May 2017 CentralBeat / IndianArrivalDay Page 17
Doubles : From Indentureship to Innovation
By Vikash Supersad
Do you honestly know any Trinbagonian , or any visitor to our shores for that matter , who has never sunk their teeth into a piping hot doubles ? Stop and think about it for a second ... from my expatriate boss in my upscale office around the Queen ’ s Park Savannah , to my yard-boy in Central Trinidad who dropped out of school in Form 3 … from my 5- year old daughter ( whom I have tried to ban from eating fried fast foods ) to my cousins in England and Canada , and their non-Trini spouses with foreign accents . Literally everyone I know who has set foot in this country has eaten a doubles .
Now where and how you eat it might be another question . If you are a sawatee ( big shot ) from the West , it is likely you would have eaten it sandwichstyle because someone brought “ take-away ” doubles into the office on a Friday morning . Some may have even used a knife and fork – believe it as I have seen it ! However , if you are a commoner like me , you probably enjoy “ eating here ” i . e . standing on the roadside on a Saturday in Chaguanas , juggling that scorching combination of channa and bara in your palm while the top of your head begins to sweat from even the slightest of “ slight ” pepper .
The origin of doubles , the most popular Trinbagonian fastfood , has been debated , however . Despite a book by Mr . Badru Deen who credits his father Mr . Emamool Deen of Princes Town with this creation , doubles in fact bears a striking resemblance to the Indian street
Lata with Kes at the Doubles Factory .
food “ Chole Bhature ” – spicy split peas eaten with fried dough and served with a variety of chutneys . Mr . Badru Deen , however , accurately captures how this delicacy , once frowned upon by the upper class as a poor man ’ s food , has now become the most sought-after Trinidad dish , regardless of one ’ s social status , ethnicity or even nationality .
Now enter Lata Dass – head of the famous “ Doubles Factory ”.
Lata is the grand-daughter of Seecharan Dass – a Ramayanreading sadhu from south Trinidad who was known for riding around shouting “ Get Hungry ” as he sold doubles from a make-shift box atop his bicycle . Lata ’ s grandmother would prepare the channa and bara on a chulha ( fireside oven ) for Seecharan to sell .
Years later the family moved to Boundary Road in El Socorro and as the business expanded , Seecharan asked his daughterin-law ( Lata ’ s mom ) to assist in the preparation while Lata herself started at a very young age in the kitchen . The young entrepreneur , who turns 26 in May , took over the Dass Doubles dynasty when her parents passed away – she was only 17 at the time !
Today the Doubles Factory , nestled in the heart of El Socorro , supplies a number of doubles-men along the East-West Corridor and Port-of-Spain who buy wholesale channa , bara and a choice of 2 toppings ( pepper , chadon beni or sweet sauce ). So yes , that great-tasting doubles that you were eating may not have been prepared by the doubles-man from whom you bought it ! Lata and her staff begin preparatory work in the evening , and by midnight production gets into full-swing .
What is particularly unique about the Doubles Factory is that while cooking is underway , members of the public are invited to dine-in , and are served at their table . On weekends particularly , the Doubles Factory is a hive of activity as late-night limers look for a ‘ sumptuous ’ meal , especially if you need some spicy ‘ bun pepper ’ to sober you up quickly .
Countless celebrities have made the journey to this holy grail of doubles , witnessing for themselves this modest fourperson operation nestled along a quiet back street in El Socorro . Lata ’ s wall boasts a slew of photos with the likes of Rupee , Kerwyn Dubois , Raymond Ramnarine , Kees , KI , Ravi B , Junior Gong and many more .
Lata herself is a certified ‘ bara thrower ’. Okay … there is no certification – but she is indeed in a class by herself when it comes to frying bara . Instead of stretching out the rolled dough onto a table before it is put into the fryer , she can extract it from the ball of dough , stretch and throw it into the fryer in a single move . Now if this isn ’ t talent then I don ’ t know what is !
According to Lata , you can tell a great tasting doubles when you yearn to eat the channa and bara alone without any pepper or additional toppings . And with her trusted employee Chan John , who has been with Lata ’ s family for over 20 years , you can be assured that you are getting just that – arguably one of the best combinations of channa and bara that you have ever eaten ! I asked Lata what she would change about her business , and before she could even answer , Chan responded , “ not a thing !” Lata agreed .
I vaguely recall first visiting them in my earlier years on the way home from some random fete in west Trinidad . However it is only when I returned recently did I truly appreciate what a fantastic experience the Doubles Factory offered . Not only was it a new and innovative way to sit and enjoy a doubles , but despite their commercially-focussed operation , you were still met with a warm and friendly ambiance , where strangers from all walks of life sit together loving a delicacy that is uniquely Trinidadian .
They love what they do at the Doubles Factory and you feel like family from the moment you enter . Lata has successfully innovated and converted her grandfather ’ s once-upon-a-time bicycle business into a must-visit culinary hotspot , built on top of a thriving wholesale business . She is a bit concerned about the younger generation though , and feels that they are not willing to put in the hard work and long hours required to keep the tradition alive as the Dass family , and several other families have done for generations .
The doubles as we know it in Trinidad was borne out of culinary experiences brought by our forefathers from India , and these have evolved over the greater part of the last century into a multi-million dollar industry today . I think Lata has just only started getting the ball rolling … and that there is much more in store for Trinidad ’ s most beloved street food !