{PR meal – thoughts are all my own!}
Have you been craving the rich flavours of Turtle Bay’s fiery jerk chicken and sweet plantain? Missing their legendary cocktails and juicy playlist which transports you to the white, lively beaches of the Caribbean? Perhaps you’ve been yearning for the buzz of a restaurant on a Friday night to give you the best possible embrace into the weekend? I know I have.
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| Image Credit: www.fusiondna.co.uk |
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| Image credit: www.fusiondna.co.uk |
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| Image Credit: www.fusiondna.co.uk |
However, thanks to Turtle Bay’s At Home Menu and Spotify Playlist, you can recreate the classic Turtle Bay social feel and indulge in the warmth and flavours of the Caribbean straight from your sofa. Whether you crave their notorious jerk chicken, aromatic curry, comforting soul food, or, a classic burger with a Jamaican spiced twist – Turtle Bay has you covered. With some impressive vegan options, too (even a devoted meat-eater’s head would turn to the vegan curry with fresh aubergine, sweet potato, blistered tomato and coconut cream in Jamaican curry sauce), nobody has to miss out.
What’s on the menu?
From jerk and west Indian curries to burgers, soul food and Bay Bundles, Turtle Bay’s At Home Menu offers a range of meals to satisfy everyone’s cravings. There is also an impressive array of tempting starters and sides available to accompany your meal (in fact, they’re all a little too tempting, so if you want some help narrowing down your options I’d recommend the sweet plantain and Caribbean dumplings!).
What Turtle Bay locations are currently open and what times are they open?
- Bristol Broad Quay
- Chelmsford
- Ealing
- Nottingham
- Southampton
Wednesday – Sunday
2pm-10pm
Service, ordering and collection
Ordering from Turtle Bay was simple; I just had to call them (you can find the number of your local branch on their website), place my order and collect from the store at my preferred time. My phone completely shut down midway through ordering and the waiter called me back super promptly – my first insight into how friendly the customer service is at Turtle Bay. My second insight also came at the expense of my embarrassment; turns out I’m completely incompetent at opening restaurant doors and need personal assistance in doing so (my server was super understanding and possesed a very admirable talent of making people feel like less of an idiot). My unique door-opening incapability aside, the ordering and collection process was easy, the food was packaged tightly and it remained hot during the trip home.
The Food
I opted for one of the four available ‘Bay Bundles’ – the Share The Love Bundle for Four – to treat my family on Valentine’s day. This bundle costs £50 and includes 4 mains (half jerk chicken, BBQ Babyback Ribs, Trini Chicken Curry and Curry Aubergine), and plenty of sides (2 portions of Coconut Rice & Peas, Spiced Fries, Sweet Potato Fries, Sweet Plantain and Sunshine Salad).
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| Left to right: BBQ Babyback Ribs, Trini Chicken Curry and Half Jerk Chicken |
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| Aubergine Curry |
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| Trini Chicken Curry |
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| BBQ Babyback Ribs |
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| Spiced Fries (I defenitely had way too many of these – so, so good!) |
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| Sides: sweet plantain and sunshine salad |
Summarise the food in one sentence? It seriously tasted as good as it looks. My favourite was probably either the Aubergine curry (the perfect combination of flavours and just the right amount of sweetness) or the Trini Chicken Curry (who knew that tangy mango was curried chicken’s partner in crime?). I didn’t have any of the ribs, but going off my family’s verdict, they too were just as delicious – ‘tender pork’ and ‘flavoursome sauce’.
Overall, I am really impressed with the Turtle Bay ‘At Home’ experience – the ordering and collection was both quick and simple, and the food was beautifully cooked, spiced and flavoured. If it’s the restaurant atmosphere you’re craving then, of course, it’s not the same as being in the buzz of one of Turtle Bay’s restaurants, however, the Turtle Bay Spotify playlist certainly does a good job at making the at-home experience feel as close to the restaurant’s iconic Caribbean social feel as possible.
Have you tried anything from Turtle Bay’s ‘At Home’ menu? Let me know in the comments!