How three couples built PeppaThyme in Jamaica
September 24, 2026
Eight years ago, Shelly Sterling and five partners found a property in uptown Jamaica and saw the potential for a restaurant & bar where none existed.
“It was all dirt and bush,” she recalled.
The three couples cleared the land and built PeppaThyme, an open-air restaurant that seats 350. They also developed their own recipes and, despite the challenges of COVID-19, established a gathering place for locals and visitors to enjoy Jamaican food.
Sterling owns PeppaThyme with her husband, Andre, and two other couples -- Richard and Judith Harrison, and Victor and Judith Zaidi. Their backgrounds span law, medicine, logistics, security, marketing and manufacturing.
“We come from very diverse backgrounds,” she said. “Richard has a passion for food and he has had some professional cooking experience. So that’s as close as we’ve come within the partnership to direct restaurant experience beyond knowing how to eat at restaurants.”
An opportunity to open a restaurant brought the group together, but Sterling said finding the right location was essential. The Kingston 8 property offered room to create an open-air dining space unlike others nearby.
“It’s a unique space,” she noted. “There’s nothing else like this on this side of Kingston.”
The partners built the restaurant around two mature trees, made its furniture and planted the surrounding greenery. Diners can eat outdoors or gather at the open-air bar.
“We’ve built everything,” Sterling said. “We’ve created our own recipes and we have trained our team.
PeppaThyme now employs about 50 people.
Its menu includes jerk dishes, soups, meats and sides, prepared using recipes the owners have developed over the years.
Sterling said good food and attentive service are central to the experience.
“We try to make sure that our food is always good,” she added. “We are always here to take care of our customers.”
For the employees, the restaurant offers more than a place to work.
Shelley-Ann Deer joined PeppaThyme four years ago, drawn first by its food. Having worked in other restaurants, she appreciates the attention the team gives to Jamaican flavours and customer service.
“International guests, locals, everybody just loves PeppaThyme,” she said.
Restaurant supervisor Nixie Gardener has been there for a little over five years. Most of her previous experience was in quick-service restaurants, so PeppaThyme offered a chance to learn about sit-down dining and the food it serves.
“I have garnered a lot of knowledge,” noted Gardener. “I have researched the whole jerk history, and so it makes the love for the food even more.”
Monique Smellie came to PeppaThyme two years ago while looking for a job. She now works as a waitress and enjoys serving customers.
Although colleagues sometimes disagree, she said, they work well together.
“We are a pleasant team,” Smellie said. “I really enjoy serving customers. I do love my job.”
Shelley-Ann Deer (l), Nixie Gardener & Monique Smellie (Photo by Ron Fanfair)
Eight years after its founders cleared the land, PeppaThyme continues to welcome diners to the space they created.
Sterling said several of the owners have children who studied in Canada, and the partners have family in the Toronto area.
For Canadians visiting Kingston, PeppaThyme offers a chance to enjoy Jamaican food in a setting built by three couples with ties to home.
