{"id":1214,"date":"2016-01-29T23:33:00","date_gmt":"2016-01-29T23:33:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/?p=1214"},"modified":"2023-10-09T11:00:34","modified_gmt":"2023-10-09T11:00:34","slug":"restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/","title":{"rendered":"This Restaurant Epitomizes Jamaican Health Food"},"content":{"rendered":"

You are what you eat. It\u2019s a well-worn trope, but in Jamaica it takes on serious, almost religious meaning. Actually, it <\/span>does<\/span><\/i> have religious meaning here: For <\/span>Rastafaris<\/span><\/a>, following a strict dietary law (known as ital) is a major key to living a long and healthy life. That\u2019s why Ibo Spice, a ital restaurant in downtown Kingston, has become the go-to spot since opening in 2014\u2014and not just with Rastas.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"IslandOutpost-IboSpice-0541\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Located on Orange Street (also known as the legendary \u201cBeat Street,\u201d the epicenter of music in the 1960s), Ibo Spice is hidden just beyond a fa\u00e7ade of exposed red brick and repurposed metal siding walls. As you climb uneven stone steps into the restaurant, you\u2019re greeted by a black-and-white photo of Haile Selassie I\u2014the Messiah for Rastafaris\u2014and a huge pile of freshly chopped guava. The mission of Ibo Spice is to \u201cgrow what we eat and eat what we grow,\u201d says the owner, who is affectionately known as \u201cSpicemaster.\u201d Produce used at the restaurant comes from only two places: the small garden behind Ibo Spice, or local vendors with whom the Spicemaster has forged a personal relationship. For him, Ibo Spice is more than a restaurant. \u201cIt is a portal to an experience.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"IslandOutpost-IboSpice-1\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"IslandOutpost-IboSpice-0538\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The restaurant houses a tiny craftsman’s shop in its entrance hall, filled with the works of local artists like Richardo \u201cMedz\u201d Hines. Medz is an incredibly talented sketch artist, as well as a wood carver, who has been working on his craft for over 12 years, and selling his pieces at the local shop since opening in 2014. Beautifully hand-carved faces with intricate expressions line the long wooden table in the shop for people to browse and purchase.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"IslandOutpost-IboSpice-3\"<\/a><\/p>\n

In the back yard, out-of-towners, Rastas and rambunctious toddlers gather around scattered wooden tables for a completely vegetarian meal. The menu changes slightly every day, but there are a few mainstays like the bulga rice ( a wheat grain that is a great substitute for rice), ital stew made with squash, potatoes, carrots and plantains in a coconut milk broth, steamed vegetables and turn cornmeal (similar to the Italian dish polenta). We can\u2019t forget the natural fruit juices\u2014guava, soursop\u2014and neither will you, after your first sip. It\u2019s no wonder Ibo Spice has found its home on one of the most iconic streets in Kingston: It\u2019s well on its way to becoming a legend of its own.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"IslandOutpost-IboSpice-2\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You are what you eat. It\u2019s a well-worn trope, but in Jamaica it takes on serious, almost religious meaning. Actually, it does have religious meaning here: For Rastafaris, following a strict dietary law (known as ital) is a major key to living a long and healthy life. That\u2019s why Ibo Spice, a ital restaurant in downtown Kingston, has become the go-to spot since opening in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":160,"featured_media":1228,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[19],"class_list":["post-1214","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food","tag-facebook-instant-articles"],"yoast_head":"\nIbo Spice: Best Place for Some Jamaican Health Food<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Rasta food habit is the secret to a long healthy life. Experience this delicacy at Ibo Spice, an eatery in Kingston for some authentic Jamaican food\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ibo Spice: Best Place for Some Jamaican Health Food\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Rasta food habit is the secret to a long healthy life. Experience this delicacy at Ibo Spice, an eatery in Kingston for some authentic Jamaican food\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Outpostings\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-01-29T23:33:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-10-09T11:00:34+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/01\/IslandOutpost-IboSpice-05481-1-1024x683.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"683\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"outpostings\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"outpostings\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/\",\"name\":\"Ibo Spice: Best Place for Some Jamaican Health Food\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/01\/IslandOutpost-IboSpice-05481-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-01-29T23:33:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-10-09T11:00:34+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/#\/schema\/person\/f3469d74bc3f5369ba1edd14f399d90d\"},\"description\":\"The Rasta food habit is the secret to a long healthy life. Experience this delicacy at Ibo Spice, an eatery in Kingston for some authentic Jamaican food\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/01\/IslandOutpost-IboSpice-05481-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/01\/IslandOutpost-IboSpice-05481-1.jpg\",\"width\":4527,\"height\":3018},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"This Restaurant Epitomizes Jamaican Health Food\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/\",\"name\":\"Outpostings\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/#\/schema\/person\/f3469d74bc3f5369ba1edd14f399d90d\",\"name\":\"outpostings\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/be45706c8c2c293e831e0511a4f372888d1a79c6b57b66134439c19b88f4c769?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/be45706c8c2c293e831e0511a4f372888d1a79c6b57b66134439c19b88f4c769?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"outpostings\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/author\/outpostings\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Ibo Spice: Best Place for Some Jamaican Health Food","description":"The Rasta food habit is the secret to a long healthy life. Experience this delicacy at Ibo Spice, an eatery in Kingston for some authentic Jamaican food","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Ibo Spice: Best Place for Some Jamaican Health Food","og_description":"The Rasta food habit is the secret to a long healthy life. Experience this delicacy at Ibo Spice, an eatery in Kingston for some authentic Jamaican food","og_url":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/","og_site_name":"Outpostings","article_published_time":"2016-01-29T23:33:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-10-09T11:00:34+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":683,"url":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/01\/IslandOutpost-IboSpice-05481-1-1024x683.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"outpostings","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"outpostings","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/","url":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/","name":"Ibo Spice: Best Place for Some Jamaican Health Food","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/01\/IslandOutpost-IboSpice-05481-1.jpg","datePublished":"2016-01-29T23:33:00+00:00","dateModified":"2023-10-09T11:00:34+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/#\/schema\/person\/f3469d74bc3f5369ba1edd14f399d90d"},"description":"The Rasta food habit is the secret to a long healthy life. Experience this delicacy at Ibo Spice, an eatery in Kingston for some authentic Jamaican food","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/01\/IslandOutpost-IboSpice-05481-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/01\/IslandOutpost-IboSpice-05481-1.jpg","width":4527,"height":3018},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/2016\/01\/29\/restaurant-epitomizes-jamaican-health-food\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"This Restaurant Epitomizes Jamaican Health Food"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/","name":"Outpostings","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/#\/schema\/person\/f3469d74bc3f5369ba1edd14f399d90d","name":"outpostings","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/be45706c8c2c293e831e0511a4f372888d1a79c6b57b66134439c19b88f4c769?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/be45706c8c2c293e831e0511a4f372888d1a79c6b57b66134439c19b88f4c769?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"outpostings"},"url":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/author\/outpostings\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1214","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/160"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1214"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1214\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1228"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1214"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1214"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.islandoutpost.com\/outpostings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1214"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}