Bear with me here; maybe this goes out into the abyss but I'm still gonna say it. Years & years ago I was wandering around the area & came upon Island Krave. It was brand new & the woman tending the store was friendly, energetic & passionate about the food she was serving. I ordered jerk chicken but she insisted on letting me have a taste of everything on the menu. Everything was delicious & I now had a new obsession- the sweet coco bread. For years after that whenever I was around I would pop in. I've since moved to GA and been living here for almost ten years. Any transplant will tell you sometimes only family & food keep you tethered to your home state. So happens this wknd I was in town for my sisters wedding & got my hair done a couple blocks away from Island Krave. As she finished up I placed an order on Uber eats, really excited for this meal- something familiar & missed. To see how the quality & care has declined truly hurts my heart. The portion of meat they served me was actually disrespectful to people who work hard for their money & choose to support a small business. These pictures are after they added some. If you're going to chop it to smitherens you need to measure it out to ensure the portions make sense. Anyone that cooks can tell you this is a thigh at best. & this is a $17 plate. I don't want to talk down on the place too much it's just sad how much of a let down the entire meal was after I felt like they threw my stuff together thinking it was being delivered and they wouldn't have to look me in the face. The Mac was good & the flavor of the chicken was as well. Cabbage mushy & salty. Rice is not yellow. & apparently $5 gets you one slice of coco bread now (I got two bc of my troubles, ha!) Idk I hope they can figure it out but personally I would never spend another dollar in this place. read more

Island Krave - Sweet coco bread - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

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There's almost no quality Jamaican places. No " peas" with the rice... the curry chicken was lacking flavor. The jerk chicken was more like bbq sauce. The cabbage was sour???? No salt or anything.. I was so excited to have soft fluffy coco bread. I kid you not; it was like a hot dog bun. So disappointed. We're running out of good options here. read more

I hope this review is taken in the constructive spirit that it is given and I hope this feedback can be helpful going forward. My bf and I stopped by and the food was ok I guess. We ordered jerk chicken and brownstew chicken. The cabbage was just awful, it was oily and unseasoned. The rice was just plain rice. The jerk chicken tasted like barbecue chicken. The brownstew chicken just tasted like chicken and gravy. The employees are nice but the food could be prepared better, much better. read more

Nov 2023 So this place has not really improved, the food quality is mediocre and far from Caribbean food. I had the jerk chicken and it tasted like rotisserie chicken with sauce on it. The rice and beans was mushy and not very flavorful. They sell 3 wings for $10 lol that is outrageous. The coco bread was good. read more

This is food was amazing. There is a long wait time on certain days. However it's totally worth it. read more

Island Krave - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

Do not waste your time! The curry chicken was the worst I've ever had in my life. I asked the lady nicest to swap it out for something else and refused to help. She only told me that no one else has complained about it today. I'll never go here again. read more

The first time I tried this place, I ordered the Veggie Lover platter (rice and beans, collards, cabbage, and plantains). The rice and beans were dry and flavorless, collards were blah, cabbage and plantains were okay (although they put sugar on the plantains-I don't know or understand why, it's not needed). Because I love me some plantains and collards, I decided to give this place a try again. But this time, I was just ordered sides because I was not going to get stuck with those rice and beans that I threw out the first time. The collards were much better the second time around, cabbage held the same as well as the plantains. The chicpeas were whatever, nothing I feel the need to order again. read more

Island Krave - Sides: collard greens, cabbage, plantains, and chickpeas. - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

30 minute wait for side orders of vegetables!!! Cashier is nonchalant over the phone and in person. The female cook is eating while prepping and why are plantain being cooked to order when they come with each meal?! Improve the speed and customer service skills. read more

Very tasty food and is priced well for such large portions. A bit longer wait than I excepted, so I would recommend maybe calling your order in. read more

I ordered through Ubereats and they wrote a little note on my to go order with an extra drink! So kind of them! The portion size was generous and there was plenty of food to feed two. I ordered the spicy jerk chicken with Mac and cheese. The rice and chicken was flavorful. read more

Island Krave - Jerk Smoked Chicken Plate - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

I ordered the small stewed chicken. The small place was very plentiful it last me for two days. They don't do it with pieces of chicken they serve it with shredded chicken. The plate came with rice and beans plus cabbage. The cabbage was cooked just right probably steamed. I was expecting this big flavor however the meal was like something you could cook at home just plain rice gravy and chicken. The next day when I ate the other half the flavor came through. I don't know maybe it does like gumbo better the next day. The service was excellent and the order was completed quickly. read more

I almost gave them three stars because it's it's some little things they need to fix. One day they don't have collards another day they don't have any patties another the rice and peas aren't ready... now beyond that this jerk chicken is amazing.... awesome Smokey flavor and the jerk seasoning has a flavorful kick to it.. I'm going to chalk it up to staffing in covid on why certain things weren't available. read more

