Go to The Real Jerk during Caribana or any time year-round and you’ll find some of the realest Jamaican vibes Toronto has to offer. The atmosphere here is as lively as the food. Every Thursday, they host a karaoke session aptly titled “Irie-Okie” and, though their old outdoor BBQs from their previous location are a thing of the past, the new location boasts a lounge area offering one of the widest selections of rums in the city, and they still host and cater an annual boat cruise event during Caribana. Prices are fair and the jerk chicken wings are the bomb. The roti comes in a generous serving, too. Originally located at Queen & Broadview in Riverdale, owners Lily and Ed Pottinger were recently forced to relocate due to construction of new condos on their old site. They’ve now found themselves in a bigger space at Gerrard and Carlaw. For the Pottingers, 29 years in business and a consistent place in NOW Magazine’s annual Best of Toronto list doesn’t mean resting on one’s laurels. Ed can be seen greeting every table and clearing the dishes, and staff are helpful and knowledgeable, recommending the perfect cocktails to pair with your dish. Beautiful murals depicting scenes of Jamaica painted on sheets of zinc meanwhile have survived through three different moves (there was also a brief stint operating a smaller take out joint in suburban Woodbridge). The Real Jerk remains a landmark for the local Caribbean community and visitors to Toronto alike, attracting a culturally diverse clientele. It is a meeting place for food, culture, music and people, and truly is a piece of Jamaica in ‘the Six.’ Check out their sister location in Toronto’s Beaches neighborhood, at the fitting address of 1004 Kingston Road.

Shiraz Aligour brought doubles to Canada in 1976 when he established Ali’s West Indian Roti Shop in Toronto’s multicultural Parkdale neighbourhood.

Walk into Ali’s West Indian Roti shop. Glance to your left. Now, to your right. With two massive wall murals depicting Maracas Bay, this institution in Toronto’s multicultural Parkdale neighborhood brings you one step closer to Caribbean heat, even in the midst of a Toronto winter. But you haven’t acclimatized until you’ve tried the homemade pepper sauce and tamarind chutney that blesses Shiraz Aligour’s authentic Trinidadian dishes. A former welder hailing from Princes Town, Trinidad, which is said to be the birthplace of Doubles, Ali moved to Toronto in 1972. After an injury on the job, he opened up his first shop four years later with his wife, in a smaller unit one block away. They’re the go-to for Caribbean eats at the Canadian National Exhibition, where Ali has operated two restaurants in the food building for the last 16 years. “When we started, 90 percent of our customers were West Indian,” Aligour says of his now 38-year-old establishment. “The white customers didn’t know about our food, so they were introduced to it by their co-workers and would come and try. They would ask, ‘What is a roti?’ and I would have to explain it. There were no pictures [on the menu boards] at the time. Those who liked spice would get right into it. The others, it would take time.” Now, Aligour says the clientele is “50/50” due to the various ethnic backgrounds within the community. Likely Toronto’s oldest Trini establishment – and the one that brought doubles to the city – Ali’s is the Mecca for piping hot roti. What Ali describes as a “boat,” can weigh up to two pounds, with fillings of boneless chicken, curry goat, veggies, and shrimp. The doubles, too, are massive. Two, tumeric-rich bara blanket the perfectly cooked channa, fragrant with garlic, thyme and cumin. Ali also serves a top notch POS sidewalk snack: Sahina, deep-fried dough balls blended with split peas and collard greens. To offset the spice, finish off with one of Ali’s home made ice creams: Coconut, mango and soursop are all made with fresh fruit. Ali shuffles back and forth between the back kitchen, where staff are kneading dhalpuri dough, baking paratha skins and simmering curry beef—all Halal. “Yes, sir! How are you?” he asks a familiar face at the cash, grabbing an aloo pie, adding a dollop of chutney and wrapping it quick. “When I started to work in Canada, my friends couldn’t say the full name Aligour, so they shortened my name to ‘Ali’,” he says over a glass of Mauby. “Last week, 10 new customers arrived and said, ‘oh, my friend told me to come,’ or ‘I was walking in Parkdale and wanted a roti and somebody told me to go to Ali’s.’ It makes me feel good. I can serve my people and introduce our culture to the Canadian culture.”

A chef at Ali’s West Indian Roti Shop makes paratha on a flat-top stove.

Each paratha wrap is homemade – preparation begins as early as 7:00 a.m.

Fresh paratha dough balls waiting to be thinned out.

