Sassy's Jamaican Kitchen, Fitzroy North by Snooze

With Big Fil and Hungry Pete out of the country (Big Fil's currently the official Asian corespondent on a well won holiday to Hong Kong), I sallied forth on a Saturday night to meet Ms Watching Her Calories, Iron Man and Ms L at Sassy’s Jamaican Kitchen.


Before I start on the review I thought I should mention I know both Sassy and I’m familiar with some West Indian food (through living with a Trini for nearly 30 years). So it was with great interest I went to Sassy’s to see better what Jamaican food was like and to compare it with Trini food.

When we arrived we were offered soup as we worked out what to order. In consistency and ingredients, the soup was very much as I eat at home each week. The soup was tasty, the vegetables cooked right and included nice pieces of fresh, crisp corn. The difference was in the addition of coconut milk … a very welcome addition and liked by every person on the table.


There were two hands up for the jerk chicken, and both Ms Counting Her Calories and Iron Man enjoyed it. From what I know jerk chicken is a Jamaican speciality that relies on chilli and a number of spices. I know Ms Counter Her Calories loves her chilli, but Sassy's version was toned down for Western palates (for which I was very grateful). I think I'd try this if I went again.


I chose the fish, which were cutlets cooked in what seemed to be a very similar way to the jerk chicken.


Ms L, our intrepid 8 year old foodie, chose the vegetarian pattie. I’ve never seen one of these before and this was my best choice for the day. It was large and filling, and I’d gladly pick up one of these and have it on the go.


Each of the meals came with that quintessential West Indian favourite: peas and rice, or in this case red kidney beans and rice. The peas and rice were cooked well, but over salted to my taste. The meals also came with vegetables in coconut milk, and I assume it was the ‘soup’ without the broth. In any event, the vegetables were universally enjoyed, and each of us would gladly have eaten more than the small side serve on our plates.

Overall
Sassy's is very much a cheap eats, café style eatery … and well worth a visit. The range isn’t large (but I never find that a problem, and what you get is tasty and there’s plenty of it. The service was also good—quick and friendly—and I especially enjoyed the vegetables in coconut milk. There were just a couple of things to watch (and which may be teething problems as Sassy’s has only be open for five weeks): food shouldn’t be over salted (the peas and rice) and should be delivered hot rather than lukewarm (the chicken and fish).

Verdict
Food – 6.5
Service - 7
Ambience – 5
Prices - 7

Address
376 St George Rd
Fitzroy North VIC 3068
Tel (03) 9489 8999