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Shobhana’s
Roti Shop
172-20A
Jamaica Ave., Jamaica
718- 291-5577
Cuisine:
Guyanese
Hours:
10 a.m. to 6 p.m.,
Monday to Saturday
Shobhana’s
Roti Shop is a level above its competition — and that’s not just
because you have to climb a flight of steps to go inside.
The
14-month-old Jamaica Avenue restaurant, which seats only six, is so
good at its namesake bread that it does more business in catering and
wholesale business than it does in walk-up sales.
What’s
most impressive about Shobhana’s is that it sells a lot of roti to
other Caribbean restaurants, especially out in Long Island.
“There
are restaurants that don’t know how to make their own roti,” said
co-owner Liz Shivrattan, who helps run the family business with her
sisters.
She acknowledges being flattered about letting competitors pass
her food off as their own.
The
roti at Shobhana’s really is a treat.
It’s dry and fluffy, making it a perfect complement to the
denser curried meats.
The
most popular item for in-store customers at Shobhana’s is curry
chicken, according to Shivrattan.
The $5 dish is filling and bright with flavors, mostly spicy
ones.
Ask
which are the other more popular items on the restaurant’s menu, and
the owners will name about half of the other items offered, making it
hard to quantify or rank the food.
What we can conclude is that the food is great.
Shobhana’s
is mainly a Guyanese restaurant; while you can still find Caribbean
dishes like jerk chicken or oxtail at the place, they don’t dominate
the menu like at some less country-specific places.
Accordingly,
the kitchen at Shobhana’s offers to serve any Guyanese dish you ask
for, as long as you give 24 hours’ notice beforehand.
The
prices are extremely reasonable.
All the appetizers are $2 or less, and the most expensive entrée
is the large order of souse (cow feet; $7.50)
Other
popular entrées besides curried chicken are the duck, fish and oxtail
prepared the same way, as well as the baked or fried chicken, beans
and rice with hot wings and a spicy shrimp dish.
The
plain roti, nothing but bread at $1.25 for a big rolled-up piece, is
also a hot item on the menu.
Specialized rotis, like those made with cassava, lentil or
potato, also sell well.
There
are seven kinds of soups, with the $2.75 beef barley selling the best.
The
restaurant doesn’t offer a lot of choices for desert, but homemade
Guyanese drinks, at $3, are a refreshing treat.
Most popular are a fruit juice and “mauby,” made from tree
bark.
With
its elevated location above Jamaica Avenue and its elevated status in
the realm of Southeast Queens roti, the owners at Shobhana’s must
feel good to be on top.
–
Shams
Tarek
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