Patties of Jamaica

“Welcome My Friend” is the sign that greets you in this little hole in the wall place near 52nd and Allisonville. We drive by it every time we go downtown and have always been intrigued to check it out. We finally did the other day for lunch.

The welcoming greeting continues as you are warmly welcomed in by each and every person in the place. I am not sure if it is an extended family running it, but that was the vibe it had—you could peek back into the kitchen and see several different generations of people making the patties and watching Sanford and Son (who even know that show was still on?).

Anyway, the food is, as the Brits would say, “cheap as chips” so we decided to try lots of stuff (and having no idea exactly what some of it was). I would stay the star of the show here (and for our meal) were the patties themselves. Basically, the Jamaican version of what many countries seem to have in some form or another—similar to Spanish empanadas and Cornish pasties, they are thin baked pastry pockets that aren’t as flaky as the above mentioned versions, and not stuffed as full. They are stuffed with ground beef seasoned with onions and spices. Fairly mild in flavor but tasty. They are served with a spicy picante type sauce that zips them up a bit. They are obviously handmade (they were doing it right in front of my eyes) and for a cheap (they are $1.15 each), fast lunch, this is a good alternative to fast food.

We also tried the curried goat stew which was exactly as it said—small pieces of meat in a yellow curry sauce with potatoes (rice is extra). Nothing spectacular in my mind, but tasted like someone’s Mom’s recipe. They also have a beef stew and chicken stew.

We also got the “hard dough bread” because we had no idea what this was, and the sweet bun. Turns out they are both full loaves of bread (the hard dough bread is like $1.25 so I wasn’t expecting that). They are freshly made, the hard dough was a soft white bread good for sopping up sauce, and the sweet bread (or "bun") was an intensely flavored spice cake with raisins throughout. Would probably be great with some vanilla ice cream and some caramel sauce on top.

One of the ladies working also recommended their jerk chicken which is described as “baked” chicken on the menu. She told me I should really try it and that you get a quarter chicken (white or dark) or wings. My guess is, she’s probably right, I should try it. So next time, I think I will get that, as well as one of the patties.

So if you are looking for fast, super cheap food, and a little love at the same time, check out this place. You will feel better after leaving. (You may want to carry out though, as there are only 2 little tables in the whole place).

Patties of Jamaica
5172 Allisonville Road
Indy 46205
317-253-4006