Island Krave - large jerk rice and peas cabbage and collards... Lord have mercy - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

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I don't even know where to begin with our meal. The macaroni and cabbage lacked any flavor whatsoever, forcing me to add seasoning just to make it palatable. The jerk chicken was not at all what I expected - instead of jerk sauce jerk flavor, it was just shredded chicken drenched in watery like barbecue sauce. The oxtails, while having a good texture, were equally lacking in taste. Overall, the meal was extremely disappointing and a complete waste of $53. read more

The oxtail empanadas are so delicious. I also had a small curry goat which was bursting with flavor, the meat was so tender. I highly recommend this place! read more

I was in town for work, and my boy was talking about this place all week so we had to go. The food was delicious and the staff was friendly and ready to help. The inside dining is a little small, there are also two benches outside to eat at. I felt the prices were a bit expensive, but needless to say the food was great again. I ordered the jerk chicken plate (spicy) with yellow rice, Mac n cheese, and plantains. I also ordered a beef empanada. read more

Island Krave - Jerk chicken plate (spicy). Beef empanada and a pineapple soda. - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

Stopped by here as our last stop before heading back to California. I'm glad we did. The service was great and the food was delicious.

Food was pretty good. Got mild jerk chicken, rice and beans, mac and cheese, cabbage, cornbread, and beef meat pie. Everything was good. The chicken was just like bbq chicken to me. The mac isn't anything special, I expected it to really have some flavor seeing we were at at Caribbean restaurant. The meat pie was okay, I think it would've been better if I would've eaten it when I first got it, the steam from foil flattened it. The fried plantains were bomb. Absolutely recommend. read more

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Food was cold and undercooked. Costumer service was slow. Did enjoy the vibe of the store.

I tired. Then tried again. This just isn't it. Any meat you get there is shredded and covered in sauce resembling cat food. Don't advertise oxtails if you don't have them and I totally get that D/G soda is a "specialty" item but let's be cost effective. read more

Simple the best Jamaican food I have ever had! So good, I went back every night for dinner takeout while visiting. When I go back to Virginia to visit family from upstate NY, I look forward to going there and eating their amazing food! The red velvet cake hands down made my eyes roll. Never had it so flavorful in my life! Trust me, you need their soothing soul food in your life! read more

The service was good. They were fast with my uber eats & it was still steaming hot when I got my food. I had the goat curry with greens and macaroni. The green was well cooked and tasted pretty well. It was seasoned and I enjoyed those. The Mac snd cheese wasn't baked and was still a little runny but overall wasn't that bad. However, the curry goat wasn't my favorite. It wasn't nasty but I just rather try something else. The flavor wasn't there for me and it needed more meat. read more

This is the alternate location of Dorothy's Smokehouse BBQ on Colley Ave. Had the pleasure of meeting the owner, Dorothy, on our first visit today. She brought over a complimentary sample platter with 4 of the restaurant's main proteins - smoked chicken, smoked pork, chicken curry, and brownstew chicken. ALL of them were delicious; we ended up ordering a small plate of jerk (smoked) pork and a large plate of smoked chicken. The cabbage and collard greens were both succulent with perfect textures - not overly charred (brick) nor soggy. The Mac and cheese was creamy and delicious. Rice and beans were also yummy. Friendly folks, good food, daily drink specials with an island vibe. Just go! read more

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I wanted to try this place for a while and passed it in Downtown Ghent on many occasions. I even saved this place as a must try! I decided to order delivery for lunch one day at my job and I ordered the lunch special curry chicken. Let me just say this was very disappointing, complete trash actually. I couldn't even finish the meal, it was just simply not good at all. I actually really love Carribean food as well but this was by far the worst experience I've ever had. And it was shocking to me too as others food pictures looked pretty good, but my experience was so bad I not only could not recommend but I highly doubt I'd ever go back again. read more

Island Krave - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

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My lunch from Island Krave was so good today! I love Caribbean food, especially Jamaican. I grew up on beans and rice, curry chicken, and cocoa bread. If you're unfamiliar with the flavors and spices that make this traditional fare, you're honestly missing out. I had a taste for jerk chicken today and decided I'd give Island Krave a try. I was a little put off that the simple, jerk chicken sandwich on cocoa bread with fries was a little pricey until I got my order. This isn't your standard chicken sandwich. It's a massive-sized slice of soft, melt-in-your-mouth cocoa bread with mounds of fresh, roasted chicken tossed in jerk sauce. Jerk chicken is usually a little spicy but this sauce had the right amount of sweetness to it. The fries were seasoned more than the chicken - but they both were good. I was impressed by the portion size. There's enough for two people or two meals (I'm definitely saving my other half for later). The cocoa bread is unlike any I've had before it's not thick like most places, it's baked perfectly and tastes DELICIOUS! I also got the signature tea and I wasn't impressed by that. I thought signature would mean it was going to be a tea blend signature to the establishment but it was basic, Lipton tea with some sugar, it still had some warmth to it like it had just been brewed. Despite that, I'm impressed with the food and will be trying this place again. read more

