If you head to the south Bronx to take in a Yankee game this season, you very well might find names like Sal Fasano, Nick Green, and Aaron Guiel in the lineup. Injury-plagued is hardly a strong enough phrase for this season’s club. Who’s that pitching? Oh, that’s Sidney Ponson, the guy who punched a judge on the beach in Aruba and had an earned run average well over 5 in the National League before the Yankees signed him. On in relief last week? Kris Wilson who wasn’t good enough to stay with the Kansas City Royals.
So if you are looking for a little extra incentive to take that trip up to The Stadium to watch Randy Johnson take on the Tampa Bay Devil Rays today, I’ve got you covered. Before the game, swing by a Jamaican jerk joint called Feeding Tree. It’s a real locals haunt, a full meal is less than the price of one beer inside the ballpark, and it’s practically within sight of the upper deck seats.
Food so spicy that it gets your sweat glands working full steam might seem like a bad idea when you are about to sit outside in hot and humid weather for three hours. But Jamaicans live in tropical climes year round, and they eat spicy all the time. Setting your insides on fire can have the effect of evening your body temperature with the air temperature, so eventually you'll feel quite comfortable.
Actually, the jerk chicken at Feeding Tree is not particularly spicy. All of the delicious island flavor is there, but the searing heat that is so prevalent at a lot of other jerk joints is subdued at Feeding Tree. The unique jerk tang is allowed to shine. The spiciness is more of an aftertaste.
The jerk shrimp, however, is a bit more on the spicy side. They peel the shrimp (and de-vein them) before covering them in the jerk sauce at Feeding Tree, so all the spice goes directly into the meat. But jerk shrimp, a delicious and rare delicacy in this town, shouldn’t be missed.
The sweet plantains are mediocre, but even mediocre plantains are good. The corn bread that comes with every meal is mediocre as well, but mediocre corn bread is dry and crumbly and not good. The mac n’ cheese is only served on Wednesdays, and it’s superb if you like yours soft and supple rather than crusty and burnt.
Like Derek Jeter is for the Yankees this season, the jerk options are clearly the star of a Feeding Tree meal. So even if Randy Johnson coughs up three home runs and ARod blows the game on a throwing error, you’re trip to Yankee Stadium can be a success.
Feeding Tree, 892 Gerard Avenue #161, The Bronx, 718-293-5025
