Shopping in Trinidad

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inding food in Trinidad is a real pleasure.  The markets are almost like American markets and the quality of the produce can't be beat.   Most of the markets in the Caribbean chain are fairly limited in what they stock.   You can never count on what you'll find.  That is not the case in Trinidad.   You don't always find the same things, but there is always enough to choose from.!

The Saturday morning open market is wonderful.   There are hundreds of stalls with people selling their produce.  There are also fresh flowers to be had -- which is one of my favorites.  I always pick up a bouquet before I head back to the boat.  Besides the produce, there are counters full of fish, shrimp, pork, chicken and beef.    I haven't bought the meat yet -- my bags are always to full of the produce.   The variety of produce is unbelievable.  There are even some imported specialties like asparagus and gourmet mushrooms.

often take an early morning bus to town on Saturdays to get the fresh vegetables, and quit only when my two huge bags are totally loaded with fresh produce.  Thank goodness the bus will drive me all the way back to the marina!

The pumpkins don't look much like the ones we carve for Halloween, they look more like overgrown zucchini, but you can tell from the picture on the left that they certainly look like pumpkin on the inside!  

In town, there are grocery stores at the mall.  There are even specialty shops that sell grains, and imported items from the United States.  We can even get ingredients for Mexican food at the specialty stores.  No more hauling in food items while we're in Trinidad! 

e have lots of restaurants to choose from with all types of food available: Thai, Chinese, steak houses.  The choices in Trinidad far surpass what we've seen on other islands in the Caribbean.  We even have our favorite Pizza parlor just a dingy ride across the bay.  Joe's Pizza is one of our most often-frequented restaurants.  Besides the pizza, they have great salads and pasta.   We've been told Charlie (the owner) has specials like roasted leg of lamb and steaks.  They are never advertised, but if he's working, you just ask about the specials.  One of these days we'll give it a try.  We always seem to go when we are in the mood for pizza.

We've tried some of the local specialties like doubles (deep fried bread stuffed with curried garbonzo beans and spices), rotis (similar to a burrito only stuffed with curry), and the famous Bake and Shark.   The Bake and Shark is a real treat at Maracas Beach -- you get your bake and shark then walk down the condiment table adding lettuce, tomatoes, cilantro, garlic, and hot sauce.  They're a real treat!