Jamaica Food and Drink Kitchen brings ‘beer’ excitement

It was ’beer’ excitement when local patrons arrived at the Jamaica Food and Drink Kitchen (JFDK) in Barbican for the Kingston City Beer Fest. The two-night event, which got under way last Thursday and Friday, did not disappoint in giving patrons an engaging and awakening experience. Guests began the celebration in festive fashion with the first bar to greet them offering the delights of the nation’s favourites – Red Stripe, Heineken, Red Stripe Flavours, Heineken 0.0 and Guinness.

From there, beer lovers went on a tour, treating their palates to a host of local and international brews and spin off cocktails. X-Mark Beer certainly hit the spot when introducing flavoured brews of gold rum, mojito and tequila. Guess which one was the crowd favourite? If you answered tequila, you’re correct. Jamaican owned brand 24 Karat Premium Beer told brewed tails of 24K mudslide, purple holibae, 24K sangria, lagaria, 24K daiquiri, 24K classic chill and 24K rum riser. There was the option of enjoying the beer, light beer, stout or rumberries by the bottle.

Clubhouse crafted beers provided a tasteful difference with gold and light-bodied Czech and German-inspired Pilsner; German-style bitter or Hefeweizen; American Fairway Finder with lemon and peach and passion fruit notes; coffee porter and hazy IPA (India pale ale).

Taking beer lovers on a sipping journey across the globe were Corona Extra from Mexico, Peroni from Italy, Stella Artois from Belgium, Asahi Super Dry from Japan, Sierra Nevada from the United States and Caribe Cider from Trinidad.

Then there was Blue Moon Beer, mixed to perfection with Bourbon to create the sweet Kentucky moon mix. For those looking for a light but refreshing drink, Seagram’s escapes flavour, Jamaica Me Happy, was employed to make tropical sangria cocktail.

Organised by the Jamaica Food and Drink Kitchen, the festival is just one way the culinary organisation is furthering its mission.

That mission, Nicole Maraj-Pandohie, managing director of Jamaica Food and Drink Kitchen, shared, is to position the country’s city as the ultimate culinary destination. “We’re really about promoting just food and drink in the industry. Every so often, we push different sub-sectors within that, including all the amazing local and imported beers and the micro-brewers and beer-infused products we now have on the market,” she said.

Tourists, she pointed out, are picking their destinations based on food activities. “And it’s not just the restaurant scene. They want to be able to learn how to cook, visit food festivals, do food tours and we are doing our part to build out that infrastructure. The food and drink scene is evolving and this is a representation of that evolution.”

We were delighted to see that the culinary masterminds brought the flavours to savour, presenting a feast of epic proportions. The crispy chicken sesame tenders with a sweet and spicy Asian sauce, three cheese lasagna rolls with a panko herb crust and the seafood Po’ Boys were all proud creations of JFDK’s resident chef, Celeste Gordon. “We thought of creative dishes that would pair well with sipping a cold beer, like burgers and fried chicken wings, but with an elevated twist. We’ve had a good response Thursday and Friday,” she said.

Hitting it off well with taste buds on the first night, the sesame tamarind guava barbecued chicken lollipops with a complementary blue cheese dressing by chefs Swayne Channer and Damian Stewart of Broken Plate had patrons returning for more on night two. Also featured on night two by the restaurant was the spicy sausage and bacon bolognese. Kitchen Manager Jodi-Ann Walker highlighted that heading into the summer, it was the right time to focus on finger food. With CB Chicken as a sponsor, the team drummed up culinary pleasure with each mouthwatering drumstick.

With Janga’s in the process of launching its catering line, one of the owners, Jordan Weller, revealed that foodies were given a taste of the new offerings in store. The spicy grilled fish ceviche and Asian barbecued pork with fluffy rice balls are not typical menu items, but they were flying off the table at the beer fest.

Additionally, food lovers could always follow the sweet aroma outdoors to relish in the serving of jerk chicken, freshly prepared from the pan, courtesy of Ronique Forrest.

krysta.anderson@gleanerjm.com