! if Eddy came to Kingston and ate a MacDonalds at the 'Dullhaney'
Branch, he would honestly welcome his childhood experience. Dullhaney's Big Mac This is a major pit stop but Jurassic flies, indifferent
'mi nuh kno' staff', cardboard burgers, the smell of floors mopped with
dirty water and that so-called Orange Juice! Give us a break. Shame, shame
MacDonald's. Not surprised you need brighter than bright colours, huge
monster plastic signs with clowns aglow, give-away toys and massive
playgrounds to lure the children in. Its certainly not the food I tasted for
sure. And where's that local food promise? Come on Mr. & Mrs. Mac, you
all have been in business too long. Let's get that quality control thing
working. Un-be-lie-vably bad! One bite of the normal burger, one
bite of the fish burger and it landed in the rubbish. Not before I got a
picture though, this tells it all! Get with it or the competition will mam
you dung. Burger King Burger King at Liguanea was excellent and came within
inches for the best burger. It is just that Wendy's square one is a little
juicier. Maybe the square look is juicier than the round look, who knows.
(Does that work with bodies by the way?). My companion swore that Burger King's Fish Burger contains
by far the "fattest, juiciest, tastiest" piece of fish than any
other in the world! Well, excuse me! Had to admit, it was excellent. Love the little girl who waxed profound on the qualities
of Burger King and the play place. "Mi nah eat de hamburger nowhere else" said she,
giving me that evil eye and stuffing her larger than life burger in her face
-- sweet. Kudos for the smiling, happy and efficient staff! Great
colourful uniforms. Congratulations Mr. Foster for the training efforts!
Just grill that hamburger a little less. That leaves me with Mother's. Stopped in at Liguanea
branch. The outside decor was appealing but inside left a lot to the
imagination. The staff was very friendly and helpful, I might add. Nothing
on the menu really said "eat me now!" I was expecting a good
comparison to Island Grill. However, was made to understand that they were
primarily a Chicken & Patty Place, that is how Mother's began -- with
the best patties in Jamaica. So with all due respect, I leave them for when
I get into patty or chicken tasting. Pitting them against the big fast food
guys this time was not in order. Oh! Staff all round need to speed up a little and pay a
little more attention to orders. Too many get them wrong creating havoc at
the counter -- and all those questions per order. I thought I was applying
for a US Visa half the time! Please. I shall repeat -- Go Island Grill Go, Ray! Ray! Ray! With a quick hooray to both Wendy's and Burger King. You have all surprised me pleasantly and I may yet become a fast food freak. By Rosemary Parkinson, Contributor Source: jamaica-gleaner
- 22/09/2001 |
|
Contact | Site Map | Search | News & Articles | Home |
