These Flavorful Meals Spotlight the Better of the Caribbean — No Passport Required

All it takes is a stroll by means of the streets of the Crown Heights and Flatbush neighborhoods to catch the vibe. Spiced smoke from grills wafts within the air; sidewalk markets overflow with mango, soursop, wiri-wiri peppers, and djondjon (dried black mushrooms); and houses and automobiles show flags as shiny and joyful because the accented voices of the individuals who proudly characterize them. 

Brooklyn is house to the biggest inhabitants of Caribbean folks exterior of the islands themselves. To immerse your self within the borough’s diaspora, pay a go to to those cafés, eating places, and bars.

Aunts et Uncles

Husband-and-wife duo Mike and Nicole Nicholas have created an all-in-one vacation spot in Flatbush: café, bar, and way of life store. Browse the curated books, artwork, and equipment, then sit down for considerate vegan interpretations of Caribbean meals, like a traditional “bake and saltfish” filled with completely seasoned coronary heart of palm, or the “hen samich,” a fan favourite that includes crispy oyster mushroom in a spicy maple-syrup sauce. The patty superbly mimics the satisfying crunch of actual fried hen and has bewildered even the perfect of foodies who’ve stopped by. The mushrooms are tenderly coated in a particular gluten-free batter: a loving mixture of chickpea flour and considered one of their secret home rubs. “The aim will all the time be to boost the authenticity and dietary profile of our dishes with out compromising on taste or the enjoyment of consuming, with an ode to the Caribbean. When folks consider Aunts et Uncles years from now we hope it repeatedly brings them to the attractive reminiscence of areas through which they’ve laughed, lived, beloved and thrived,” says co-owner, Nicole Nicholas.

Lakou Cafe

Cassandre Davilmar, the proprietor of this Haitian bistro in Crown Heights, needed to create a communal area impressed by the normal Haitian “lakou” or courtyard. The result’s a heat and alluring Caribbean retrieve that boasts an alfresco ambiance with shiny picket tables, woven lighting fixtures, and vibrant and funky splashes of inexperienced and yellow hues bathed in considerable pure gentle. On the partitions, are unimaginable artwork items showcasing native expertise. Lakou has turn into a beloved neighborhood gathering area for film nights, musical performances, artwork exhibitions, wellness occasions, and extra. Highlights embody traditional plates like kreyol shrimp, cooked in stewed peppers, onions, and tomatoes and served with rice, plus the cashew brittle and ginger lemonade.

Island Pops

Sooner or later in 2014, Shelly Marshall was craving soursop ice cream, a favourite from her native Trinidad. Her husband, Khalid Hamid, tried out a house recipe: it wasn’t good, however the couple realized they’d stumbled onto one thing. They began promoting Island Pops at native markets, earlier than opening their brick-and-mortar store in Crown Heights in 2018. Now they serve quite a lot of treats, like sorrel-rum sorbet, guava-cheesecake ice cream, and passion-fruit popsicles. 

The Rum Bar BK

Garnett Phillip, a Trinidadian-Ethiopian entrepreneur who calls herself “The Rum Lady,” opened her first bar, the Rogers Backyard, in Flatbush in the summertime of 2020. It was an instantaneous hit, and her follow-​up, The Rum Bar BK, debuted in Crown Heights in Might 2023. With an expansive again deck, it’s one of many neighborhood’s finest summer season hangouts. Order the oxtail fritters and the Soufrière Painkiller, or pattern one of many top-shelf rums (Phillip shares bottles from almost each Caribbean island).

A & A Bake & Doubles Store

On the border of Mattress-Stuy and Crown Heights, this James Beard award-winning Trinidadian meals store focuses on Indo-Caribbean delicacies and snacks. Nearly every day discover the homeowners, Noel and Geeta Brown, of their store enjoying soca and reggae music, and serving up a pleasant array of choices for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, together with  their well-known Trini doubles– a fluffy fried dough full of curried chickpeas and an array of sauces, together with tamarind, pepper, and chadon beni, a cilantro-like herb.

Kokomo NYC

From its preliminary debut in the course of the top of the pandemic, Kokomo stays some of the elevated Caribbean eating experiences in all of NYC. Ria and Kevol Graham, the husband and spouse hospitality duo, aimed to encapsulate the colourful essence of the Caribbean inside Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood utilizing inspiration from Ria’s Trinidadian and Grenadian heritage. Coconut-curry mussels, Jamaican jerk shrimp and ackee flatbread, and rum-raisin bread pudding are the perfect orders at this elevated Williamsburg restaurant. The couple has additionally just lately prolonged their empire by opening OxKale, a vegan Caribbean take-out eatery, and plan to open Bait & Bow, a brand new French Caribbean steak and seafood idea later in 2024.

Puerto Viejo

This Dominican bistro in Prospect Heights, opened in 1986 by proprietor Cristina Abreu, has cemented its standing as a beloved native spot by serving up nationwide favorites like pernil (slow-cooked pork shoulder) and bacalao guisado (salt-cod stew). and a standard chimi burger, topped with chopped cabbage and salsa golf, a mayo-and-tomato sauce, that may be a standout on the menu. “It is a literal extension of our house kitchen,” says Maritza Abreu, Cristina’s daughter, who has adopted in her mom’s footsteps as CEO/Founding father of the favored spice line Pisqueya.