Before this trip, I knew very little about Trinidad & Tobago. In the pandemic year of 2020, Chris and I started exploring more neighborhoods across the five boroughs of New York City. Since we were blocked from traveling internationally, we figured that given the unique diversity of our city of residence, we could go to different neighborhoods and still get exposed to different cultures. During that year, we visited a Trinidadian roti shop, and my eating life changed forever: I had one taste of doubles, a beloved street food of Trinidad and Tobago, and it was like love at first bite. Doubles are two small, quickly fried little chewy flatbreads (baras) served with a hearty, savory, spiced filling of curried chickpeas (channa), oftentimes topped with different types of chutneys and a hot pepper sauce. Sometimes, shops give the option of adding different curried meats, like chicken, beef, or goat, to your doubles for an extra charge. The filling is wrapped with two little baras (hence the name “doubles), and you eat it like a mini sandwich/tiny burrito. They are usually filled to order, then wrapped with a piece of paper and handed over to you; they are best eaten AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. At that point in time, of course I’d eaten lots of different Indian foods, but this curried chickpea mix, coupled with the two little fluffy baras, was just different to me, and I couldn’t quite pinpoint why. The spice blend of the channa was not the same as what I’d had before. The chewiness and pillowy texture of the bara was incredibly addictive. And from that one experience, I knew if given the option, I could eat doubles every single day and be happy!
The second exposure I got to “Trini” culture was via my two night nurses. I got a reference through a parents group for my first night nurse, Cheryl, who happened to be Trinidadian. Since she spent a lot of time at our place, we talked a lot about how she grew up, her culture, and food. She talked a lot about the Indian influence on Trini culture and cuisine. She also told us about areas of Queens and Brooklyn to check out for Trini food and shops. Once, Cheryl brought us a bag of pickled, spiced pommecythere, also known as June plum or golden apple. I remember it being a really addictive combination of sweet, sour, salty, and a little spicy; the crunch was also delicious! She also told us about the whole network of Trini night nurses across the U.S. and how interconnected they are. When her time was up with us, she introduced us to a second Trini night nurse, who may have taken even better care of Kaia than she did!
So the little I was exposed to Trini culture before this trip was enough to get me to this presumption: I knew of the four islands we’d visit — Barbados, St. Lucia, Grenada, and Trinidad & Tobago, that T&T would very likely be my most favorite place to eat on this trip. And after just a day here, I am willing to bet that assumption will not be wrong!
I guess when I think of Trinidad & Tobago, I think more about Trinidad than I do of Tobago, which is not entirely my own fault. Trinidad & Tobago as a single country has two names because it was formed by joining two completely separate islands. Trinidad is the larger, main island (hence why I always think about its culture and influence first). Even though it’s an island, Trinidad feels more urban, multicultural, diverse, and commercial. Tobago is the smaller island that was, at least historically, economically weaker, but more village-centered, tied to fishing, folk traditions, harvest festivals, and a slower-paced island identity. Tobago has a more rural, Afro-Caribbean vibe.
This is a pretty good quick outline I found of the ethnic and religious diversity of Trinidad and Tobago, one of the Caribbean’s most culturally mixed islands: Its culture blends:
African heritage from slavery and emancipation, visible in Carnival, calypso, steelpan, stickfighting, Spiritual Baptist traditions, drumming, and foodways.
Indian heritage from indentureship, visible in roti, doubles, curry, choka, tassa, chutney, Hindu and Muslim festivals, and family/community traditions.
European colonial influences, especially Spanish, British, and French Creole, visible in place names, Catholic traditions, architecture, Carnival history, and social structures.
Chinese, Syrian/Lebanese, Portuguese, and Venezuelan/Latin American influences also shaped food, commerce, music, and migration patterns.
If you have that many cultures in a single place, the food is destined to be good.
For our meals thus far, for lunch today we ate at an open-air food center along Ariapita Avenue, a main drag for restaurants, bars, and nightlife. We had a steamed kingfish plate, a garlic shrimp plate, and all came with a mix of vegetables, coleslaw, coconut rice, and mashed potato. The garlic shrimp was perfectly cooked (Kaia was obsessed with it!), and the kingfish was well seasoned and had a little bit of housemade green pepper sauce that had a fruity forward flavor with a tiny, tingly burn at the end.
