Sunday Morning Delight

Sunday morning. Outside my window, a gentle rain falls on the grass and palms agree with the wind. The headlines of a newspaper announce: "Holness to be the next Jamaican PM." I yawn and turn the page. Behind the newspaper, steam rises from a plate of ackee and saltfish, boiled banana, two festivals, fried plantains, and boiled dumpling. John Holt croons in the background:

Time is the master
But time can be disaster, if you don’t care
You, young and gay
You, old and grey
Time is the master
But time can be disaster, if you don’t care

Easy rockers. I could be in Jamaica at my childhood home in Mona Heights. But I'm not. I am sitting behind a hand painted table at Irie Isle Restaurant for their new Sunday Brunch Medley.

I pick up the fork and dig into the ackee and saltfish. All the spices, remembrances of home, dance on my tongue. And the fried plantains, festivals, dumpling, and boiled banana round out my memories.

"Looks like this is the new Sunday spot," says one of the customers to the owner, Dean Nevins, who has come into the dining area to talk with the customers.

"All we need are some dominoes," Dean replies as he makes eye contact with the rest of the customers around the table.

Dean laughs, but I can see that the wheels are already turning in his head. Dean and his wife, Jamaican writer Andrea Shaw, have big plans for Irie Isle. One of their plans is to transform the dining area into a "cozy literary space" for book launches and readings. I can see it. It will be Irie.

Dean Nevins 954-822-2547.

Irie Isle Jamaican Restaurant

1480 S Palm Avenue

 Pembroke Pines, FL 33025 / 954-345-5070

Irie Isle Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Irie-Isle-Jamaican-Restaurant/229598917090034.