Top Choices for Trinidad Street Food: a Trini Taste of the Caribbean

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Last Updated on March 1, 2024

Trinidadian Street Food

Discover the vibrant tapestry of flavors that define Trinidad’s street food scene, a melting pot of culinary influences in the heart of the Caribbean. From savory doubles to fiery pepper sauce, every bite tells a story of the island’s rich cultural heritage.

Join us on a tantalizing journey via the internet through the bustling streets of Trinidad and Tobago where each vendor’s stall is a gateway to an explosion of taste and tradition.

We will delve into exploring all of the Trinidad Street Food.

Get ready for some delicious Caribbean food from Trinidad and Tobago

Street Food in Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago have a unique blend of African, Indian, Chinese, European, and Latin American influences offering a fantastic cuisine.

You can find a vast array of traditional Trinidadian food from Indian curry and roti to Creole coo-coo or Spanish and South American style pastelles.

You can find various street vendors in Trinidad offering Indian, Creole, Chinese, and International cuisine.

Trinidad and Tobago offer the best street food in the Caribbean. You can find Indian specialties to gyro wraps, fried chicken, and roti. The vendors practice stringent hygiene and eating out won’t constitute health risks, so that you can enjoy the Trinidad street food.

The most popular street foods in Trinidad and Tobago are Doubles, Corn Soup, Pholourie, Coconut Jelly, Aloo Pie and Saheena, Chicken Roti and Buss-up Shot, Souse, Bake and Shark, and Chow.

Let’s take a look at the most popular Trinidadian food!

On your own or with a tour? Don’t forget to sample all the local dishes in Trinidad!

Try these popular Trinidad Food Tours so you can sample all the great street food in Trinidad and Tobago

THE BEST Trinidad Food Tours (Updated 2024) – Tripadvisor

Calling all the foodies out there, find & book the top-rated and best-reviewed food tours on Tripadvisor today. Eat your way through the food scene of Trinidad. Your tastebuds will be thanking you later! Book effortlessly online with Tripadvisor.

The food of Trinidad and Tobago, Trini food, is so varied and delicious.

Part of the richness of Trini’s rich food culture are numerous cultural influences and hertirages. The Indian and Pakistani people, as well as the Africans and Europeans (mostly French & Spanish) brought the best of their very own gastronomy, blending it all into a firework of tastes.

Trini food, especially the Trinidadian street food, is very affordable, uses a lot of fresh products, and is the best at the numerous food stalls that you can find along the road.

Here are some of the Trinidad street foods that you MUST try when visiting Trinidad and Tobago

Doubles

Doubles have light bara bread (flat bread) sandwiching tender curried channa (chickpeas) finished with tamarind and a variety of chutneys, including coconut or mango, and some pepper.

What food is Trinidad known for?

Doubles are probably the most famous Trini food.

Chow

Chow is composed of chunks of fresh fruit mixed with lime juice, hot pepper, salt, garlic, and cilantro. It is a highly addictive and healthy snack. One of the most popular kinds is mango!

Saheena

A roll-up of callaloo (similar to spinach) and split-pea batter, deep-fried, with a spoon of tamarind or mango chutney on top

Bake’n Shark Sandwich

This sandwich can be found at Maracas Beach. It consists of a fried flatbread (“bake”) filled with fried pieces of shark meat and various other ingredients and sauces. Before frying, the shark meat is either seasoned with an herb blend or breaded. You can optionally add some toppings like lettuce, coleslaw, tomatoes, or pineapple. Nowadays shark meat is often replaced by more sustainable alternatives such as kingfish or flying fish.

Chicken Roti

Roti is an Indian flatbread brought over by Indian workers in the 1880s. It is very light and is wrapped around all kinds of food like beef, chicken, potatoes, and pumpkin. Dip it in delicious chutneys for an added bonus!

Cornmeal Coo-Coo

Cornmeal coo-coo, also spelled cou cou, is a traditional food in Trinidad and Tobago with its roots in the African cultural heritage of the islands. The dish consists of cornmeal, coconut milk, okra, and spices. It has a smooth pie-like consistency and is sometimes served with fish

Pastelles

Pastelles are steamed cornmeal wraps with seasoned meat, which can be a variety of beef, chicken, or fish, all secured in a banana leaf wrapping. A seasoning of garlic, thyme, and cumin gives this delicacy its Caribbean flavor.

