This place is legit! I grew up not too far from Little Jamaica in Toronto (Eglinton and Oakwood),…read moreso have had my fair share of Jerk Chicken (oh man, I miss the days of Toonie Tuesdays where I could get jerk chicken with rice and peas for $2, but I digress). The jerk chicken at Island Grill is amazing! The chicken was tender fall off the bone, and nice and spicy and full of flavour. The chicken thigh was cut up, but no bone fragments, which I appreciated. The jerk chicken meal was $13.50 and came with rice and beans, 2 pieces of plantain and the best coleslaw ever! The coleslaw was vinegar-based and slightly sweet. I much prefer this type of coleslaw to the creamy mayo-based ones. The cabbage was crunchy and really tasty. The rice and beans were excellent, soft and fluffy, not mushy at all. The plantains were soft and sweet. Island Grill usually has space for dine-in, but that section was closed off and they are only doing takeout at this time (Covid Pandemic still on-going). Service was quick and efficient. They sell hot sauces, plantain chips, and a few other items. They also had coconut cake and other desserts. Street parking only.

This place is hands down the best Jamaican place I've had since my trip to Jamaica like 3-4 years…read moreago!! So authentic and flavourful!! We came here by fluke walking down bank street and feeling hungry.. we saw the sign and as we came in , the scent of epic Caribbean spices just hits you right away. Service: Very friendly girl at the counter was super sweet and explained the menu perfectly and we ordered within 10-15 minutes our food was ready! It's a hole in the wall but don't be fooled the food is To die for. Food: FRESH PACKED WITH FLAVOUR!!! We got oxtails & Jerk Chicken. It was literally fall off the bone! The oxtail was my favourite part because it's such a rare dish prepared Jamaican style and it was super tender definitely worth every penny. The plantain was super delicious usually its hard to get it cooked right but this place definitely did! Veggie Fritters were amazing , rice was soft and delicious love how they drizzle the ox tail sauce on the rice and the beans were pretty good. The patties were alright but not the greatest..I would skipp the patties next time & go for everything else again instead ahaha Overall: Food /Quality Price , Service and ambiance was amazing super impressed and you definitely need to try this place out if you're in the area and craving an authentic homemade meal!!! Cheers

I usually avoid Caribbean food outside of the Caribbean and this place reminds me why. Maybe it's…read morethe time that I got there or maybe it was a lazy day but this is not what I know as Jamaican food. The rice was strange and lacked substance and the chicken had an off putting taste as if it's been defrosting in that dirty kitchen at room temp for days. This is me politely describing the flavor. Never again, especially this far away from the islands

I'm starting off 2023 with a 5 star review!…read more This place is legit! I grew up in Little Jamaica in Toronto (Eglinton Ave West and Oakwood Ave) and this place reminds me of all those jerk chicken joints along Eglinton back in the day. And the taste of the food brings me back there too. If you can't handle spice, you might want to steer clear of the Jerk Chicken, but if you like a fiery kick, I definitely recommend it. So I got 2 large Jerk Chicken meals ($17 each) and a large Oxtail meal ($18) for my husband and I and my parents. I have a huge appetite and I can't finish a large, but half a large is not quite enough. So I feel that 3 large meals for 4-5 adults is about right. They have small and medium meals, but a large is a better deal ;) The Jerk Chicken is spicy, but a good kind of lip tingles spicy, not like burn your mouth and make you cry spicy. It's also very flavourful and fall off the bone tender. They only have drumsticks and thighs here, no breast meat. The Oxtail was also good. Less spicy than the jerk chicken but I wouldn't say mild. It was tender and tasty. The rice was delicious, you can taste the coconut milk. I would have liked more beans, but that's just me liking beans. A tad oilier than my preference, but still very enjoyable. I'm not usually a fan of coleslaw, but this one was alright. Not too creamy and it had a good crunch. It helped to cut the heat a bit. The owner is super friendly. He greeted me with "Sistah!" which made me feel very welcomed, and he had a really good positive energy to him. Service was fairly quick too. It's strictly a takeout joint, no place to eat in. They only accept debit or cash, no credit. I found this out when I went to pay with a credit card and he said only debit or cash, and cash is always preferred. I was going to pay with debit, as I don't always have cash, but then I realized that that day I actually had enough cash to cover the meals and told him such and he seemed very pleased. He said "remember your cash when you visit the Rasta man" which made me chuckle. That guy is awesome. The prices are inclusive of tax, so it's nice round numbers when paying cash. The only room for improvement in my opinion is the takeout boxes. They are styrofoam, which is never my preference. Would love it if their takeout boxes were cardboard, but there's no denying the food is da bomb! It's on a residential street. Other than its neighbour that's a barber shop, the rest of the street is houses. There's a tiny parking lot in front, otherwise it's street parking.

