This Sunday 6th August is Jamaican Independence Day and Rudie’s in Dalston are celebrating in style!
Head Chef Vernon Samuels has created a special three course menu for the occasion blending classic Jamaican flavours and ingredients with cooking techniques learned from his eight years in Rome.
The menu also includes a pre-starter of Jerked Stuffed Chicken Wings (and FYI a pre-starter is something we can totally get on board with!) The chicken wings are boned, filled with a jerk stuffing and have crispy skin on top. Different to most chicken wings which are coated in flavour, the jerk perks up the chicken wings without being overpowering and adds a nice kick.
For our actual starters we chose the Jerked Prawns, Scotch Bonnet Red Pepper Coulis and Ackee Mayo, and the Callaloo and Goat Cheese Crispy Wontons with Pineapple and Papaya Chutney and Cashew Dressing. Meaty prawns were spiced up by the scotch bonnet coulis (but not blow your mind spice) and paired well with the callaloo they sat on. Callaloo incidentally is a traditional dish of a leafy green vegetable cooked up with some herbs and spices. The crispy wontons were really delicious, perfectly crisp but not oily with the right amount of filling. The chutney added some sweetness to the dish complementing the goats cheese.
For mains we opted for Poached Red Snapper with Okra, Pumpkin, Chow Chow and Cassava Pomme Paille, and the Curry Goat Cigar with Jerked Goat Cutlet and Coco Mash. We don’t often see red snapper on menus but we’ll be keeping an eye out for it in the future. Served simply it allowed all of the different flavours to shine. Our favourite dish of the evening was without a doubt the goat. We’ve had curried goat before, but here the meat was wrapped in pastry to make a cigar – one word – yum! But what really got us was the jerked goat cutlet! Goat is usually cooked slowly or stewed due to it being a tougher meat but Vernon specially requested kid cutlets to cook and serve medium rare, just like you would with a lamb chop. The meat was lovely and tender and allowed you to really taste the flavour of the meat. A must have! All of the mains are served with Gungo Rice and Peas and a really refreshing Avocado and Papaya Salad.
For dessert we couldn’t resist the Chocolate Rum Pot with Hazelnut Praline (delicious!) but we’d really recommend trying the Soursop and Raspberry Mille Feuille and Irish Moss Ice Cream. A food native to the Caribbean, soursop is often used as a fruit in rum punch but Vernon blends it up with coconut to make a ‘cream’ for the Mille feuille. It’s slightly sour flavour, mixed with tart raspberries, coconut and pastry makes for a great dessert that isn’t too sweet.
Rudie’s have also created a selection of cocktails to choose from and there are of course plenty of Jamaican rums to enjoy if you wish!
The menu is £40 per person and we think it’s great value for the food you’re getting. Plus, downstairs in the Roots Lounge there will be plenty of music to keep you moving on a Sunday night!
For more information, visit http://rudieslondon.com/
