In a residential area, one homeowner has decided to turn their unassuming home into a bustling takeout spot with constant traffic. In anonymous interviews with Local 10 News, one neighbor told the station “The parking, the noise, all times of the day…it is a nuisance. It’s a disturbance. This is a residential area. That belongs in a commercial area.”
Although people have been selling plates from homes for decades, this resident’s neighbors are building a strong argument against the makeshift grab-n-go spot in recent interviews with Local 10. One argued that if a fire were to break out his home would be gone, reports of smells due to the dumping of excessive amounts of food, and an increasingly high number of unknown visitors flocking to the area.
On the other hand, local news reported that the homeowner, Mardellee Gitters, seems to be one of the co-owners of “M&J Delight, a Jamaican restaurant in Opa-locka” that is now closed.
Neighbors have said they put in a formal complaint regarding the matter however, Tamara Wadley, Miami Gardens Assistant City Manager, let Local 10 News know that neither police nor code enforcement have “official records of complaints at the address.”
Visitors arrive at the residence empty handed and leave with plates of rice and peas, oxtail (with gravy), chicken, and various other sides and, Gitters gets to continue to do what she loves while making a living. As Black women in particular see their rates of unemployment rise, many may have to turn to building businesses in non-traditional ways.
Now the question remains: if this were your neighbor, would the makeshift take-out restaurant be too much or would you grab a plate?
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