THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 7, 1996 TAG: 9603050066
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Restaurant review
SOURCE: SAM MARTINETTE
LENGTH: Medium: 80 lines
It's a long way from the Antigua waterfront to downtown Norfolk, and there isn't room enough here to tell the tale of how Chef Gladwin Jarvis, late of El Tropicana in Virginia Beach, came to open his new Caribbean restaurant Tropical Delights in the 400 block of Granby Street.
Listening to the 50-year-old chef tell the story in the crisp, lyrical dialect of the islands is great fun, however, beginning with an apprenticeship at age 16 under a Greek chef in Antigua, then working at O'Henry's Steak House and the Latin Quarter in New York City, chain experience with T.G.I.F and T.K. Tripp's, stints at Orion's Roof at the Cavalier, Founders Inn and the Ocean Key Resort in Virginia Beach, and as steward for La Galleria back when Angelo Serpe (now of Pasta e Pani) running the kitchen.
Tropical Delights is located in located in what was once the Metropole Market, directly across Granby from the Monastery Restaurant. Its eclectic mixture of architectural styles - arches, pillars and recessed walls - is indicative of its melange of cuisines.
``Caribbean fare is a real blending of many nationalities, not just one island,'' he explained. ``My daddy was from Santo Domingo, which was Spanish. St. Thomas and St. Croix were once all Danish. The Creole was an offshoot from Spain, and then you have the French. Curry is a major part of the Trinidadian lifestyle. You have European, African and East Indian cuisines, and you put them all together and you have something we call Caribbean.''
So how did he come to be downtown?
``I was looking for a place near ODU to do catering, which I do quite a bit of,'' Jarvis said. ``When this space came up, I wasn't thinking about a downtown renaissance, but the other day I had a lady stop by and say she was looking for a place to open a record store.''
Now Jarvis thinks he is in the right spot at the right time.
As for Tropical Delights, it has eight tables currently, and the chef works in an open kitchen. The day Julie and I had lunch, Jarvis was helping his son Emanuel, 20, take care of customers.
``I am seeking to present a lot of seafood - salmon, red snapper, tuna, crab meat - and some vegetarian,'' he said. ``Not very many things will be fried; most will be sauteed or steamed. And I am not much of one for bones. In the islands red snapper is served whole, but I prefer to fillet it. I want you to enjoy it all the way to the end.''
Enjoy it I did. The Red Snapper Mediterranean (with red, yellow and green peppers, a spicy tomato sauce and black olives, thyme and feta cheese, and a side of rice and beans - $6.95) was exceptional. Julie's jerk tuna sandwich ($5.95) was also a special. We began the meal by splitting a Caesar salad ($3.95, or $5.95 with chicken), and topped the meal with a slice of homemade Key Lime pie ($2.50). We also had tropical colas from an assortment of tropical beverages such as Jamaican Ginger Beer and Cola Champagne. Jarvis also has standard soft drinks, and plans to add beer and wine down the road ``to complement my entrees.''
At present, Tropical Delights is open only for lunch, Monday through Saturday, and for dinner only on Saturday evenings, with reservations required for the evening seating. On Friday nights the restaurant does duty as a ``Christian adult club,'' a venue established by Jarvis' musician son, Emanuel.
The lunch menu includes the Island Crab Cake (backfin crab meat with a remoulade sauce on a Kaiser roll - $5.95); Chicken St. James (a breast topped with sauteed onions, ham and melted cheese on a Kaiser roll - $5.25); rum-glazed barbecue ribs (baby back ribs - $5.95); Shrimp Creole ($6.95) and jerk chicken (a sauteed breast with onions, peppers and garlic with jerk spices - a compilation of spices that serves as a marinade and preservative - $5.95).
Saturday night entrees include calypso chicken & shrimp (pineapple chicken, shrimp and garlic ginger - $9.95); curry chicken ($8.95; Cajun-style shrimp (in a tomato-pepper sauce - $9.95); and Steak de la Jamaica (pan-seared in a red wine butter sauce - $10.95), to name a few. Dinner entrees are mostly in the $9 to $10 range, with the top item being the ``Reef & Beef,'' a fillet and crab cakes ($12.95). ILLUSTRATION: Photo by SAM MARTINETTE
Chef Gladwin Jarvis has opened Tropical Delights on Granby Street.
by CNB