A plate of oxtail and rice from Hot on D Spot Roti Shop.
Roy Hayban stands inside his Trinidadian restaurant, Hot on D Spot Roti Shop, near the township municipal building on Nottingham Way in Hamilton. (Staff photo by Samantha Sciarrotta.)
Hot on D Spot Roti Shop offers Trinidadian cuisine in Hamilton
By Jessica Oates
Hamilton Township is home to many restaurants, but few tackle the same cuisine as Hot on D Spot Roti Shop, located at 1469 Nottingham Way in a modest strip mall.
The authentic Trinidadian restaurant, which has been open since October 2000, is owned and operated by Roy Hayban, with lots of help from his family members. His wife and sister-in-law, for example, created the menu and do all of the cooking.
Hayban grew up in Trinidad and came to the U.S. with family in 1988. He currently resides in Princeton. Hayban has been in the hospitality industry since he worked at a hotel in Trinidad, and later at the Nassau Club in Princeton prior to opening his restaurant.
“I liked this location regardless of the demographic,” he said. “I’m seeing signs that the restaurant will be successful.”
The menu features typical Trinidadian fare, from street food to home-style dishes, which Hayban’s wife, Seeta Hayban, says she learned to prepare while in high school in Trinidad.
In Trinidad, high school is called “college,” she said. And so, after returning home from college, it was normal for students to work on their homework for some time and then complete daily chores. For girls, this was usually learning how to cook.
“Everyday, I came home and practiced recipes with my mother,” she said. “By the third time making a certain dish, she expected me to be able to execute the recipe perfectly without her help. It also common for the women of the town to work together preparing food for special events, like weddings, religious holidays, and festivals. My mother always participated in this, and I was there to help.”
As the restaurant’s name suggests, roti is a staple. A traditional flatbread filled with ground yellow split peas and Trinidadian spices, roti are prepared on the spot for customers, and all from scratch. Roti can be served either as a wrap, filled with seasoned meat and potatoes or vegetarian fillings, or as an accompaniment to a dish, used to scoop up bites of the meal at a time.
Roti originated in India. When it was brought to the Caribbean, it took on a new flavor with spices that are native to the islands.
Customers can also choose how mild or spicy they would like their meals to be. Homemade hot sauce combines garlic and spices with scotch bonnet and scorpion peppers, the hottest in the world.
Sensitive to varying thresholds for spice, Seeta Hayban prepares a sweet-and-tangy chutney that can be enjoyed in place of the signature hot sauce.
“We prepare everything from the beginning,” Hayban said. “We have a large grinder to prepare the split peas, and we season them ourselves with our own blend of spices. We cook each roti and all of our food to order.”
Hayban said roti require special skill and equipment to prepare, as well as lots of time. Oftentimes people order large quantities of roti for parties to accompany other food they have prepared themselves because they don’t have the capability to prepare the traditional bread.
And Hayban has seemingly found his audience, with an increasingly diverse population moving into Hamilton and the surrounding area. He is offering them a taste of home not readily available in Mercer County.
“I decided to open the restaurant because there was nothing offered to the people of the Caribbean in this area,” Hayban said.
Hot On D Spot Roti Shop is located 1469 Nottingham Way, near the Hamilton Township Municipal Building. Phone: (609) 586-0088. Hours: Mon-Thurs., 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Fri., 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sat., 8:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Closed on Sun.
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