Jammin' in "Jamaica"

"A Jamaican patty or pattie is a pastry that contains various fillings and spices baked inside a flaky shell. Technically, it is a beef filled turnover. As its name suggests, it is commonly found in Jamaica, and is also eaten in other areas of the Caribbean, most notably that of Haiti, in which the pastry is thick and crispy essentially a turnover. It is traditionally filled with ground beef, however, fillings now include chicken, vegetables, shrimp, lobster, soy and cheese " --wikipedia



Liv's amazing discovery: Cheesy Beef Patty -healthily stuffed with ground beef and melted cheese which oozes out so freely it makes me glad to know there's something cheesier than me (eh Vicki?;p).



I found another food place I used to love when I was a teen. It's now called Jammin' Jamaica. I remember this place as "Jamaican Patties" or was it just "Jamaica" formerly located in the now leveled SM City Annex. It survived for quite a while serving (and I believe in the process popularizing) Jamaican Patties here. Long before I saw or heard about the other more popular and widespread jamaican patty store, I was hooked on Jammin' Jamaica's first. I remember it used to be on the 2nd floor near the Annex cinemas which made it a constant movie companion.



Last weekend Liv and I came across this place in SM City "The Block" grounf floor and though sporting a different look with a different or should I say expanded menu I immediately knew I was staring back into the past. How? Simple really, I figured no other resto would think of naming their food "Beef Pinatubo". It's aptly named too. After the Volcano in Central Luzon which erupted in the early nineties, this favorite jamaican patty of mine delivers volcanic chili and even though I've happily seen it's re-emergence in The Big Chill fruit shake stand in Eastwood Cinema (whooping with joy) a few months back, I didn't know they re-opened their restaurant as well..

New things on The Block:

Pizza:

I tried the thin crust Bacchanal pizza with spicy hungarian sausages, black olives, garlic and onions. It was just ok. The crust was as thin and crisp as I liked it to be but for the price of P180 I wish i'd just gotten 4 Beef Pinatubos.

They have burgers now as well. "Kingston Burgers"

I never imagined how much better Jammin Jamaica's was than the other would-be jamaican patties which have proliferated. The generous stuffing and the amazing flavors they offer is just several notches above the rest. Now with an expanded menu that would cater to more types of people along with the kick-ass old school patties which they've come to be known for, I just pray that J.J. is here to stay.

"We're jammin...

To think that jammin was a thing of the past;

Were jammin, And I hope this jam is gonna last...." --Bob Marley