BARRYVILLE, NY — General Jerk—a Jamaican-style BBQ joint serving jerk chicken, jerk trout, classic peas and collards, and a spicy (vegetarian) ital stew—is the surprise hit of the summer season in Highland. Tucked under the Barryville General store on Route 97, at the main corner of “downtown Barryville,” chef Curtis Brown’s jerk is bringing a new flavor that is perfect for hot weather and cold beer.  

 “Jerk uses a wet marinade, as opposed to barbecue,” Brown, a veteran BBQ purveyor in New York, explained for those who might be new to it. “These ingredients are all of the Caribbean—allspice, scotch bonnet peppers, a lot of thyme, scallions. But in the end, it’s smoked slow and low, with wood, just like regular barbecue.” 

Since they opened, the Barryville General has become something of a landmark in the community, the most recent iteration in a handsome white building that had seen owners come and go. 

The new owners, Eric Komoroff and his wife Sharone, share Brown’s enthusiasm for Jamaican culture, music and jerk spices, but more importantly, they are committed to serving all of the community.

 Using local ingredients, fresh chickens and Beaverkill fish, Brown said, “It’s hard to mess it up, frankly, because the ingredients are so good.” 

Komoroff agreed. “It’s easy to make a little effort to support all of the incredible farmers, purveyors and artisans up here. There is just so much creativity around food, health and wellness. You would have to work very hard not to engage in that.”    

 If you drove by the Barryville General last week, it would have seemed like there was a party in progress that Friday evening, and the smell of wood smoke and chicken was in the air. There was music, laughter and people eating jerk and enjoying the yard down by the river.  

 “We are still figuring out the hours,” said Brown. “Jerk has to be super-fresh, coming off the grill. No barbecue restaurant is good that’s slow; you have to be busy. It has to be fresh. That’s how I want it to be. If people want us to be here at 11 at night, we will be here; and if it’s busy we will stay open later.”