Island Krave - Yea mon! - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

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This supposed to be a Caribbean restaurants. Called in my order, 1 roti with chickpeas and potato to go. I get home to my surprise this F-ing roti have rice in it. WHO THE F PUT RICE AND FRIES IN A ROIT? This is clearly not a Caribbean restaurant because any Caribbean person would know, that S%i# don't slide. I'm so pissed right now I can't even eat... read more

Island Krave - Imitation roti - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

Great Caribbean southern food! Had pulled smoked chicken and pulled smoked pork. Delicious!

Omg these ladies are wonderful. Service was great the food will take you back to the islands. We had everything spicy and we loved it. Yes we will be back again yes we will tell everyone to eat here. Keep up the great work and we will see you again soon. read more

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Located in a strip mall, with street parking around if the lot gets full. Friendly service. First-time customers get to sample four of the meats: brown stew chicken, curry chicken, jerk chicken, jerk pork, plus a dab of the spicy jerk sauce (meh). I found the pork a little dry, but the curry chicken and jerk chicken were both very flavorful, with brown stew chicken on its heels. The jerk bowl gets extra sauce drizzled on the accompanying rice. Based on the server's recommendation, we went with sweet and buttery coco bread instead of cheesy, for a little sweet treat before the meal. Curry chickpeas were tasty and the sweet plantains were fine, but both are crazy stingy on portions for that price point. Goat curry was alright, tender and an okay amount of meat on the bones. I'm used to cabbage being pretty boring, but the yellow rice was disappointingly mushy. I'd come back to try the empanada, sauced ribs, and braised oxtails; maybe the rice & beans will turn out to be the better side. read more

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Came here for a dinner with some fellow elites (Cindy, Emily, Joe, Yajida, Lindsey, and last but not least Xerxes and his lovely gf Jenny) yesterday and I had a great time. When I first walked in the worker at the counter was very warm and inviting, and he was mad funny too. Haha The manager hooked me right up with a wonderful reccomendation for a cocktail called "Lady Bug Juice" with Tang and Vodka I believe. Whatever it was, it was just what I needed to unwind after work. The manager graciously put samples on the table of all their signature meats, which made me decide that I needed their Jerk Pork in my life. I got it with cabbage and rice and beans, which was pretty delicious. What really saved my life though was the coco bread. It was so buttery and sweet, I could probably eat it for the rest of my life and not get tired. They also let us try samples of the sweet potato bread, which wasn't my favorite, but still pretty good. Their prices were pretty reasonable too. My total was only about $17 for a cocktail, appetizer, and a meal. Overall, I feel like Island Krave holds their own. If you're in the Ghent area check them out. read more

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They say the lessons you pay for are the ones you remember the most. Well this one cost me $20 and I'm kicking myself for opting in to this dish. I stopped in and browsed the menu and wanted curried goat. To my surprise it was $19.99 and only available Friday - Sunday. Not in the mood to experience nutritional confusion, I decided to get food from here and call it good. Well, I was wrong. The portion size is decent but the flavors of the items I chose were off. I had yellow rice, plantains and sweet potato loaf to accompany the curried goat. The cuts of meat seems stringy, hard to chew and had a lot of the tendon still attached which is inedible. It does have a little zip of spice which was just fine. The rice was not salvageable as it was too thick from absorbing the gravy from the meat. My poor plantains were charred and resembled charcoal briquettes. The sweet potato loaf is pre-made and heated before serving. The price point is higher than I've paid for the Caribbean buffet @ MP Island and for a small serving @ Higher Heights. I really wanted to like this place but this was not a positive experience. On this visit, the credit card machine was down and it was cash only. Limited personnel working so there is a bit of a wait for your food. The do offer a 10% military discount which is a plus. Somewhat dimly lit inside and hard to read the menu or see your food. Very nice young lady who waited on me so no complaints there. She was gracious to offer me a sample plate of some of their items to get an idea of what they have. There is table top seating and bar seating. Parking is shared with neighboring businesses and not much of a problem finding a spot. Thanks for the opportunity but I doubt I'll return. read more

Island Krave - Curry goat over yellow rice, plantains and sweet potato loaf - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

Outstanding ! Whenever I'm in the area I stop by for the jerk chicken . Worth the visit. Great prices , great portions and outstanding food.

