Jerk 1 Tropic Island
Rene G
Jerk chicken is good,
Jerk chicken is nice.
Eat it with dough bread,
Or red beans and rice.
(poem courtesy of Tropic Island Jerk Chicken Restaurant)
Finally got around to trying some of the jerk places that were mentioned
here a few months ago. I'm especially grateful for the recommendation of
Tropic Island; it's truly a great little place. They are actually two of
them, both on 79th St, about 2 miles apart. The new one further west has
a dining room but I've only been to the east one, the one with the
drive-through window. Approaching the place you know something good is
in store when the surrounding area is thick with great-smelling smoke.
It's a small stand-alone building with a small ordering area in front
walled off from the kitchen. Service was friendly but slooow. I don't
particularly mind the wait but phoning ahead and using the window might
not be a bad idea. Most of the people seem to order the jerk chicken, an
excellent choice but I can't wait to make it through the whole menu. A
half is $5, $8.50 for a whole bird. It's just wonderful, rubbed with a
complex spice mix then slow smoked and hacked into small pieces. The
skin is almost black but the meat is incredibly moist and flavorful.
Very smoky and very messy to eat. The sauce comes on the side, dark,
vinegary and thin (you have to keep stirring it up), vaguely reminiscent
of a very spicy Worcestershire sauce. I like the sauce a lot but the
chicken really doesn't need any help. Also tried the brown stew catfish
dinner and that was excellent also. The fish was spice-rubbed and smoked
and served atop very good red beans and rice with some nice brown gravy.
I never thought I'd be praising well-done catfish but it was just lovely
(if maybe a little dry). The accompanying steamed cabbage was great,
subtle but with a good hit of black pepper, some green pepper, onion,
and other spices. Boring name, brilliant execution. A plantain slice
also comes along, perfectly fried, not at all greasy. These people
really seem to know what they're doing in the kitchen. Other items
include curry goat, curry chicken, brown stew chicken, oxtails, jerk
catfish, and about a half-dozen sides. They list red snapper, either
excoveitched, steamed or brown stewed and also some shrimp dishes. Based
on the quality of the other stuff I can't wait to try them. Nothing is
over $10, almost everything is much less. I can't remember the last time
a $6 meal made me so happy.
A reminder: the 1922 E 79 location is only a few blocks from Leon's
(1640 E 79th St) which some claim has the best ribs on the south side.
Although I certainly wouldn't go that far, they're pretty decent. A slab
of Leon's, some jerk and a few sides from Tropic Island, and plenty of
cold beer would be a pretty nice combination.
(thanks to Quodlibet9 for bringing TI to my attention)
Tropic Island Jerk Chicken Restaurant
1922 E 79th St
773-978-JERK (5375)
The 537 E 79th St location has moved to:
419 E 79th St
773-224-7766
Mon-Thu 11-11
Fri-Sat 11-12
Sun 11-8
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Rachel Rufer
Tropic Island has a hot food truck that is out side of Northwestern
University's Medical School everyday (on Superior just East of
Fairbanks). They have quite a few dishes to choose from (including
jerk chicken, jerk catfish, curried goat) and they are all $5
(includes a soft drink).