Today, we did a sunset tour of Caroni Bird Sanctuary, which is supposed to be the number one tourist experience here in Trinidad. On our boat that went through swamps and marshes, we were able to see a snake, anteater, and some other indigenous animals in their sleepy state. And for the main highlight, we saw countless North American flamingos (“Americans!” Chris grumbled) as well as the national bird of Trinidad and Tobago: the scarlet ibis, hoards of them all flying high in the air and settling upon a specific little island in the marshes. The scarlet ibis is a huge bird with a large wingspan, long neck, and a nearly fluorescent, bright orangish-red hue. Originally, Chris was not very enthused at the idea of going on a bird watching boat tour (“What is this? Some overpriced tourist trap where I have to see a bunch of birds I don’t care about instead of actually getting to eat them?!)” But when he finally caved in and booked the tour for us (THIS MORNING for this late afternoon!) and we went out on the 2.5-hour boat tour, he actually seemed to enjoy it. He marveled at the dozens of flamingos we saw in their natural habitat, saying that this was, “like something you’d see on the Discovery Channel” but instead we were seeing it ourselves in real life. And he even seemed to get excited when he saw his first red ibises flying high in the air. Who would have thought that my very own Chris could have his own “birding” moments?
I thought Kaia would enjoy the boat tour more, but she actually got bored after a while and kept asking when we were going to go back. She was likely getting hungry and tired, as the boat tour ended at 6:30, and on her usual schedule, she would have eaten by this time. While she did enjoy seeing the many flamingos and scarlet ibises, as well as the catfish in the water, we couldn’t hold her attention span the full 2.5 hours. We had many moments of moaning, whining, and crying. I guess she really is a 4.5-year-old.
Our tour included pickup and drop-off, so we asked our driver to take us back to Ariapita Avenue so we could grab a quick bite before heading back to the hotel. While on the avenue, she pointed out a doubles truck parked and set up with a small line forming and asked if we’d be interested in stopping there. I saw the doubles sign, the truck setup, and the little crowd forming, and I knew this was exactly what we wanted… and needed! So we got out and ordered four “regular” doubles (channa/chickpeas), two chicken, and two goat (the last two with pepper sauce). The total for eight doubles was only 70 TTD, about $10.32 USD — a bargain for our takeout dinner for three! We picked up some drinks from a little market and headed back to the hotel to eat. And this dinner was incredible: everything was just as good, if not better, than the doubles we’d had in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. The paras were fluffy, pillowy, and addictive. The channa was spiced and super savory. The goat and chicken were tender, well seasoned, and had a nice little kick with the pepper sauce. This was the best first dinner in Trinidad!
And for our dessert, we washed and cut cutlass mangoes, a local variety of mango, that we got along Ariapita Avenue this morning — for free! A really warm, friendly man who owns a smoothie shop saw us admiring the hanging fruit in front of his shop, and so he took a red-netted bag of five cutlass mangoes and just handed them to us as a gift, and thanked us for visiting his country! We ended up sitting on his little deck for a while, chatting with him, and bought a smoothie he made for us to order — cutlass mangoes, watermelon, and dragonfruit. Kaia loved the fact that both of us were distracted chatting with the owner, so she likely got more sips of this smoothie than any other fresh juice/smoothie we’ve ever ordered! She kept chuckling her little cheeky laugh when she knows she’s doing something she’s not really supposed to…
As for the cutlass mango, a variety we’d never heard of before, it is a long, flat, fiberless mango that originates from Trinidad and Tobago. It is distinctive in appearance because it is curved with two pointy tips. The three we cut were perfectly ripe: sweet, tropical, a tiny bit tart, and extremely juicy. I squirted juice in few directions just cutting into these mangoes! The flesh is fiberless, smooth, and almost melts in your mouth. On this trip, this is now the FIFTH mango variety we’ve tried!
The kindness and hospitality we’ve experienced during our short time in Port of Spain have really exceeded any expectations I may have had. The smoothie guy was extremely warm and generous — we got FIVE free mangoes because of him — all because we told him we love mangoes and trying new ones. A ride-app driver who took us to a coffee shop this morning couldn’t find the Michi Coffee Shop where he was supposed to drop us off, so he not only wouldn’t let us get out of the car until he was certain we knew were going, but he even called his coffee loving friend to make sure this area really had a coffee shop around it (it was a little weird and hidden, as it was in the midst of insurance, furniture, and car repair stores). The lunch spot at the food center had a server who proactively gave me tips about food and local juices since I asked about fruit. And our driver to and from the bird sanctuary gave us tips about local food spots we should check out.
This segment of our Caribbean trip has felt the most interactive with local people and day to day life, as I imagined it would be. But it’s been even better and more enjoyable and fun than I had hoped!