Where: The Final 24 hours - What New: Restaurants - When: Anytime

Well, it is over, and I am back in Fargo. But I wanted to finish the story of my trip to Jamaica. I remember, as I started packing, I dreaded knowing that in about two hours I would be leaving for the airport in Montego Bay. How does time go by so fast?!

Well, as always, the last night Mike and I were there we met some great people and found out about some very interesting places to go to eat.  It is all about the food for me when I’m on vacation (sad but very true). The six pounds I gained will attest to that! 

So, we finally went to this cafe we had passed pretty much every day. It’s called Montana Cafe and is directly across from Fun Holiday on Mandley Drive. When we walked in, there were two people eating, and they looked at us as we were greeted by a very happy man named Toney. The place had outside seating and well, only outside seating. We sat down with a cover over our heads. After we were seated, Toney, with a very big smile, said “thanks for coming in” about two or three times. He then smiled again and went to get us coffee.

When he left, the couple turned to us and said: “This is the best place to eat. The price is right and they give you a lot of food. Not to mention they’re very nice people.”

“By the way,” they said, “have the veggie omelet. it is the best.”  As they were talking to us, another couple came in and sat down. Toney had not yet come back with the coffee. They said hi to us, and then to the other people, and I thought: “O.k., it is time to introduce ourselves.” So I asked the first couple where they were from. They answered Boston, and said they had been coming to Jamaica for a while. We talked about the food, and they compared the lobster in Boston to that in Jamaica. The lady made the comment that she had found it, at first, hard to eat Jamaican lobster because it didn’t have claws!

That was an interesting conversation. The other couple was from Ontario, Canada. They patiently waited for Toney to come out from the back. They too said the Montana Cafe is the best place to eat, citing the same reasons as the first couple. Apparently, they go there every day for coffee, and they also warned us that we would get a lot of food and probably not be able to finish it. 

Well, by the time Toney came back with the coffee, Mike and I had decided that we had to try a little of a few things. We were now very hungry; so, I ordered the French toast, Mike ordered the pancakes, and we split the veggie omelet.  Well, there were no disappointments at all. The French toast was enough for two for sure. It was made just right: thick brown bread with tasty seasoning on it. And Mike’s pancakes were also enough for two people. The veggie omelet had calloo, onions, mushrooms and white cheese. Oh yeah, it came with toast too! Uguh! 

I actually had the audacity to eat it, but only after asking for jam to put on it.  What was I thinking!  Oh, I know: “I am still on vacation” had to be in my head. After looking over the rest of the menu, we thought “yes, we should have stopped here before.”

The other thing we learned about while visiting with everyone that day was a cafe on the beach. Another place we walked by frequently was an open market. It is right next to a small resort called Lazy Dazes. You can’t miss it: there are beautiful sarongs hanging down from above, enormous wood carvings being made and people gathering around a table in the back part of this area. 

Oh, I have to backup for a minute. When we would sit on the beach, we would always be mindful—eyes open or shut—to whether the patty man had come by yet, and we always hoped that we didn’t miss the jerk pork man either. Again, all about food! I should not leave out the lobster man and the fruit lady, too.

One day, I noticed that people were walking by with what looked like patties, but the patty man was never around. I should have gotten out of my chair after the third person walked by and asked exactly what they had. Of course, why do that when inevitably, I would discover it on the last day! (Sarcasm, people.)

O.k., now back to the gathering around the table. Mike and I walked back to this area, and I was in heaven. There it was—the perfect outside kitchen, the authentic outside kitchen.  A large stove made of brick, rock and wood with the wheel of a tire acting as burners. There were flames everywhere, and the people cooking were very skillful at working with all of this. There had to be at least twelve people waiting for their food, another five of us waiting to order and a couple that would continually come to the window, making sure no one had taken their order. How did I miss this place! 

Now, for those of you who have been here, you know what a patty is. And some may know just from eating Jamaican food. But these patties were were huge. They were more like pot pies. What was so neat about that place was how you could watch them being made right there in the skillet. You could see all the ingredients that the chef used—this was a great find. Of course, while we waited for our food, we met more people from the states. You know, it was like how everyone always gathers around the kitchen during a party at home. We all—no matter where we are—know how to make great conversation. Just find the food.

So, as you have read, we had a great time, I look forward to our next trip, and we hope to bring a lot of friends with us. Next week: Our great find in Minneapolis. Stay safe and eat well.