Spice-it-Up

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

“Best jerk chicken and jerk pork in Scarborough.  Was so sad when they closed a year or so ago. Normally have to venture out to Eglinton West to get the real jerk taste when it’s cooked on in the drum pan but these guys are just as good if not better. If you are looking for real jerk in the east end this is the place to go. Real jerk is not supposed to be cooked in a oven!”
Dion T.
New York, United States

“I like this place. If you want a good authentic great tasting Jamaican food then this is the place to go. Portions are good and prices are reasonable.”
Edgar (January, 2020)

There is something about that savoury marinade, marked by perfectly chosen spices and Scotch Bonnet Peppers. Whether your choice of meat is: chicken, beef, pork, goat, boar, seafood, or vegetables, Jerk is a go to choice when you visit a Caribbean restaurant. When coated in spices and slow-cooked over a fire or grill, the resulting smoke is the key to the flavour that we have all learned to love about our favourite Caribbean dish. Before I introduce our award winning restaurant, and chosen Business Feature, let’s give a little history on the origin of Jerk, and how it has become so popular.

It started in the 1700’s when escaped slaves living in Jamaica ended up hiding out in the Blue Mountains. We all know these escaped slaves as the Maroons. Food was in short supply, so they learned how to catch wild boars. They used salt, peppers and spices to preserve the meat, because they had to be mindful of being recaptured, and hunting would leave them open to that.

The spiced meat was wrapped in leaves, and when it came time to cook it, they placed it on hot rocks. Over time, different spices were used, and hence was the evolution of what we now know as Jerk. According to Brittanica.com, Jerk has its origins with Taino, who developed the jerk method and taught it to African slaves. The word jerk stems from the Spanish charqui, meaning dried strips of meat similar to the modern-day jerky.

Let’s move the story forward to 2020, in the eye of the Coronavirus storm. I am introduced to Miss Joy, the owner of Spice-it-Up. Her restaurant won the 2005 People’s Choice Award, has won the prize for Best Chicken three years in a row at the Jerk and Jazz Fest, and most recently, Eastview Neighbourhood Community Centre honoured Joy for 20 years of service to the community. She has come a long way, and I had a chance to sit down and speak with Miss Joy about her triumphs, her challenges, and her decision to never give up regardless of her struggles.

“I infused what I learned from working with a French Chef and I incorporated it with my Caribbean flavour.”
Joy (Founder of Spice it Up)

When Joy came to Canada, her main objective was to help her family back home. Her first job was as nanny. She didn’t like that. Then she got work at a factory. She really didn’t like that. One day she picked up a paper and saw a job opening for a cook at a restaurant called Benwick’s. She was nervous going in to the interview, because she had never cooked at that type of level before. “I interviewed and the owner took me right on the spot. My first day was hectic,” Joy chuckled. “I made a lot of mistakes, but he did not give up on me. Within six weeks, the head chef at the time went on vacation, and by the time he came back, I had replaced him as head chef.”

 Joy was not happy that she had taken someone’s job, especially because the head chef had taught her everything that she knew. “He used to bring books from George Brown College for me to read and learn how to cook different things. He was a great French chef. We are still very good friends to this day.”

Joy decided to leave the restaurant business, and in 1986, she went into child care. She opened up her own day care (Joy’s Daycare), and she would do personal support work at night, and run the daycare during the day. This went on for 15 years, but there was a pull to go back to the food industry. “I always wanted to open a restaurant, so I did. I got myself a nice little spot by Cederbrae Mall in 2000 (Jammie’s), and worked it by myself. It was very profitable.”

The community loved Jammie’s so much that they began to ask for more. They wanted a place that they could dine in, and not just pick up. Like that, Spice-it-Up was born.

Joy ran Spice-it-Up for a few years, and decided that she needed to step back from it for awhile. She made a move to Ottawa to work there, and did not like it. When she was in Ottawa, people were asking her to come back to Toronto. She decided that if she were going to move back, she would have to move back and follow up on her passion. “I was introduced to our current location at 4352 Kingston Rd, in Scarborough, and at first, I didn’t think that it was going to be a good spot. After a month or so it started to grow, so I knew I had made the right decisions.”

“What makes working in this industry difficult Joy?” I was curious as to why she kept leaving and coming back. “Working with my own people has been the toughest thing. I might expect too much from them. Sometimes people cannot think out the box. It frustrates me. I have wanted to walk away a few times, and I have, but I realized that cooking was my passion. I had a gift. Someone could come in and not see anything they want. I can go into the kitchen and whip something up and they would love it. I infuse what I learned from the French chef and incorporate it with my Caribbean flavour.”

Joy has a strong spirit, and through the up and downs, she refuses to give up. “Spice-it-Up has a lot of potential. I am looking for someone to come in and share my passion. I will not sell it. This place is my baby.”