Caribbean restaurant comes to downtown Hamilton, after debuting in St. Catharines

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JamRock Irie Jerk, who has been building a foodie following in St. Catharines over the past seven years, will open a restaurant in downtown Hamilton.

Signage for the Caribbean restaurant was installed in the plaza between Bowen and Catharine streets on the south side of Main Street East. The location will be in the deepest corner of the strip of L-shaped buildings facing Main, so it might not be too visible. However, JamRock Irie Jerk, owned by Michelle Berryman, who also does the cooking, has already weathered the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic which is adept at serving both quick diners, takeouts and delivery customers. .

His delivery drivers are easy to spot, since the car doors are painted with the flag of Jamaica, Berryman’s native nation. (Iriein Jamaican English, is a general term of approval.)

JamRock Irie Jerk arrives in downtown Hamilton. (Nathan Sager, in TheHammer)

Of course, JamRock makes the roti wraps that have the strongest association with Jamaican and Caribbean street food – including a plant-based version packed with broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, curried chickpeas and Yam. Over the years of JamRock’s business, Berryman, a mortgage broker and realtor by trade, has expanded JamRock’s menu beyond jerk chicken, ackee, curried goat and saltfish, which is the national dish of Jamaica.

Berryman, according to a 2020 Postmedia article, opened JamRock with her then-husband at Welland Ave. in St. Catharines in 2015. A mortgage broker and real estate agent by trade, she applied her business acumen to the restaurant business and eventually took over the kitchen.

JamRock strives to prepare its food in small quantities and to have the full menu available by the time the first customers arrive in the late morning. Orders can be placed online at jamrockiriejerk.ca.

JamRock has also been active in community work in the Niagara region. He recently participated in a campaign to support the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity, the world’s largest nonprofit homebuilder.

Hamilton’s location will be just to the left of Mumma’s Burritos in the plaza at the southwest corner of Main and Catharine. This plaza also includes CoCo Fresh Tea & Juice and a Domino’s Pizza location.

More information is available at jamrockiriejerk.ca. JamRock is also active on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Meanwhile, JamRock’s St. Catharines store at 2-250 Welland Ave. is open from Tuesday to Saturday. Hours of operation are 11:00 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10:30 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. Saturday.

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