Unique Eats: Enter the dragon for the best in duck

I am not very adventurous when it comes to food, therefore, I stick to chicken, mutton, fish and beef for protein. But I recently decided to add duck to the menu and there was no better place in town to have my first bite of the bird than the Dragon Garden Restaurant.

I journeyed with Unique Eats, which has been travelling across the country, seeking out non-traditional cuisine, to 1211/2 Constant Spring Road, where the restaurant is located.

It was still with some level of trepidation that I embarked on the new experience, but immediately upon entering the establishment, my tension was eased thanks to the friendly nature of the staff that greeted us, including restaurant manager Malik Hall.

Customers are not only given a taste of Chinese cuisine at the full- service restaurant, but also the culture, starting with an umbrella rack at the door - China believed to be the home of umbrellas.

When it was time to sit down to dine, first up was Peking duck, which are thin slices of the bird's skin with a little meat served with cucumber, scallion, sugar and a very delicious hoisin sauce all made into a wrap using thin pancakes.

My face lit up after the first bite and I am sure my taste buds smiled as well. The Peking duck literally melted in my mouth, leaving the crunchy, fresh cucumber slices and the pungent hoisin sauce commonly used in Chinese cuisine as a glaze for meat.

The meal, which takes approximately 20-25 minutes to prepare, can serve up to seven persons. It is also a two-course meal, as what's left of the duck can be whipped up with some black bean sauce or ginger-scallion sauce or curry and is served with rice.

But after being served a meal suited for seven persons, had to reserve space for the roast duck.

The roast duck takes less time to prepare than the Peking duck. It is served with vegetables, Jasmine rice and plum sauce, and according to Hall, it is extremely popular, as they "don't have hands to sell duck".

Being from rural Jamaica, I had previously eaten bird meat, but the roast duck, which was nicely complemented by the plum sauce, had a taste like nothing before, which lingered in my mouth.

So if you decide to try something new, why not let duck waddle onto your plate? And there is no where better to have it than at the Dragon Garden Restaurant.