Sunday Lunch at Turtle Bay

Having just come back from Jamaica we are all about the irie life! So the family were very excited to try the new Turtle Bay in Brindleyplace.

It was fully booked all day Saturday, so we had to go for Sunday lunch. It’s big bright and busy, with coloured murals, a central bar, and all the paraphernalia synonymous with the Caribbean Island, its music, and culture. There’s outdoor seating which is covered (pseudo-beachfront) and a sound stage style wall inside, as well as an open kitchen with flaming jerk-pit and grill.

We’ve been to Turtle Bay many times, but for once I could genuinely compare real Jamaican food to our UK chain counterpart.

The menu features delicious Caribbean-inspired dishes and signature rum cocktails available throughout the day and into the evening all against the beat of a fantastic reggae soundtrack.

As we enjoyed our 2-for-1 cocktails – a nice Rum Punch and Pina Colada - we tried a selection of starters amongst the four of us.

The first dish is inspired by Jamaican pepper prawns and is a must-have - whole grilled king prawns, in an awesome chili and garlic butter with a softly grilled roti flatbread to mop it up.

Then some Baby Back ribs are marinated and basted in a tangy sweet and sticky mango bbq sauce which will definitely have you licking your fingers for more.

Then we mixed it up with strips of squid marinated in mildly spiced coconut milk, crumbed and crisped, with mango mole and mild jerk mayo; and then the obvious Caribbean staple - fresh chicken wings, marinated in their homemade rub, chargrilled, topped with either fiery jerk gravy.

All were very tasty, we couldn’t decide which one was best so best to try all four!  Each is very reasonably priced at £7. And you can’t say no to the sweet potato fries and ‘festival’ dumplings as sides.

At this point in our story, one of us had to loosen his belt and call ‘time’, whilst the rest of us enjoyed the mains. Sweetly priced at £12.50 each, I had the Trini Curry, marinated chicken thighs with tropically sweet mango, coconut, thyme, and chili sauce, served with coconut rice and peas. I could eat this all day long.

My guest had the brown chicken, marinated chicken thighs, slowly braised in browning, our secret mix of herbs and spices, and tomatoes for a rich stew. Again, with their famous coconut rice and peas. The chicken bigger was big and hearty too.

This is an excellent choice for fun family dining and for a reasonably priced £100 you can’t go wrong.