Shiraz Aligour of Ali’s West Indian Roti Shop – Parkdale, Toronto, ON

Making Doubles: Step 2

Making Doubles: Step 3

Making Doubles: 4

Channa and chutney fill the tamarind-rich blanket of bara

Mr. Snack – top plantain chips.

Hospitality runs in the family for the owners of Indar’s Roti and Doubles in Rexdale, Ontario. Founder Indar Rampersad’s sister is the proprietor behind Pamela’s Café, a popular eatery in Chaguanas, Trinidad, near Port of Spain. Look up at the ceiling at Indar’s and you might feel like you’re closer to Maracas Bay thanks to an airbrush mural in vibrant island colours. Or maybe it’s the bake and shark that’s on your table, served with all of the staple fixings. Listen to the sound system and you’ll hear the latest soca mix – sold at the cash, atop a cooler of currants rolls, kurma and barfi. Maybe you are on your way to Maracas, by way of Canada. Rampersad established Indar’s in 2012 with a mission to serve the community with top-notch Trinidadian eats. “Light and fluffy” is the perfect way to describe the restaurant’s main seller, doubles. The sweet-and-spicy, channa-filled snacks have the perfect amount of chutney, are tightly wrapped and non-greasy. Also popular are the deep-fried Pholourie and the All Day Veggie Platter. “My mom makes all the food we sell, but if we had to choose specifically according to our customers, our veggie platters remind them of home,” Indar’s daughter, Anu, says. Generous spoonfuls of baigan choka, channa and aloo, pumpkin and bhagi fill white Styrofoam containers, with paper bags of freshly baked dhalpuri on the side. The chicken roti is Indar’s most popular dish, notorious for its heaping chunks of meat – all halal – and filled with veggies of your choice, and a splash of scotch bonnet.

Doubles from Indar’s

Island Foods has been a staple in Toronto’s core, at the edge of the Liberty Village neighbourhood since 1974. The large restaurant space accommodates couples to families that stumble in throughout the day for piping hot roti fllled with tender curry goat, bright channa and spicy potatoes. Jerk chicken and curry oxtail entrees are stacked high on plates, complete with cole slaw and rice and peas. Owned and operated by the Sawh family, Island Foods is authentic Trinidadian cuisine. There isn’t any aloo pie or sahina, but the doubles are classic. With fluffy bara, perfectly cooked channa, and a hint of chutney, it’s one of the best takeout treats you’ll find on King Street. The restaurant is fully licensed, serving an array of mixed drinks, and Caribbean beers like Red Stripe, Carib and Dragon Stout. They’re also known for their booth at the Canadian National Exhibition Food building, where they’ve been selling hot, cheap eats for nearly 30 years. For island heat in the East end, visit their takeout location at 1310 Don Mills Road.

Plantain hot from the fryer, nice and carmelized, just how I like them.

‘Le Augusta’ Bokit Sandwich: Mashed avocado mixed with codfish, cassava flour, scallions, garlic, and a chopped herb and lemon juice.

Matthias and co. preparing Bokit sandwiches.

‘Accras de Morue’ – salt cod fritters.

Doubles – slight pepper – and a bottle of Apple, J.

Chicken Pelau, Macaroni Pie and Sada roti

Leela Mahase and her daughter, Ashwini

Chicken Pelau, Macaroni Pie, Sada roti and an Apple J

When co-owner Mona Khan and her husband, Cyrus, moved to Canada in the late 80s, she began producing hundreds of roti skins in the kitchen of her Markham home. At the time, she was feeling “homesick” after moving back and forth from the outskirts of San Fernando, Trinidad, where Mona’s began. “While we were in Trinidad, it was tough to live,” says Cyrus Khan, who helped Mona open their Marabella shop in 1983. “People from all over the island would come to us for a well-made dhalpuri.” Purchasing their current space in 2003, Mona’s quickly became the place in Scarborough for made-to-order roti.

Staff at Mona’s Roti in Scarborough roll and knead dough for paratha roti.

Paratha Process 1

Paratha Process 2

Paratha Process 3

A Mona’s Roti staff member engages with a customer grabbing a lunch roti to go.

Paratha Process 4: Fillings!

