When you walk into Miss Winnie’s Jamaican Jerk Restaurant on East Market Street tonight, you might get a whiff of a sweet, spicy aroma wafting through the area. That’s because this authentic Jamaican restaurant is celebrating its grand opening in West Chester! I spoke with Bert and Nick Johnston, the father-son dual owners of the restaurant. Bert, who was born and raised in Jamaica until age 15, gained a passion for Jamaican-style cooking at a young age from his mother, Miss Winnie.
“I was actually an engineer before,” Bert remarked. “I decided before I would retire that I could just change careers and start 
something completely new. I’d always loved cooking, so I wanted to start my own business.”
“And we have a family of entrepreneurs,” Nick added. “It just made sense for us to create a business together and bring something different to West Chester.”
And that is definitely true. Tonight, I sampled Jerk Pork, Jerk Chicken Wings, their curry, and their Plantain Tarts. Not your usual suspects for food in West Chester. I asked them both what inspired them to start a Jamaican restaurant in West Chester specifically.
“We had just moved here,” Nick said, “and I learned that West Chester really cares about their restaurants; there’s such a culture surrounding them. We wanted to bring something new with good flavors to the borough.”
“The main reason was that West Chester is a small, diverse community,” Bert continued. “There’s always something going on here; people always want to stay active and are open to new experiences.”
Bert and Nick have many aspirations for Miss Winnie’s, but for now, they’re happy to be celebrating their grand opening tonight from 5pm to 7pm.
“West Chester is a great place to start up a new business,” Nick said. “It really feels like home already.
For more information on Miss Winnie’s, visit their website.
