Baileys Carribean Takeaway

As soon as Vicky O said she had been to an amazing Caribbean street food vendor, I had to check it out, and I wasn’t disappointed! I ventured down to the Oasis market and was welcomed by the gorgeous smell of jerk chicken. As Jack C and I had got there early (around 12ish) they were just getting going so we got the freshest of the just cooked food.
As jerk chicken is my favourite, I obviously went for that while my boyfriend opted for the curried mutton. It came with a large helping of rice and peas (which I love!) and a hella lot of coleslaw. It was a very healthy portion size! I tucked in eagerly and you could tell how could it was as the conversation stopped while we ate and ate. I couldn’t get enough of it!
The jerk spices were just perfect and the chicken just slid off the bone perfectly. The rice was perfectly cooked and had a good about of kidney beans in it. The coleslaw cooled down the heat of the chicken which was just ideal.
It was also very reasonably priced for the portion sizes and much better than some other places. I do have to say that it was a slow walk back to the office afterwards as we were so full but it was totally worth it! If it was any closer to where I work I’d be there whenever it was open!

Even with the current trend for pop ups and Streetfood in Birmingham, Caribbean food has been hugely under represented in Birmingham’s City Centre. There is normally a good selection at the Food Fair and Jamaican Independence festival (obviously), but not a lot else.
Baileys has really stepped up to the mark. With a static location, gigantic steel BBQ and a gorgeous rich smell which fills The Square; they’re on to a winner. Big props to Dave P. who alerted me to this gem of a stall a few weeks ago. I had been meaning to try it for a while, but after seeing Dave at our CMYE on Tuesday — it was agreed that Lunch WOULD happen. And it did. And it was sooooo good.
With a reasonable selection of Caribbean favorites (Ackee and Saltfish, Rice and Pea etc) it was always clear what I was going to order. Jerk chicken. The godfather of all the chicken dishes. On a rainy Wednesday in Birmingham, it couldn’t have been a better choice.
It was clear on this particular day that Baileys were having some cooking issues, but we rocked up and were politely told that we COULD have Jerk, but not for 10 minutes. Not a problem for us (as they’d clearly just fired up the BBQ). It gave us a chance to go and mooch at the newest deliveries into Ignite Records in the Oasis (and for me to go and drool at the Hello Kitty merch on sale nearby).
Within 10 minutes, we were back and ordering. I had Rice and pea, Jerk Chicken and a little bit of veg. For £6, it was a –very– reasonably sized portion. As an added bonus, Baileys also provides a small covered seating area (with a nifty Pacman decorated bench), so you can still enjoy some sunshine food in the pouring rain.
I was mightily impressed with the level of spice, the sauce and the rich flavor of the Rice and Pea. I was so blown away, it was devoured in under 5 minutes. It was –THAT– good. Baileys could now become my «go-​to» place for lunch on the run. Saying that, it strikes me that as the food is fresh you sometimes might have a bit of a wait. So… Go, give it a try. But make sure you have plenty of time!

One thing you cannot fail to notice on the approach here is the smell in the air, that smokey, spicy, sweet smell of a carribean barbecue grill.
If you have visited Bailey’s main takeaway restaurant in Newtown (I have yet to do so) you should already know what to expect… The chef at this popup stall is the very same who operates the kitchen of what bills itself as the best carribean food in brum. With a smile on his face he jokes you won’t taste better whilst carefully ensuring the food is cooked to his standards (they are pretty high!).
The menu is fairly good for the smaller pop up stall but obviously not as full as from the main restaurant. I’ve sampled the jerk chicken, rice & pea and ackee here and can say that anyone who claims these guys aren’t the best should be prepared to come to battle with some extremely fine wares…
One point that you may want to note, although cooked on the day the chicken is cooked until it is ready and removed from the grill to stop from burning, as such depending on your arrival you may get some chicken that has had time to cool and then been reheated though I have seen others ask for a fresh piece as they prefer hot off the grill and the chef has obliged
Not quite pushing the 5 star as although the food is fantastic everything is done on a small scale nature and a couple of items may be lost, but then again this is the nature of the streetfood world!