🧭 GTA Eats: Taste of the Caribbean: Oxtail, Doubles, and Curry Take Over the GTA

From jerk chicken to Trini doubles, Caribbean flavours are everywhere in the GTA — a spicy, soulful celebration of island culture and culinary pride.

June 14, 2025 Tiana Editorial, Leisure & Lifestyle, Restaurants & Bars 0

🧭 GTA Eats: Taste of the Caribbean: Oxtail, Doubles, and Curry Take Over the GTA — A Caribbean feast featuring jerk chicken, oxtail, doubles, curry chicken, patties, rice and peas, and roti — showcasing the rich diversity of island flavours in the GTA.

🇯🇲🇹🇹🇬🇾 Island Roots, Global Reach

Whether it’s a plate of oxtail with rice and peas or a steaming roti bursting with curry goat, Caribbean food has become a foundational flavour across the GTA.

Thanks to generations of Jamaican, Trinidadian, Guyanese, and other Caribbean communities in Toronto, Brampton, and Mississauga, the region boasts one of the richest and most authentic Caribbean culinary scenes outside the islands.

Now, younger chefs and family-run institutions alike are expanding the flavour profile — combining tradition with creativity, and turning everyday meals into cultural celebrations.

📍 Where to Get Your Island Fix

🔥 Rasta Pasta

📍 Kensington Market
Jamaican-Italian fusion? Don’t knock it till you try it. Their jerk chicken alfredo and rasta lasagna are cult classics — but they also serve an excellent traditional jerk plate.

🍛 Carib 21

📍 North York
Modern Caribbean dining with Guyanese and Trinidadian influences. Their pepper shrimp, curry duck, and buss-up-shot roti make it a west-end must.

🥙 D Hot Shoppe

📍 Burlington
Yes — Caribbean food in Burlington. And it’s fire. Their doubles are among the best in the GTA, and they serve Trinidadian-style roti packed with serious spice.

🥘 Allwyn’s Bakery

📍 North York, Beaches, Pickering
A classic for Jamaican patties, jerk chicken sandwiches, and fried dumplings. Fast, flavourful, and always on point.

🥥 More Than a Meal — It’s Identity

Caribbean food has always been more than sustenance. It’s history, resistance, and joy on a plate. From independence celebrations to church cookouts and Carnival season, island food fuels the rhythm of life in the diaspora.

And as more GTA diners discover the depth of Caribbean cuisine — from callaloo to cassava pone — the flavours of the islands continue to inspire, unite, and satisfy.

📍GTA Eats: Food, Flavour and Culture is your weekly guide to the rich culinary tapestry of the Greater Toronto Area. Published every Saturday in GTA Weekly.
Follow us @GTAWeeklyNews for more bites with big flavour. #GTAToday #GTAEats #GTAWeekly

About Tiana 56 Articles

Tiana Squire is a multi-talented contributor to GTA Weekly, where she leads coverage of leisure, tourism, and food culture across the Greater Toronto Area and beyond. She is the author of several weekly series including Jet Set Weekly, GTA Eats, and Weekend Vibes, offering readers curated guides to festivals, local dining, global destinations, and family-friendly fun. With a passion for storytelling and a flair for finding the best experiences near and far, Tiana brings a fresh, vibrant voice to the pages of GTA Weekly. She can be reached at tiana.squire@gtaweekly.ca.