Food review: Turtle Bay, Birmingham

With friends down for the weekend – and not a child in sight – we decided to look for somewhere with a bit of a party atmosphere that didn’t break the bank and also had a reputation for good food.

Venturing in to Birmingham city centre, there is a fair amount to choose from but one style of food I had always wanted to experience but never had – other than at music festivals when the tastebuds weren’t exactly at the top of their game – was Caribbean food.

When thinking of Caribbean cooking, the mind immediately wanders to scotch bonnets, coconut milk, all spice, fantastic rubs and seasoning for all sorts of meats and fish – and of course, jerk sauce.

So, after a short debate, we settled on Turtle Bay, which sits on the corner of the bustling John Bright Street.

Plenty of bars and restaurants have opened up in that area of Birmingham and there is a lot of competition, so it speaks volumes for Turtle Bay that is was absolutely packed when we arrived just after 4pm.

Friday and Saturday evenings get very busy, especially as the restaurant prides itself on serving fresh food, but we arrived purposely early so we could sample a few of the cocktails, which were two-for-one during certain times.

And it’s fair to say the Saturday night party atmosphere was already in full swing as we went to the bar to order our drinks.

Where to start with the cocktail menu? To say the list is extensive would be an understatement.

But if you like a cocktail, or fancy popping somewhere to try one as a one-off, Turtle Bay would be a good place to start.

Rum obviously featured prominently with it being a Caribbean venue, and some of the offerings included Bay Bramble, rum with blackberry, fresh lemon and club soda; Tease Me, dark rum, banana liqueur, Kahlua, coconut, fresh banana and cream; and a very interestingly-named Goombay Smash.

There were also some very eye-catching concoctions from the beer selection, which included the Porter Punch, a classic Jamaican Porter with nutmeg, vanilla and condensed milk.

Easy to get carried away, as you can imagine, so after sampling a delightful vanilla and passion fruit mojito, which came with Cockspur rum, vanilla, passion fruit juice, lime juice, fresh mint and club soda; and a Jamaican Mule, of spiced dark rum, fresh lime, lime juice, ginger beer and bitters, we decided to ask for our table.

It was a little earlier than the 5pm reservation time but the staff were happy to seat us, which was a nice touch.

For those who like sharing, the ‘cutters’ section would be ideal because you can choose either three dishes for £14 or four for £18. The idea is inspired by beach shacks and street vendors across the Caribbean islands, and the dishes are also perfect for a starter.

We just shared a starter per couple, opting for crispy spiced panko coated squid, mango mole, fresh lime and jerk mayo. The squid was really well cooked and had the right crispiness. This then gave way to the succulent squid and then the sour hit of the lime. A very nice way to start the meal.

When it came to the mains it really was a challenge to pick just one meal. There was rather a large choice on offer.

During a weekday, had we not been planning a few drinks after, the goat curry would have pretty much been a sure-fire pick for me.

Marinated and slowly braised in curry spices, with coconut rice ‘n’ peas, sweet onion chutney, sweet plantain and dumplings, it ticked all the boxes.

And then there was the jerk pit barbecue section, which we all pretty much selected from. The ultimate Caribbean barbecue, as it was advertised, highlighted how all the meats and fish were marinated for 24 hours in a homemade jerk marinade before being served.

Customers can also pick classic spicy or creamy coconut jerk sauces.

Braised pork belly, jerk lamb rump, sirloin steak or salmon all looked tempting but in the end I settled for West Indian steamed snapper, as it seemed a bit lighter.

The snapper fillet came served in light coconut curry sauce, garlic, ginger, scotch bonnet, sweet onion chutney and fresh coconut shavings.

On the side was steamed rice and a roti flatbread – and also a trini pineapple chow, something I had never heard of before, which was marinated diced pineapple, coriander, garlic, fresh lemon juice and scotch bonnet.

I could not have chosen a better dish as the fish was flaky and beautifully cooked, with just the right chewiness .

The flavour was not overpowering either, which is what you want with fish really, but then you got the coconut hit and some of that scotch bonnet power came through – but again, not too much.

The idea of having fish, rice and fruit in the same dish would not usually be my first choice but it certainly worked.

Trying the fleshy fish with a spoonful of rice and then a chunk of that beautifully-flavoured pineapple was, if you’d pardon the cliché, a taste sensation.

And it wasn’t too heavy or filling either, which left plenty of room for a few more cocktails – and even some horrendous dancing – later on.

My wife, Kelly, went for the grilled jerk marinated pork ribs, served with sweet potato fries, sour orange chutney and Caribbean slaw. Whilst the food was tasty, the meat and fries were slightly darker on the skin than she would have liked – but it didn’t seem too overcooked and meat itself was also still very tender.

Kelly doesn’t like her foot too spicy hot either, so the coconut sauce with the meat was the perfect temperature.

The sweet potato fries were nice and the slaw was really well put together, but a bigger helping would have been nice.

Our friend Jo went for the pit-grilled two-way chicken burger, which was a spicy panko crumb chicken fillet and pulled jerk chicken, served with tomato and fresh pineapple chow.

It came served with Caribbean slaw, baby gem lettuce, jerk mayo in a toasted bun, with a choice of either spiced fries or dressed salad.

Her fiancé, Dale, chose half a pit-grilled chicken, coconut rice ‘n’ peas, sour orange chutney, coconut shavings and Caribbean slaw.

He said the meal looked really good but lacked a bit of the flavour the description warranted. The portion size, however, was good and it was all cooked nicely but without some of the spice he had been looking forward to.

Jo was also expecting a little more flavour but the combination of the jerk and spicy crumb added a really nice texture to the dish – and everyone was very complimentary of the homemade slaw, which worked a treat with all the dishes.

We didn’t fancy a pudding but a sticky toffee pudding, passion pie – sweet pastry topped with zesty passion fruit curd, soft baked meringue and fresh passion fruit sauce – and rum and raisin bread pudding were just some of the options available.

It wouldn’t be fair to review Turtle Bay without reaffirming how good the atmosphere was.

Kelly was ‘buzzing’ with all the catchy music, which got everyone right in the mood for a top night.

The range of cocktails on offer and the the open kitchen also added the hustle and bustle of the venue, while their was enough staff to ensure the night was an enjoyable one.

Dale and Jo agreed, saying the cocktails at the bar were amazing and the atmosphere ‘quality’, with the enthusiastic bar staff setting the tone from the first minute.

Highly recommended if you fancy somewhere a bit more upbeat.