King Patty’s – a royal treat
Published:Thursday | February 24, 2022 | 12:10 AMDebra Edwards/Assistant Online and Lifestyle Editor
While simple, patties are fast-food royalty in Jamaica, so it’s no surprise that King Patty’s is making an imperial name for itself stateside.
The patty brand was formed in October 2020 by Jamaicans living in the United States, Adam ‘Silent Addy’ Alexander, Derrick Foster, and Daniel Lai. The three ‘kings’ have known each other for years. Foster is a Miami-Dade firefighter, and Alexander, a popular DJ who threw parties in the South Florida area. Lai, who is a chef, attended the same high school as Alexander.
Foster and Alexander had an idea for a food truck, and Lai had a concept and signature family recipe hailing from Montego Bay for patties. The three came together and combined their expertise, and things simply fell into place.
“We take advantage of everybody’s strong suit. I am logistics, Addy is marketing and branding, and Daniel is the chef and backbone with the recipes and the King Patty’s crust. Collectively, we all had a vision and are on the same page, and it has just worked out,” shares Foster.
The tasty handheld treats come with fillings such as spicy beef, mild beef, curry chicken, jerk chicken, vegetables, curry shrimp, curry goat, and the most popular of them all, the oxtail and butter bean. And yes, coco bread is on the menu, too.
The King Patty’s food truck may be found at various locations in South Florida but are also featured items at the ever-so-posh Soho Beach House, Yes Juice in Miami, and New York hotspot Omar’s Kitchen.
In just over a year, arguably, the superb taste and exceptional branding have got the crowned patties recognition in the right circles. With pop-ups at renowned weeklong art fair Art Basel with Instagram, Nike and Asics, and China Market, it would be fair to say that King Patty’s is scorching as it also most recently secured a spot at rotating restaurant haven Time Out Market in Miami.
The trio is intentional about bringing additional awareness to Brand Jamaica through the street-food staple. Many stop by their truck thinking that they are getting an empanada (a popular Spanish treat), but they quickly get a lesson that these flavourful treats are patties from Jamaica. “We are trying to take patties into a whole different demographic,” says Alexander. “People always try one and then come back for more.”
Chef Lai adds, “We’re trying to do things differently, bringing different cultures together while doing something different and having fun.” What’s this amalgamation of cultures and fun about which he speaks? In addition to online sales to expand their reach, expect the “Addy Patty”, a jerk chicken and goat cheese filling that is coming soon.
Food had to ask if other items were in the works, for which Alexander quickly answered, “Right now, we are focused on the patties but will expand our offerings eventually.” As he takes a moment to reflect on how much they have accomplished thus far, he concludes: “Now is just the beginning. Look out for what we have in-store. We also want to expand the brand to other places.”