In an unassuming strip mall in Brampton, a suburb northwest of Toronto, there’s a Jamaican joint that turns up on a Tuesday. Walk into The Vineyard and you’ll find its tables filled with men drinking Red Stripes and shooting the shit, their voices fighting the volume of Vybz Kartel and Alkaline songs through the speakers. Against bright orange walls, there are handwritten signs promoting the daily special, and Digicel “top-up” posters. The vibe is raw and real, which is why many Brampton locals can’t get enough of the ambience, as well as that five-dollar jerk chicken special. “I’ve eaten here five times in one day,” says one area resident, Devin Gorgis. “I never get sick of it.” Gorgis lives down the street, and has become a familiar face at Vineyard, where owner and head chef Michael Bailey doesn’t even have to take his order. “When I walk through the door, Michael sees me and says: jerk chicken, rice and peas. I know people that drive from Bradford for the Tuesday special. If the food is that good, you’re bound to come back.” The fedora-wearing Bailey likes to crack jokes, but he’s serious about his jerk chicken. What makes it special? It’s all about preparation. “We wash our meat three, four times, until you see no more blood,” he says. “We wash our rice until you see clear water. We make our own seasoning from scratch. Most restaurants go to the supermarket and buy seasoning, but we blend everything. Pimento is number one.” A classically trained chef, Bailey moved from Clarendon, Jamaica, to Toronto in 1992. Vineyard has been open since 2007, serving diverse Brampton with an array of classics — breakfasts abundant with ackee, saltfish, callaloo and “food” (typical provisions of yam, dumpling and boiled green banana), to a daily soup special (cow foot, fish) and melt-in-your-mouth oxtail. The Vineyard also serves a and practically-perfect fry bake. Bailey compares his establishment to the “United Nations” for its ability to attract all races and occupations. He often serves “more Indian people than Jamaicans” from the local population of South Asians, to notable celebrities like Kardinal Offishall, who lists Vineyard as his favourite Jamaican restaurant outside of the city. The restaurant even makes a cameo in his short film, “The Invention of Truth.” Before the video, Vineyard’s proprietor had no idea who he was. “The first time he come here, he don’t stop [eating]. My daughter brought it to my attention… [Now] when he has a party or birthday, I do the cooking for him.” Bailey never takes a day off. Peeking out of the kitchen to take orders often sends him to front of house, where he receives enthusiastic greetings and goodbyes of “see ya later, boss!” He’s preserving Caribbean culture in the community through his food and his attitude. “I love to serve people, you know? I’m doing my part. I get to know everyone, and it brings people together.”

A classically trained chef, Bailey moved from Clarendon, Jamaica, to Toronto in 1992. Vineyard has been open since 2007, serving diverse Brampton with an array of classics — breakfasts abundant with ackee, saltfish, callaloo and “food” (typical provisions of yam, dumpling and boiled green banana), to a daily soup special (cow foot, fish) and melt-in-your-mouth oxtail. The Vineyard also serves a and practically-perfect fry bake.

When Claude Fearon, owner of JR Sweet’s Jamaican Inspired Ice Cream, was growing up in Sandy Bay, Jamaica, Sunday night dessert always meant a slice of his mother’s freshly-baked black cake or carrot pudding, paired with a scoop of rum raisin ice cream. “That was our staple,” says Fearon. “Those are the things that I remember as a kid, and a lot of the people that walk in the door feel like they’re a kid again in Jamaica. It makes them feel good.” Fearon opened JR Sweet’s, in Toronto’s Oakwood-Vaughan neighborhood, in May 2014 with a vision to share a facet of his culture that was being overlooked. Toronto’s Jamaican community includes numerous places to feast on jerk chicken and curry goat, but nowhere else that specializes in the island’s unique ice-cream flavors. “In Jamaican culture, we have a lot of desserts and it runs pretty deep,” Fearon says. “I want to bring that to Toronto in a more detailed fashion.” Fearon works with different suppliers to offer a vast array of ice cream flavors, including Coconut Rum, and incredibly rich variations on classics like Stout, Mango, Soursop and Grapenut. There are a few unexpected twists like Tequila Lime and Kahlua, but the standard choice is nostalgic like Sunday nights in Sandy Bay: an outstanding Rum Raisin. Loaded with the dried fruit and fragrant like an aged barrel of Appleton, it’s unequivocal. Fearon isn’t stopping at hype of obtaining exotic delicacies, and sees JR Sweet’s as “progressive business.” He plans to change formulas to produce a more authentic Soursop flavor, and introduce nesberry, a tangy-sweet fruit from Jamaica. After closing for the season in September, JR Sweet’s re-opened on Father’s Day, with additional cakes, pastries and Jamrock-inspired frozen yogurt.

Rum Raisin on a waffle cone from JR Sweet’s Jamaica Inspired Ice Cream.

Scoops of Rum Raisin, Mango and Grapenut ice cream overflow – with whipped cream on top.

Claude Fearon, owner of JR Sweet’s Jamaican Ice Cream