Trinidadian treats at Chef B’s

Shrimp doubles, topped with chickpeas and wrapped in a pita, are Ms. B’s take on a classic Trinidadian street food.

Nick Ciccone/Herald

Sorrel juice is a sweet drink made from dried tropical flowers.

Nick Ciccone/Herald

Ms. B, manager of Chef B’s, an American and Caribbean fusion restaurant located at 124 North Central Ave.

Courtesy Ms. B

Goat curry is a popular item served at Chef B’s.

Nick Ciccone/Herald

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Although the dining room at Chef B’s, at 124 North Central Ave., was empty on a Saturday afternoon, a family of cooks worked feverishly to fill catering orders and tend to walk-in customers looking for a quick meal.

“I have no friends,” said the straight-faced manager, who goes by Ms. B. “And the reason I have no friends is because I’m 150 percent businesswoman.”

Originally from Trinidad, Ms. B, 58, immigrated to the U.S. about 25 years ago after studying business at Trinzuele College in her native country, and studying early and special education at Oxford University in England. She began educating young children in Trinidad when she was 17, when she founded Kids World Early Education Center, because she recognized that her community was education-deficient. In the process, she became integrated with people’s lives, often cooking and baking for others.

She said she doesn’t like dogma, and none of her cooking relies on recipes. Most of her cooking techniques are self-taught. At Oxford, she felt confined by institutionalized education and preferred her own sense of perfectionism. “It just restricted me, because the things that I see them doing — it was all wrong,” she said.

Once she moved to the U.S. with her five children, she earned the proper credentials required by state and federal law and became a schoolteacher in Brooklyn.

“All the parents were saying, ‘Ms. B, why don’t you open a restaurant? Your food is so good!’” she said. She decided to do just that in 2012. When she settled on Valley Stream, she wanted to incorporate a fusion of flavors to address the “cross-section of the people” in the community.

While the foundation of the menu is Trinidadian food, she caters to the different backgrounds represented in the community. For example, she said jerk chicken is prepared differently in Jamaica than it is in Trinidad, despite both using Caribbean-style seasonings. She’ll often ask customers what their preference is.