Pholouri

Pholuri is a favorite street snack in Trinidad. They are split pea flour fritters that are seasoned with fresh herbs like cilantro, parsley, thyme, garlic, onion, and peppers

Kurma

These are popular desserts in Trinidad and are often served during Diwali. The sweet treats are fried dough fritters that are glazed with a sugary, sweet syrup for a delicious crispy coating.

Goolab jamoon (gulab jamun), Fat Kurma

Gulab jamun is also called Fat Kurma and is exactly how it sounds! It is the fat version of kurma. Still delicious, but it is softer than regular kurma because it is so much fatter.

Aloo Pie

Anything with the word PIE in it has got to be good! The aloo pie is a crunchy potato pie that is similar to the Spanish street food, samosa. So the aloo pie shows the influence of one of the Spanish foods in Trinidad and Tobago. It is fried with potatoes and all sorts of vegetable goodies and, of course, some curry and other yummy seasonings.

Soups

If you are a huge soup lover, you’ll be spoiled in Trinidad when it comes to soups. Cow heel soup, corn soup, dumpling soup, and of course the traditional, mouth-watering callaloo soup are all excellent choices.

Coconut Water

We are in the Caribbean so we can’t forget the coconuts!

There are many vendors with trucks full of of fruit who are ready to serve you up a fresh coconut on the side of the road. Our coconuts were straight from the tree, had the top chopped off with a large machete, and acquired the final addition of a straw right in front of us. Can’t get any fresher than that! It is a natural thirst-quencher and absolutely refreshing on a hot Caribbean afternoon.

Sample all the Trinidad and Tobago Food with these popular tours

Trinidad Nighttime Food Tour

Discover the delicious local cuisine of Trinidad during this 3-hour evening tasting tour. Visit a number of local establishments and food stalls and sample local cuisine such as corn soup, roti, geera pork sandwiches, doubles, and much more. Learn about the island from your informative guide as you discover the hidden food gems of Trinidad. Round-trip transportation from your hotel is included.

Street Food and a Taste of Trinidad Night life

It’s impossible to go hungry in the island paradise of Trinidad. Come to our favorite spot to taste some, in the parking lot of the expansive Queen Park Savannah which transforms into a lively fair with food vendors and occasional live music in the evening you’re never far from any of them, some you can find delicious versions of each. A mixture of corn, channa, pumpkin, dumplings, whatever the cook has decided to throw in, corn soup is served street-side in the park, our cost includes corn soup, doubles, meat or veggie mini roti, or Trinidad fruit punch (eg.Barbadine or Soursop and ice cream,On our way to the Hotel, we go to the street of Port of Spain to visit, Aripita Avenue which is known as the Restaurant Street of Trinidad. St James once call the city that never sleep You will also have a taste of our carnival with a stop at the canival village from 20th January to Night February 8th 2024

Important Trinidad and Tobago Travel Tips

➡️ Things to Do in Trinidad and Tobago

➡️ Things to do in South Trinidad

➡️ Visiting the Temple in the Sea

➡️ Waterfalls in Trinidad

➡️ Beaches in Tobago 🏖️

➡️ Street Food in Trinidad and Tobago 🥥

➡️ Where to stay in Trinidad 🛏️

➡️ Where to stay in Tobago 🛏️

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The Perfect Guide to Trinidad Street Food

In conclusion, Trinidad’s street food scene is not merely about satisfying hunger but serves as a portal into the island’s diverse cultural history and culinary traditions. Each bite of doubles represents a fusion of flavors shaped by centuries of migration and exchange. Through this tantalizing journey, we’ve uncovered the vibrant tapestry of Trinidadian street food, where every vendor’s stall is a testament to the rich heritage and gastronomic creativity of the Caribbean.

When enjoying it in the bustling streets, Trinidad’s street food invites us to embrace the essence of the island’s culture one delicious bite at a time. So let’s continue to explore, celebrate, and savor the flavors that make Trinidad street food truly unforgettable.

Read the rest of the Moyer Memoirs Trinidad and Tobago travel blogs for more helpful information about traveling to this beautiful Caribbean destination.

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