I ordered curry chicken and was given what you see below. The chicken didn't even taste like curry. When I went back she was polite enough to chge my order to jerk chicken but by that time I was over it. I probably won't go back. read more

Island Krave - a chicken dish in a styrofoam container - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

As an islander I know authentic food and Island Krave gets it right. The curry chicken roti wrap was like no other. Hubby had the jerk pork coco bread sandwich and enjoyed it to the last bite. A new favorite and we are anxious to try other items. read more

Island Krave - The best rotini have had in America!! - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

I'm torn between 3 and 4 stars!! I'd love to give a 4th star due to the friendly service and nice set up. So yeah I'll do that...4 stars it is!! But... I was excited to eat here!! I've heard great things about this place. But I must say I stumbled upon this location by surprise. I was in the area redeeming a coupon for some donuts. Cheat day was in full effect... So I pulled into the parking lot ...headed into one place but noticed the sign Island Krave! ! Ooooooou I thought! I told my babe I've been wanting to try this place and OMG today must be our day to dine !! I remember seeing their Facebook advertising $5 lunch specials. And it was about 3pm on a Saturday too... owwww!! We walked up to the door and we were immediately greeted by a lady sitting outside. She had an island accent so I assumed she had something to do with the restaurant. She also thanked us for coming when we walked away from the restaurant. Nevertheless, the food. Well first of all I thought the $5 lunch special included a few options. But nope! Only one meal choice and the restaurant chooses it. I asked how often does the option change and one of waitresses advised every 2 or 3 days, but then it repeats at some point. Last Saturday's $5 lunch special: jerk chicken over yellow rice with cornbread. It sounded yummy! And the smoked BBQ aroma in the air made me feel like I was in for a double treat!! Spicy jerk and it's only $5...let's get it babe! ! So we ate when got home...I was super hungry. I finished the meal in about 10 mins... while it was good, I felt like it could of been waaaay better. I like my food spicy so I asked "make it extra spicy please" - she confirmed...they'll just add more jerk sauce than usual. I thought ummm ok. But that just made it "hot" not "spicy" - there is a difference. The rice was blah and dry! As a result, I was thankful for the abundance of sauce to get it some flavor. Oh yeah flavor...I could taste the smoked cooked chicken but it lacked power ...lacked flavor. I was disappointed...I wanted to be overwhelmed. :( Now the buttery and fluffy cornbread...home run! !!! I do plan to give this place another try because my favorite dish is curry chicken. Therefore if they don't get that right then it's a wrap for my patronage. . Service was excellent! The atmosphere was cute and tight (small), but it smells devine inside! ! There were 4 other parties present ...during the day is a good time to bring the family. And I assume when night falls you'll want to leave the kids at home. Hoping my next time will be an awesome time!! I'd recommend this place 80% Have fun | Enjoy read more

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Great restaurant! Server offered a free sample platter as she sat us down. Chicken curry was good! The Coco Bread is the bomb!!! read more

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This was my first time eating their food! I ordered through Yelp/ Grubhub. The portions were healthy and the food was served still steaming! I love how they made sure my food the sealed tightly. I had no spills whatsoever! Everything was delicious. I'd highly recommend! read more

Island Krave - Oxtail Plate, Cocobread, Signature Island Mac N' Cheese, Signature Collards - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

Nine customers came to this restaurant for the first time hoping the food was going to be good. What a total disappointment ! The food was horrible. The food looked like dog mess. No one could eat their food. We so embarrassed by the presentation and the quality of the food that we asked for a take out bag so we could dumped food in the trash . It cost us $286.00 . The soda was the best thing there. No wonder the owner sells liquor at the restaurant because if are drinking you would not know the food taste awful. read more

WAAAAHHHHGWWWWAAAAAANNN! Highly recommended by multiple friends and locals! Finally walked in and was greeted with a sampler plate The samples had a huge influence on what I ordered Started off with "Best of both worlds" which was bomb! so good! It's a hole in the wall but when you walk in it's a very clean & cozy establishment I ordered a large serving and was STUFFED, I usually brag about eating a lot but I had to get a to go box. Overall great experience, I'm definitely bringing my next date here read more

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Not that good I ordered jerk chicken and it was literally barbecue chicken. I ordered the mac and cheese with cornbread as my side and they were subpar to say the least. Definitely not Caribbean food more like soul food but with no soul. read more

I normally have limited complaints but this place is not good. I ordered a small spicy jerk chicken. The rice was mushy and overcooked and looked like my plate was a remake there was yellow slimy sauce under my chicken probably was curry. Jerk chicken should be cooked in the sauce not just having the sauce drizzled on top for presentation. The cabbage was ok. read more

Island Krave - Small Jerk Smoked Chicken Plate with yellow goo on top of rice under the chicken - Caribbean Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

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