Planet Berlin: Escape to the Caribbean
For a decade, Ya-Man Jamaican restaurant has inspired patrons to experience its authentic food, and underlying theme: Everything is ok.
All good
Barbara Saltmann had no gastronomic experience when she spontaneously opened her restaurant in Moabit's Gotzkowsky Strasse in 2008. While she likes to refuel during visits to her beloved Jamaica, Berlin is now Saltmann's home. The name of her restaurant is Jamaican for "everything's ok!"
Healthy enjoyment
Jamaican cuisine is healthy: ginger, garlic and spices are the basis of the marinade for fish, seafood, chicken and meat dishes at the Ya-Man. All main courses are served with fresh vegetables and rice with kidney beans.
Summer feeling
In addition to the dishes, Barbara Saltmann offers freshly squeezed juices, exotic cocktails with Jamaican rum and tropical fruit salads. As gentle reggae plays in the background, the bright decor and beach bar ambience finally gives the feeling of having taken a short trip to Jamaica.
Secret sauce
A well-known, traditional Jamaican dish is Jerk Chicken. The meat is heavily seasoned, covered and cooked slowly over a pit of smoking pimento wood. The Maroons, slaves who escaped their Spanish masters and lived in free communities in Jamaica, chose this method to preserve the meat. Every jerk cook, including Barbara Sattmann, had their own secret special sauce.