Hwy 281 & Seventh St., Marble Falls, 210/693-3979
Mon-Tue, Thu, 11am-9pm;
Fri-Sat, 11am-10pm, Sun, 10:30am-9pm
No tour of Central Texas Caribbean restaurants would be complete without a
visit to Jane and Bill Allen’s Jamin House Cafe in the Highland Lakes resort
town of Marble Falls. After living in the Cayman Islands for many years and
extensive travel around the West Indies, the Allens brought their love for the
region’s spicy, eclectic cuisine to Marble Falls four years ago. The restaurant
is in an ordinary shopping center on the small town’s main drag, but once
you’re inside, the gentle island music, bright oilcloth table coverings, and
thatched roof bar all suggest a completely different locale.
The large menu reflects the West Indian melting pot of European, African,
Oriental, Mexican, and South American cuisines with a nod to Texas standards
for local appeal. For starters, sample an appetizer serving of Jerk Ribs
($3.95), a pile of meaty pork ribs that had a long soaking in the house “jerk”
marinade of Scotch bonnet peppers, allspice, thyme, soy sauce, vinegar, and
other Caribbean spices before being grilled over an open flame. The tender,
spicy meat just falls off the bone, making the ribs a mess to eat, but they’re
worth it. The ribs come with small bowls of honey BBQ sauce, the house jerk
sauce, and a very necessary finger bowl with a slice of lime.
Another house specialty is the Hurricane Salad ($3.75), a pile of cool,
crisp Romaine lettuce tossed with sweet onions, tomatoes, cole slaw, and
parmesan cheese in a Caesar-style dressing with a splash of Tabasco. Small
versions of the Hurricane or Caesar salads can be added to dinner
entr�es for $1. From the list of tempting shrimp dishes, I chose a lunch
serving of Red Stripe Shrimp ($5.95 for six at lunch, $11.95 for 12 at dinner).
Plump, medium Gulf shrimp are hand-dipped in a homemade batter made with
Jamaican Red Stripe beer and fried to a golden crisp. Though the batter coating
was a little thick for my taste, the shrimp were sweet and tender inside, and
the Jamin cocktail dipping sauce was a tasty blend of ketchup, onions, peppers,
and spices. The only misstep in the meal was a side dish of very dry, crumbly
red beans and rice that appeared to have sat too long on the steam table.
Like everything else on the menu, Jamin House desserts are made fresh. The
extravagantly rich Banana Toffee pie ($3) is pretty much worth a drive to
Marble Falls all on its own, though sharing it might be a good idea. A thin
graham cracker crust is filled with a decadent, silky caramel custard covered
with fresh banana slices disappearing under a fluffy drift of barely sweetened
whipped cream. Throw caution to the winds, don’t worry, be happy, be
jamin. —
Virginia B. Wood
This article appears in August 1 • 1997 and August 1 • 1997 (Cover).