Chat-bout.net - Cho-Cho Jamaican Restaurant In Hangzhou China

Cho-Cho Jamaican Restaurant In Hangzhou China

So strong and so sought after is brand Jamaica, that no matter which part o’ world yuh deh, you never have to go too far to find a Jamaican restaurant, or at least a restaurant serving Jamaican food. Hangzhou province in China now has the Cho-Cho Jamaican Restaurant.

Opening ceremony

The Jamaican Restaurant opened last year to rave reviews from Jamaicans and Caribbean nationals living in China, those who are enticed by anything Jamaican, and those with gastronomic interests. This is the first Jamaican restaurant to be opened in the country of one billion people, and while the six million residents of that province may never make it there, those who have dined there so far, have expressed great satisfaction.

The restaurant is owned by Jamaican born, Atlanta based Glendon Thompson who embarked upon a mission to introduce Jamaican culture in a real and personal way to people living in China. According to Thompson, he loves the Chinese, but his Chinese friends’ knowledge of Jamaica stopped at the fact that Jamaica produces great track stars. He needed to change that.

So the Cho-Cho Jamaican restaurant opened amidst much fanfare with the Red Army’s Military Band providing music alongside Reggae played on the violin, and with dignitaries including Jamaica’s Ambassador to China, Wayne McCook, in tow. Catering was done by the award-winning Atlanta based caterer Carmen Allen. She said part of the challenge was to make the food authentically Jamaican, while bearing in mind the ‘taste’ of the Chinese, and ingredients acquired in China. She admits that the taste is ‘a little different’ from what the average bonafide Jamaican would expect, but has found that patrons really love the food which they consider to be ‘exotic’.

Prior to the opening of the restaurant, there was a one month period of taste testing, the results of which were used to guide the preparation of the menu items. One of the things which they discovered is that the very ‘hot’ taste which many Jamaicans like, did not go over well with the Chinese and so they had to tone it down.

Thompson, who admits to having many Chinese friends, feels that there are many ways in which Jamaicans and Chinese are similar and feels that the restaurant will be very successful. His goal? To open more Cho-Cho Jamaican restaurants in other provinces in China.

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