Countryside is all the rage on Friday nights. Teeming with a bustling after-work crowd, and families on a culinary break from their home kitchens, there is an electric energy in the air at the Courtney Walsh Drive-situated foodie spot. Reopened in November last year, the Countryside welcomed a Friday night roving band of Jamaica Observer Food Awards judges with wafting scents of grilled chicken and pork, seafood, caffeinated beverages, and an array of tempting delights waiting to be sampled by our all-too-eager panel of tasters.

From Sweet Moments’ decadent pastries (you heard it here — the amaretto cheesecake and Reese’s peanut butter cup cheesecake are absolutely divine) to G’s Woodfire Grill’s fantastic jerk pork and chicken, to ridiculously addictive espresso coffee shots from GinZoe’s Café, the judges experienced many a ‘foodgasm’, as was the apt utterance by guest judge, visiting Trinidadian food consultant Leslie-Ann St John, who thoroughly relished her Countryside experience of culinary variety.

With a deejay spinning a danceable playlist of retro, soca, and contemporary mixes, two well-positioned bars, and even an à-la-carte restaurant, Shea’s at Countryside run by former Food Awards Chef on the Rise nominee Shea Stewart (for those with a preference for gourmet-styled fare), options are aplenty at the happening joint. Take a peek at our Friday night culinary exploits.

— Omar Tomlinson