Jamaican Mild Beef Patty

As readers may guess, my departure from Chicago and long-planned return to New York was met with some sadness. My winter sabbatical in the Windy City was restful, recuperative, and fun. I was re-introduced to many of Chicago’s bright spots and contemplated when I might come back for a longer, and more permanent, stay.

But Brooklyn has some bright spots too. One of them is the beef patty, a staple of the Caribbean bakeries that dot the borough. Today, after my first day back at work, I rode home from Manhattan on the C train, thinking about the flaky yellow crust filled with soupy ground beef that awaited me on Fulton Street. There was a knot of hunger knawing at my stomach and I knew that for $1.35 the knot would go away. There was no line when I walked into the Golden Krust, a franchise operating in 8 states and Canada. (I highly recommend checking out the website to listen to the Golden Krust jingle: “Taste the rhythm of the islands. The flavor can take you there. To Golden Krust. Tell me if you really wanna roll with us.”)

The regular guy behind the counter glanced at the clear plastic heat cabinet by the window to see if they had any mild beef patties left, nodded his head to me, walked over and slipped one into a paper sleeve. “There you go, sis.”

I walked down Fulton Street, past the Met Foods, run by a Yemeni family, which has some items on its shelves from the last century. And past “drug bodega” which had a new friendly face outside, nodding to me. All the while, the beef patty kept my hands warm and I didn’t have to dig my gloves out of my pocket to cover them. I tried not to trip on the snake of fresh asphalt that seemed to cover an electric line under the sidewalk, across the street, down the corner, back up to the sidewalk. Remnants of a ConEd project I’m glad I missed. As if the sidewalk in front of drug bodega wasn’t bad enough already!

I climbed the stairs and opened the door, to discover I’d left my bedroom light on all day. Ah well. And finally, sat down at the dining room table, ready to enjoy my reward. Brooklyn has its bright spots too.