Ask any Jamaican where to find the best jerk on the island, and Scotchies will almost always come up. Located along the main road in Coral Gardens, Montego Bay (with additional locations in Ocho Rios and Kingston), Scotchies has earned a legendary status that it fully lives up to.
The setup is beautifully simple. Meats are slow-cooked over enormous pimento wood grills — the same wood that gives Jamaican jerk its distinctly smoky, aromatic character. The moment you arrive, the smell hits you, and there’s nothing quite like it anywhere in the world. Jerk chicken and jerk pork are the headliners, both seasoned with the restaurant’s own recipe and grilled until they’re tender, smoky, and deeply flavourful.
Order at the counter and take your food to rustic booths where you can eat with your hands, sip a cold Red Stripe or coconut water, and let the whole experience wash over you. Sides include festival bread, roasted breadfruit, bammy, rice and peas, and soup of the day — all equally good and all made fresh.
It’s a no-frills operation, but that’s the point. No tablecloths, no fuss, no pretence — just some of the finest jerk cooking Jamaica has to offer, served in a setting that feels like the real island. If you only have one jerk meal during your trip, make it Scotchies.