By Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon
CJ Travel Editor
It’s not every restaurant that offers “Breakfast – Lunch – Dinner – Cold Beer – Hi Grade Hammocks.” But then, Murphy’s West End Restaurant, in Negril, Jamaica, is no ordinary eatery.
Chef Leniel Ennis (aka Murphy) has owned the roadside restaurant for half his life, spending the last 18 years serving up local eats such as jerk lobster, brown stew fish and Devil Chicken (similar to jerk chicken but oven-baked and with a spicy sauce on the side) to a steady stream of locals and curious guests from the boutique hotels perched on the picturesque West End’s craggy cliffs.
When he started he could only seat four people at a time on a shaded picnic bench. Now Ennis can comfortably accommodate up to 36 diners on a pair of outdoor benches and a cluster of four-top tables arranged on a verandah.
But that doesn’t mean that you’ll necessarily get a table at the cash-only establishment. The restaurant operates strictly by reservation and chef cooks to order, so walk-ins should, well, keep on walking. “I bring in staff only when I need them, and I prepare and cook only for the people I’m expecting.” By doing that – and staggering seating times throughout the day – Ennis says he can focus on cooking his best and giving his hungry patrons the attention they deserve.
Provided you’re able to get a reservation (ask at your hotel front desk), you’ll surely leave Murphy’s full and happy. And, perhaps, with an unexpected purchase: a comfy and colorful cotton hammock, painstakingly made by Ennis himself.
Murphy’s accepts reservations from 10am to 10pm, Monday through Saturday. Call 876-367-0475.