The faces and voices of 'SoJo, Oshawa' - City Patties: photos by Mikki

“My partner and I moved to Oshawa with our children 8 years ago, we always had an entrepreneurial spirit towards business and we always had a passion for helping people, so we decided to take a chance by creating City Patties, a cultural food shop. We wanted to introduce our authentic Jamaican patties and Caribbean treats to Oshawa. Our vibes and hospitality as driven a lot of new customers and friends into our lovely Caribbean culture. The name City Patties, was created by our daughter Sky, who was about 8 years old at the time. We have been in love with that name ever since.

Here at "City Patties: we take the hassle out of finding culturally good food" When visiting you can be assured that you will experience a bit of the islands every time with welcoming customer service and great prices for our specials.

City Patties has been in business for over 8 years and we chose this location because , my wife and I attended a reggae concert at Memorial Park a year before we moved to Oshawa and the atmosphere really reminded us of Jamaica because everyone seem to know each other. Also to provide an inexpensive food so everyone can eat, rich or poor.

One of my favourite thing about our location is the scenery across the memorial park. Conveniently located across the park, we become a easy gem to spot. The Park gives customers a peace mind that creates an whole vibe of eat a chill. Over the years we have built strong bond in Oshawa, being conveniently located across the Memorial Park is helps us to offer a Caribbean "yeah mon vibe", that our loyal customers respect. Our location is welcoming to everyone.”

- Horatio and Rochelle, City Patties, 5 John St. W.

The faces and voices of 'SoJo, Oshawa' is a photo essay focusing on the people who are investing in the area known as ‘SoJo’, a strip of businesses located south of John, along Simcoe Street South.

For more information about ‘SoJo’ read this article published on the Downtowns of Durham blog, supported by Invest Durham and Region of Durham's Economic Development and Tourism Department.