Sunday Lunch Week 52: The Final Week — Reporting from Trinidad & Tobago

Sunday Lunch Week 52 brings this year full circle — the final Sunday of the year, takes place not from my kitchen in New York, but from my sunny homeland of Trinidad & Tobago. It feels fitting that the year ends here, surrounded by familiar food, shared plates, family kitchens, and the quiet reminders of why this series mattered in the first place.

This week wasn’t about cooking one central meal. It was about eating across the day, accepting what was offered, and noticing how food moves through family, neighbors, and everyday life.

Breakfast: Eggs, Toast, and Doubles Hot on the Spot

The day began simply with eggs and whole grain toast I brought with me, but breakfast didn’t end there. My brother-in-law took me along with him for his Sunday morning ritual — doubles eaten the best way possible, hot on the spot, standing right by the doubles vendor.

He had three doubles and said he usually eats four, but today’s were slightly bigger. The bara had the perfect texture — chewy but soft, not too thick, not too thin. The bandhania chutney and roasted pepper sauce elevated the experience. This is how doubles are meant to be eaten — piping hot, open air, open faced and not wrapped and soggy in parchment paper. One after the other in blissful succession until the hearty appetite fades into complete satisfaction.

Lunch: Shared Plates, Different Kitchens, Familiar Foods

Lunch unfolded slowly and unexpectedly. My mother-in-law cooked a late lunch of curry shrimp and rice, finishing around 2 p.m. Before that, I warmed up curry duck with dumplings and bhagi rice that my brother-from-another-mother brought over the day before. He was already seeking my feedback on the taste via Whatsapp so I had to expeditiously taste test and respond.

While I was finishing that plate, a neighbor arrived with her own contribution — stew chicken, stewed red beans, stir fried veggies and a fresh green salad. It’s always interesting to see different versions of the same foods we all cook.

Her stew chicken had that dark, rich color that comes from patience. The stewed red beans were deeply seasoned but made without brown sugar, which immediately caught my attention. It inspired me to create and share that version on the blog(one day) — there are so many health-conscious cooks now trying to reduce or eliminate sugar, and this was proof that flavor doesn’t have to be sacrificed.

The vegetables were especially interesting and you will be happy to know that I interrogated her for details. She steamed green beans, carrots, and broccoli, then sautéed onion, garlic, green seasoning, and pimento pepper, stirred in the vegetables, and finished everything with thinly sliced red onion. The vegetables stayed crisp-tender, well-seasoned, and full of life and the red onlon still had a little bite. It’s another dish I’ll be adding to my regular rotation — perfect for my husband’s Sunday or weekday lunches.

It’s not always common to see Trinidadian food intentionally made lighter, but this plate was clearly prepared with care, balance, and health in mind. Everything was served with long-grain basmati rice — fluffy, light, and perfectly separated.

Afternoon: Packing, Sorting, and Listening to the Body

After lunch, we sorted through gifts — a task that takes just as much effort as buying them. Deciding what to take, what to leave, and how to pack everything properly always feels like its own project. Now there and good deed aside, the separation, final decisions on what for whom, and bagging of everything that was dumped together is easily my least favorite task.

I attempted a Sunday afternoon nap, but sleep didn’t come. My body had been quietly fighting something since we landed — a sore throat that appeared and disappeared, followed by that familiar heaviness that signals what’s coming next.

Dinner Out: East Indian Food and a Quiet Night

That evening, we kept plans to visit Meena’s — a home-style East Indian restaurant. I had met the chef Umesh the day before at the Police Commissioner’s agouti competition, and promised we’d visit before leaving.

The food was deeply satisfying — East Indian food in Trinidad is its own thing, incredibly authentic, richly spiced, and filling. We finished the meal with chai, one of my personal favorites. The atmosphere was calm, the décor thoughtful, and the service impeccable. We ended the night with a light conversation with the chef before heading home.

When the Body Finally Says Stop

Once home, the illness showed its true colors. Chest congestion, a heavy cold, labored breathing, and a headache that made every cough feel worse. It’s flu season, Christmas week had everyone moving around, and it didn’t help being on a plane with recycled air coming from a city where flu rates were the highest in the country.

I medicated through the night with my all natural remedies, but had to cancel plans for my aunt’s house the following day. My body finally made the decision for me — it was time to rest before the new year.

Closing the Year

And so, Sunday Lunch Week 52 ends not with one final dish, but with many meals, many hands, and a clear message from my body: pause.

After narrating this onto my notes, I’m stepping into rest. My next post will reflect on what I learned after preparing 52 Sunday lunches — the struggles, the triumphs, the lessons, and what this year revealed about food, family, discipline, and care.

This week felt like a quiet closing chapter. And honestly, that feels just right.

⭐ Did You Love This Week’s Sunday Lunch?

If you enjoyed this final Sunday Lunch of the year, don’t forget to leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating on the respective recipe cards. Your ratings help more readers discover my recipes and support the work I pour into creating and documenting this series.

Even when there isn’t one central dish, your engagement still matters — this week was about food as experience, memory, and connection.

💬 Questions, Concerns, or Recipe Requests — Write Me!

If you have any questions about this week’s Sunday Lunch, the dishes mentioned, or a recipe you’d love to see next, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below or reach out via email at [email protected]. I’d love to hear from you! Many of my favorite posts are inspired by your requests and kitchen stories, so don’t be shy.

And when you share your photos, don’t forget to tag me @cookingwithria on Instagram or @trinicookingwithria on Facebook so I can celebrate your beautiful creations!

Recipes Mentioned in This Post

Here are the recipes referenced in this week’s story — I’ll link them here so you can explore the full details (and save a few new ideas for your own kitchen):

• Curry Duck with Dumplings – Dumplings were served on the side if I recall correctly-recipe for boil and fry dumplings here.
• Bhagi Rice – eliminate the pigtails in the recipe.
• Stewed Chicken with Stewed Red Beans
• Trinidad Doubles
• Trinidad Curry Shrimp

🌿 More Sunday Lunches to Explore

If you’re new to my 52 Weeks of Sunday Lunch series, welcome. Each Sunday, I cooked a completely different meal — no repeats for the entire year — and documented the menu, the story behind it, and the reality of Caribbean home cooking across seasons, travel, and everyday life.

🌿 52 Weeks of Sunday Lunch (Full Index)
See every menu, story, and reflection in the series — from Week 1 straight through to the latest post:
👉 View the full 52 Weeks of Sunday Lunch series →

✨ The Final Weeks

• Sunday Lunch Week 51: Stewed Beef with Dumplings & Year-End Prep
• Sunday Lunch Week 50: Coconut Rice, Baked Lamb & Steamed Green Beans
• Sunday Lunch Week 49: Trinidad-Style Garlic Pork & Hops Bread

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What’s Next

My next post will reflect on what this year truly required — preparing 52 Sunday lunches without missing a week. The discipline. The fatigue. The joy. The lessons. And what this series revealed about food, care, and showing up — even when it wasn’t easy.

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