Sunny Caribbean flavours find their way to Stoke Newington at Jamaican restaurant Rudie’s.
Rudie’s probably has the most effective social media voice of any Caribbean restaurant in London; reviews, tweets, and grams of their marinated delicacies are all over the place. Social media fanfare doesn’t always translate to good cooking, but in this case I found food that was delicious, finger-licking, and authentic. The eatery was packed to capacity when we visited, giving it the natural buzz that a restaurant serving this kind of lively food really must have.
Drinks menus are fun, with a selection of cocktails and various sharing pitchers. The cocktails taste like holiday; sweet, brightly coloured, fruity, and predominantly rum based. Those with a sweet-tooth will be in heaven. The menu features starters/small plates, a jerk grill section, main courses, puddings, and side dishes. We began with grilled oysters with scotch bonnet butter, jerk battered soft shell crab, and “Port Royal” patties. All was great, but when is soft shell crab not? The patties – a kind of Jamaican street food consisting of golden pastry filled with spiced meat and vegetables – were a lovely version of a Caribbean staple.
Main courses looked appetising; we caught sight of a fellow diner’s enviable goat curry, but it was the jerk grills we were there for. Smoked and cooked over traditional steel drums, four different varieties are available: chicken, lamb rump, swordfish steak, or lobster. The chicken was as succulent as we’d hoped for, with a satisfyingly sticky and blackened jerk coating. The lobster could have done with 30 fewer seconds on the heat, but the flavours were a lovely match for the delicate shellfish. Sides include sweet potato fries, plantain, spring coleslaw, and of course rice and peas.
The options for pudding included banana brulee, chocolate mousse, and a rum cake. It was the latter we had to try; a ring cake saturated with Jamaican rum and served with vanilla ice cream. Boozy bliss.
Rudie’s serves mouth-watering Jamaican food that brings all the satisfying, authentic flavours you could hope for.