You can find peace in a hot bowl of porridge. Troubles seem to melt away with each succeeding spoon of thick, creamy, condensed milk-laced goodness. Sometimes making the perfect pot requires effort, even if it’s oatmeal. Then there are days when you have a hankering for two types, say hominy corn and peanut. Then what do you do? Thursday Food has the answer: Call the Porridge Shoppe.

On the second floor of Oaklands Commercial Complex (beside the barbershop) is the Porridge Shoppe. The takeout breakfast concept is the brainchild of marketing exec Sabrina Webster, who mulled over the idea for three years. In that time, she developed the brand, fine-tuned the concept, and analysed, when the time came, how to scale the business. Upon visiting the website ( www.porridgeshoppeja.com), you can see Webster’s marketing chops come through. The clean interface and on-point user experience reflect a brand that wasn’t conceptualised overnight. Work went into this. The quirky logo (an anthropomorphic bowl of porridge rubbing its tummy), too, reflects Webster’s creativity, enthusiasm, and deep understanding of branding.

Since opening on Saturday, October 2, the Porridge Shoppe has had steady business and positive feedback. At present, the daily menu comprises five kinds of porridge — peanut, oatmeal, hominy corn, bulgur, and cornmeal. There are fried dumplings, salt fish and banana fritters and a well-priced ($400) breakfast of callaloo and salt fish served with four fried dumplings or fritters, or both. Customers can purchase the fried breakfast items separately — dumplings and fritters are $50 each or three for $100.

The Porridge Shoppe’s main staple comes in four sizes — 8oz, 12oz, 16oz, and 24oz. The prices are $200, $250, $300, and $500, respectively. Thursday Food had the pleasure of sampling all of the porridge options. They all taste great! However, we will continue salivating until we can have the peanut, bulgur and hominy porridges again. Each batch has the right amount of cinnamon and nutmeg; when you open the container, a waft of good vanilla perfumes the air. The textures are also spot-on. However, if you don’t like thick porridge, you may want to add some milk (or hot water) to thin out the bulgur. All the porridges are perfectly sweetened with Betty condensed milk. Speaking of Betty, it’s one of the brands, along with Foska and Sun Mix (Sunshine Snacks granola) that Webster has partnered with.

When asked why open a porridge-focused restaurant, Webster noted: “It’s a Jamaican breakfast staple; other places may only have one porridge option per day whereas we offer a variety.”

With such an edited menu, the Porridge Shoppe has perfected its offerings, freeing up time to continue putting on the finishing touches on the space. Fun fact: Webster signed the lease, renovated the space and opened The Porridge Shoppe within a month, with the support of her family. She continues to work full-time in marketing. When Thursday Food visited, they were awaiting signage, digital menu screens, and POS systems to accept card payments in person and online. So when you visit this weekend, carry cash!

“I’m taking things in stages,” the entrepreneur commented. Down the road, Webster and her team will offer soup and sandwiches when the carry-out opens in the afternoons. At present, the Porridge Shoppe is open 6:30 am – 12:30 pm Tuesdays through Sundays.

From branding to taste, the Porridge Shoppe hits all the right notes. This is more than a passion project. The Porridge Shoppe has the potential to be the next great home-grown takeout brand. After all, it offers comfort in every spoonful.

The Porridge Shoppe

Address: Shop #11 Oaklands Commercial Complex, 114-116 Constant Spring Road, Kingston 8

Website: www.porridgeshoppeja.com

WhatsApp #: 876-479-6605

Opening hours: 6:30 am – 12:30 pm Tuesday – Sunday