Restaurant Review: Irie Foods

IRIE FOODS

2807 Mill Woods Road | iriefoods.ca

Instagram: @iriefoodsedmonton

Co-Diners: The E.A.T Crew

A fun fact about me is that I was born and raised in Scarborough, Ontario. And if you know anything about Scarborough, you'll know that it's one of the best places in North America for Jamaican (and Caribbean) food. I grew up snacking on incredible patties from the strip mall down the street, all the while being completely oblivious to the fact that this type of cuisine was not nearly as good or as prevalent anywhere else (unless you hopped on a flight south). Since leaving Scarborough I have grown a huge appreciation for the incredibly diverse food options there and I am also on a forever hunt for the (few and far between) excellent Jamaican restaurants elsewhere in the country. They do exist if you know where to look! And thankfully in Edmonton we have Irie Foods. Edmonton Journal named them Favourite Caribbean Restaurant 2022 and Favourite Caribbean Restaurant 2023, and like their Instagram says; they've been jammin' since 1996 - which is nearly thirty years!! I've been a fan for fourteen of those years, ever since I first tried their food back in 2010. (Please bring the Fried Broccoli back to the menu!!) I was definitely due for another visit, which I did on a Saturday evening.

You will find Irie Foods in a pretty unassuming strip mall in the Kameyosek area of Mill Woods. Honestly, if this isn't the exact correct location for a restaurant like this, I'm not sure what is. It's pretty much Edmonton's version of Scarborough. The shop has colourful signage outside and they share their section of the strip mall with an Indian restaurant, a donair place, and a bubble tea shop. It's perfection. Inside, the restaurant is pretty simple with minimal decor - except for a truly beautiful mural painted on the wall of a beachy Jamaican scene. There's a counter to order at and about six tables for seating. It's very casual but it's everything that it needs to be and nothing more. The employee working at the counter was friendly and happily answered all of our questions. It's helpful to note that the restaurant closes at 8pm so it's not the kind of place that you'd roll up to late in the day. Also, there are various specials that run on certain days of the week. It's helpful to be aware of these especially if there's a particular dish that you're hoping to order. For example, they only serve ackee and saltfish on Saturdays, which is one of my favourites.

I started my meal with a Peanut Punch ($2.75) and a Jamaican Beef Patty ($3.75).

Peanut Punch is a must for me and I order it every time. It's always the Grace brand tetra pak. What does peanut punch taste like? Liquid peanut butter. But more milky and less thick than you might be imagining. As someone who loves peanut butter, this beverage is amazing and brings me so much joy.

The beef patty was okay but it wasn't out of this world. Irie offers two flavours; beef or veggie. However, you can tell that these are not housemade and that they've likely come from a frozen box. It's not that there's anything terribly wrong with it but it does seem to be missing the heart behind it, as most factory-manufactured products are. The yellow-hued pastry was decently flaky and the filling was rich and flavourful. I would like to at least see a spicy beef patty option.

Irie Foods serves up many classic Jamaican dishes, such as curry goat, oxtail, fry snapper, and roti. However, their Jerk Chicken ($17.50 for small) owns my heart.

Served on a bed of rice and peas with a Fried Dumpling and a little side salad, the value of this dish is quite excellent. Like most dishes, there is variance in the recipe depending on who is preparing it. I personally prefer a dry jerk chicken but some places, like Irie Foods, serve it saucy. At the end of the day all (properly made) jerk chicken is coated in spices and slow-cooked over a fire or grill. Sauce is sometimes added and sometimes it isn't. The jerk chicken at Irie is very, very good. The meat is incredibly flavourful and tender, right down to the bone. The skin is wonderfully crispy. And the bold sauce does give an additional layer of even more big flavour. They do a really wonderful job with this classic dish and I wouldn't be surprised if it's the best jerk chicken in Edmonton. The earthy flavour from the rice and peas (they're actually beans) serves as a nice accompaniment. The fried dumpling was wonderful, crispy on the outside and soft yet dense on the inside. I love dipping chunks of the dumpling in whatever sauce I have available on the plate. I even really enjoyed the side salad which was drenched in ranch dressing. It's a nice cooling element that helps to balance the spicy and bold flavours of the rest of the items. Wonderful!

Apart from jerk chicken, my favourite Jamaican dish is Ackee & Salt Fish ($20.00 for large). It also happens to be the national dish of Jamaica!

Often eaten for breakfast in Jamaica, this dish is made with preserved salt cod, boiled ackee fruit, peppers, tomatoes, and spices. The correct treatment and preparation of the ackee is very important because it can be toxic if done wrong. (I've eaten it plenty of times and have never been concerned.) Once cooked, it looks a lot like scrambled eggs. The flavour is subtle and mild, lightly sweet, and vaguely bitter. Salt fish, a preservation method, was brought to Jamaica by way of eastern Canada - interestingly, this dish is more Canadian than you might think. Ever wonder how screech rum made it's way to Newfoundland? Stew-like in nature, Irie Foods makes a wonderful version of ackee & salt fish that really highlights the ingredients. I love when I get a big morsel of salt fish in my bite so that I can really taste and enjoy the salty flavour and dried texture. It's an absolutely must-try, especially if you've never experienced it before. Similarly served with rice and peas, a fried dumpling, and a small side salad, you certainly won't leave hungry.

Irie has three desserts on their menu and I wanted to try one! Sadly, there were none available. Regardless, my experience at Irie Foods was a good one. It's really amazing to see that Jamaican and Caribbean cuisine has been growing and gaining traction in Edmonton, especially in recent years. Irie Foods is one of the OGs that paved the way and is still the very best. We are incredibly lucky to have them and I look forward to returning when my next jerk craving hits (and let's be honest, that'll be soon).