V.O.D.A Lounge celebrates seven years, makes Sumfest debut

Fresh from A Taste of Sumfest, V.O.D.A Lounge served up its signature fare in style at the one-night festival over the weekend. The restaurant, which opened its doors in the summer of 2019, marked its seventh year in business while serving as one of the event’s vendors and caterers.

“The festival was great! We had a good turnout,” owner Rashede Denniston told Food, adding, “The show finished at 3:30 a.m. [on Sunday] and we were still selling food at 5 a.m.”

Denniston added that he believed the event presented the perfect opportunity for V.O.D.A Lounge to showcase what it does best: “We’re known for our great food, so we wanted to elevate the festival experience ... . This was our first year participating, and we were the biggest vendor.”

The booth offered a glimpse into the look and feel of V.O.D.A., featuring the restaurant’s signature black-and-white aesthetic, a dining area and additional bistro tables where guests could enjoy their meals. LED displays also enhanced the experience, adding to the visuals while showing performances from the main stage.

A live pasta station gave patrons the chance to watch their meals being prepared before savouring them, while the team also served many of its best-sellers, focusing on smaller bites alongside crowd favourites like curried goat.

“We also had the honour of catering for the Red Stripe stand as well,” revealed Denniston, who also noted that he is a proud Vybz Kartel fan.

But the celebrations don’t end with the festival. They continue at the eatery’s Portmore location, which Food visited last Wednesday.

SEVEN PICKS WORTH CELEBRATING

For the seventh anniversary, Denniston has selected seven of the best sellers, both in dishes and in drinks.

The savoury line-up includes the hot chilli ranch wings, di V.O.D.A burger, sticky ribs, yaadi pasta with shrimp, smoked pork chops, lobster mac and cheese, and the shrimp special.

“Our hot chilli ranch wings are actually new, but it does so well. Then we have the V.O.D.A burger, which has been on the menu since opening. It’s stamped and served hot and fresh. The sticky ribs, which is pork, fall right off the bone, and the sauce makes it even better. Yaadi pasta is signature to us because we have our in-house jerk sauce to amplify the Jamaican flavours. Our smoked pork chops and lobster mac and cheese are crowd favourites. And [the] shrimp special is prepared in a curry or garlic butter sauce – people love it because it comes out sizzling from the kitchen,” he shared.

And, for the drinks selection, there are the heavenly V Acres, twilight, strawberry daiquiri, silent blue, lychee martini, amaretto sour and mudslide.

“The V Acres is a tribute to our name ‘Vibes On Di Acres’, and that has been a mainstay. Twilight is a milky drink infused and topped with Oreos. The strawberry daiquiri is the most requested beverage,” he said, adding, “The silent blue is an innovative drink with Jolly Rancher candy inside. The lychee martini does really well, and our amaretto sour is made without the egg, because not everyone likes the taste of eggs. People have said we have the best amaretto sour in the city.”

These staple items, the entrepreneur explained, are the true stars of the menu, earning consistent praise from customers.

BIGGEST LESSON

The biggest lesson this food venture has taught Denniston is patience, resilience and determination.

“Every day is a new challenge. And you can never fully prepare for what is to come. It could be marketing, human resource elements or the overall operations. There’s always something new,” he noted.

The restaurant has gone through the fire, in more ways than one. Recovering from the 2023 blaze was no easy feat, but he decided the team would either go hard or go home.

“It was devastating. But the customers and staff really rallied towards the comeback. And, in less than two years, our restaurant reopened, we branched out to two more locations, and we even have a new V.O.D.A truck,” Denniston said.

The last seven years in business have been both exciting and challenging, but rewarding overall. “I’m looking forward to the next seven years,” he added.

The anniversary celebrations will continue as part of a summer promotion running through the end of August. For those looking to enjoy the V.O.D.A experience, the restaurant will be offering its signature atmosphere, service, food and drinks throughout the season.

krysta.anderson@gleanerjm.com