Written by Chris Fellini with photography by Joshua Fitzwater
To call Dorothy Lovell just a restaurant owner would be missing the bigger picture. Ms. Lovell is in the process of building an empire. Her plan is to turn Island Krave into the Starbuck’s of Caribbean food. She comes from the corporate world, having worked 25 years as the executive administrator to the president of Triangle Equities, Inc. in NYC. She reached a crossroads in her life where she had to decide between going into real estate development on her own or starting the restaurant. Thankfully for us, she chose the latter.
Chef Dorothy Lovell
Lovell saw the failure rate of mom and pop establishments as a challenge, a code to crack. She applied the same principals she learned in business to her restaurant. Lovell relocated to Suffolk to have a better chance in a slower marketplace. After three arduous years, she moved again to Ghent.
She is attempting to refresh the image of Caribbean food with Island Krave. Her jerk seasoning isn’t overtly spicy, she caters to vegans, and she puts a focus on customer service. Lovell recently began work on a second location on Colley Avenue in Ghent. There, she plans to open Pimento Island Bistro, which will serve as a more upscale version of Island Krave. The space will also be bigger and include a large patio facing onto the street. The focus will be on small plates and drink pairings, and Island Krave will operate as the smokehouse. Between the two models, she intends to turn Caribbean food into something as common as pizza or burgers.
Simmering goat Curry
To take a style of cuisine and catapult it into the spotlight, as Lovell is attempting, requires that the food live up to the hype. I’ve always been a fan of Caribbean food because of the spice factor. For simple marketing reasons, Lovell has toned down that heat in hers. Although the result is an incredibly tender, green-oak-and-pimento-wood smoked meat, it does lose some of its authentic flavor. To that end, any one of the six in-house hot sauces help to remedy. The two stand-outs are the Suicide Sauce and the Sweet Garlic Chili, as they pack the most flavor. The jerk meats are pretty straight forward, but the real winner is the goat curry. Tender and falling from the bone, with a subtly spicy curry, it’s a meal that will stay with you. Lovell only serves the goat Friday through Sunday, along with ribs and oxtail which also comes bone-in.
Stoking the wood fired smoker
Ever the businesswoman, Lovell does not forget that Norfolk is home to PETA. Although there are several vegan options, the chickpea curry is the real powerhouse. The chickpeas are custard-like, and the curry starts off sweet and finishes with a nice fiery burn. The vegan southerner will be pleased to know that the collards here are animal-free. In addition, there are also plantains and cabbage, though the cabbage could stand a touch more cook time. All of the meals come with your choice of rice. Stick to the yellow rice, as the beans in the rice and beans give off a chalky flavor.
Island Krave’s goat curry with yellow rice, cabbage and side of chickpeas
I’m curious to see where Lovell is at in five years. Taking such a calculated approach to food can spell disaster if the food is subpar. However, with hard work and some luck, I hope Island Krave becomes the household name Lovell is striving for.
Island Krave:
Location: 222 West 21st ST Unit J
Hours: Mon- Sat/ 11am to 11pm Sun/ 12pm to 10pm
Price Range: $7 to $20 meals
Genre: Caribbean Smokehouse
1 Comment
Those are some pretty nice pictures. I hope to see more of her cooking. I like the name of your blog because I love grits. Cheese grits are great.