Shark burgers at Trini-flavored Island Burger in East Flatbush, Brooklyn
"Terror of the deep" turned into tasy morsel at Utica Ave. joint
Linette Beckles (l.) and Tracy Agarrat pose while Roberto Morales and Umberto Dominguez look on at Island Burger in Brooklyn
For $9.50, their shark burger will make you feel like you’re on vacation in Trinidad.
That’s what the two sisters who own Island Burger had in mind when they opened the East Flatbush fast-food restaurant at 915 Utica Ave. 18 months ago.
Picture Maracas Beach, where shark sandwiches are sold in huts right on the sand. Or Port of Spain, where sidewalk vendors serve hamburgers with a slice of pineapple, garlic sauce and cole slaw heaped on top.
“Shark is beach food,” said Linette Beckles, 34, who with her big sister Tracy Agarrat, 40 owns the takeout joint and six-seat eatery that dishes up a boneless filet of the fearsome fish.
The restaurant’s three chefs turn the terror of the deep into a tasty morsel by seasoning it for 12 hours before frying it and topping it with chadon beni — a sauce made of a pungent herb, culantro — tamarind sauce, cole slaw, lettuce and tomato.
After Beckles and her boyfriend were wowed by burgers they bought at a street stand during a visit to Port of Spain, she returned home to Mill Basin and told her sister to forget about the clothing store they’d talked about opening.
“Let’s sell burgers and fast food made the Trini way,” she said to y Agarrat of Crown Heights.
There are scads of West Indian restaurants in Central Brooklyn competing for customers with roti and peas and rice.
But the sibs couldn’t find anyone doing Trini burgers, and thought they could make a go of it.
To save money, they rented a storefront with a stove and other restaurant equipment the previous tenant left behind.
They’d worked in Manhattan food businesses — including a decade Agarrat spent as a restaurant manager for food-industry bigwig Stephen Hanson’s BR Guest.
But to get their seasonings just right, they consulted with a Trini chef before opening Island Burger. A Hispanic chef who has been with them since day one, Humberto Dominguez, 26, has since made valuable tweaks to the recipes.
They’re so proud of their $8.50 Trini-style hamburger that Agarrat tries to talk customers out of ordering the plain American version.
“When they come back and bring a friend, we know the pineapple is a hit,” she said.
The London-born sisters, who lived in Port of Spain for many years, lined up part-time waitressing jobs to generate cash duriong their restaurant startup.
It’s done well enough that Beckles has quit her gig and Agarrat is working one day a week.
“We were fortunate — we had enough customers to pay our bills from the start,” she said.
Customers drive from Bedford-Stuyvesant and Fort Greene, Queens and even Connecticut to chow down.
“They’re missing Trinidad,” Agarrat said.
Beckles’ boyfriend and restaurant co-owner, Joel Brizan, 44, won them customers by telling colleagues at Verizon, where he works, about Island Burger. The eatery has won customers who live in East Flatbush, many of whom call for delivery.
The sisters pack the takeout orders in white paper boxes, like the kind used back home in Trinidad. They want to do everything possible to live up to Trini standards.
“With a Trinidadian customer, we have one shot to get it right,” Beckles said.
lcroghan@nydailynews.com
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york...nter-vacation-article-1.1010640#ixzz1kOD7BXKX
"Terror of the deep" turned into tasy morsel at Utica Ave. joint
Linette Beckles (l.) and Tracy Agarrat pose while Roberto Morales and Umberto Dominguez look on at Island Burger in Brooklyn
For $9.50, their shark burger will make you feel like you’re on vacation in Trinidad.
That’s what the two sisters who own Island Burger had in mind when they opened the East Flatbush fast-food restaurant at 915 Utica Ave. 18 months ago.
Picture Maracas Beach, where shark sandwiches are sold in huts right on the sand. Or Port of Spain, where sidewalk vendors serve hamburgers with a slice of pineapple, garlic sauce and cole slaw heaped on top.
“Shark is beach food,” said Linette Beckles, 34, who with her big sister Tracy Agarrat, 40 owns the takeout joint and six-seat eatery that dishes up a boneless filet of the fearsome fish.
The restaurant’s three chefs turn the terror of the deep into a tasty morsel by seasoning it for 12 hours before frying it and topping it with chadon beni — a sauce made of a pungent herb, culantro — tamarind sauce, cole slaw, lettuce and tomato.
After Beckles and her boyfriend were wowed by burgers they bought at a street stand during a visit to Port of Spain, she returned home to Mill Basin and told her sister to forget about the clothing store they’d talked about opening.
“Let’s sell burgers and fast food made the Trini way,” she said to y Agarrat of Crown Heights.
There are scads of West Indian restaurants in Central Brooklyn competing for customers with roti and peas and rice.
But the sibs couldn’t find anyone doing Trini burgers, and thought they could make a go of it.
To save money, they rented a storefront with a stove and other restaurant equipment the previous tenant left behind.
They’d worked in Manhattan food businesses — including a decade Agarrat spent as a restaurant manager for food-industry bigwig Stephen Hanson’s BR Guest.
But to get their seasonings just right, they consulted with a Trini chef before opening Island Burger. A Hispanic chef who has been with them since day one, Humberto Dominguez, 26, has since made valuable tweaks to the recipes.
They’re so proud of their $8.50 Trini-style hamburger that Agarrat tries to talk customers out of ordering the plain American version.
“When they come back and bring a friend, we know the pineapple is a hit,” she said.
The London-born sisters, who lived in Port of Spain for many years, lined up part-time waitressing jobs to generate cash duriong their restaurant startup.
It’s done well enough that Beckles has quit her gig and Agarrat is working one day a week.
“We were fortunate — we had enough customers to pay our bills from the start,” she said.
Customers drive from Bedford-Stuyvesant and Fort Greene, Queens and even Connecticut to chow down.
“They’re missing Trinidad,” Agarrat said.
Beckles’ boyfriend and restaurant co-owner, Joel Brizan, 44, won them customers by telling colleagues at Verizon, where he works, about Island Burger. The eatery has won customers who live in East Flatbush, many of whom call for delivery.
The sisters pack the takeout orders in white paper boxes, like the kind used back home in Trinidad. They want to do everything possible to live up to Trini standards.
“With a Trinidadian customer, we have one shot to get it right,” Beckles said.
lcroghan@nydailynews.com
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york...nter-vacation-article-1.1010640#ixzz1kOD7BXKX
it's not trifling, it's just not shark. But it is from those creative Chinese importers though.
I need more info 