We decided to give this place a try while in the area visiting family. We always try to support…read morelocal small businesses particularly carribean-owned businesses. The restaurant is located in a strip mall area nestled between a few other restaurants. While it does not look fancy from the outside or inside. It definitely makes up for everything once the food arrives. The woman who took our order was so nice and very helpful for those who may be indecisive about what you want. We came here for lunch and tried the lunch special. There is seating available for a few customers but you could also do take out. We had the griot and fried chicken special with rice and beans, plantain, pikliz and drink. The food was so tasty and flavorful. We had just the perfect amount of food to leave filled and satisfied. Both dishes had just the perfect amount of spices. The griot was cooked to perfection. The pikliz was just spicy enough but not too hot. Wish we lived in the area to frequent it more often. If you are looking fir authentic carribean and haitian food, this is the place for you. Definitely will recommend to family and friends in the area.

I travel 40% or more and I often end up in dinner meetings at ery expensive places. It is nice to…read morebe able to eat a place that is simply, down home. From the outside, the neighborhood, nor the block, looks high-end. But I have learned never to judge a book by its cover. In this case, the storefront. Does it need an update, yes, but the food is spectacular. I ordered the oxtail and it was phenomenal. The beef was tender and the rice and peas, were just right. The plantain was huge, flattened into thin patties, lightly fried, but sweet. The macaroni salad was delicious. You will enjoy it. A must visit. Bon Apetit.

I checked out this new Jamaican restaurant in Blackburn Hamlet and it was good…read more I got the large jerk chicken platter ($17.99). It came with a drumstick and a thigh. I was expecting more meat for a large, since the large jerk chicken at my favourite place in the Bayshore area is 2 drumsticks and 2 thighs and costs a little bit less. However, I guess this is Blackburn Hamlet and not Bayshore. At any rate, the chicken was nicely spiced and fall off the bone tender. I loved the rice and beans, it had a distinct coconut milk taste that I enjoyed. I got 3 very thin slices of plantain, like razor thin, lol. They were good, but so small in amount, haha. I did get a big dumpling, which is essentially fried dough. It was slightly sweet and not too dense. A bit oily for my tastes, but it was good. I enjoyed the salad which was lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes and olives. The vegetables were all fresh. The takeout box was plastic, which I like over styrofoam (although cardboard is still my favourite). Service was courteous and it didn't take too long for my food. I got takeout but there are seats to eat in. The restaurant is in a converted house. I think it's the only Caribbean restaurant in Blackburn Hamlet. There's a small amount of free parking on-site.

Greetings Conray, As…read morealways, your warm Jamaican hospitality and your delicious Jamaican menu brings a welcome smile to your customers faces! Today, we gobbled up your Goat Curry complete with the trimmings, and we savored your homemade Blind Dates smooooth-ie, too. Looking forward to our next visits! 'Lata', fran

I saw this place on Uber eats and decided to give it a try! My expectations weren't too high but I…read morewas pleasantly surprised. Im glad there is Jamaican food in Orleans! I find the food choices here slim. We ordered the oxtail with rice and peas, which was soo good. The sauce was a bit on the salty side but it was alright with the rice. There were a few plantains which were perfectly both crispy and soft. The oxtail portion was pretty generous compared to other places I've been in ottawa. We also got the curry goat roti. The roti was served on the side. The curry goat was good, but not as good as the oxtail. The roti was delicious, with the perfect texture. I would definitely be back to try more things. The jerk chicken is next!

My brother got us some takeout from this place through UberEats, so I can only comment on the food…read more He got us the Jerk Chicken ($15) which comes with rice and beans, plantains and cooked cabbage and carrots, and the Ox Tail ($17.50) which comes with the same sides. The portion size was good. The chicken came with a drumstick with thigh attached and another drumstick without the thigh attached. The oxtail portion was also not skimpy. Taste-wise, I felt it was 3.5 but I'll round up to 4. The rice did not have very many beans, and while it was fluffy and nicely cooked, I felt that it lacked flavour. The vegetables could have also used more flavour, in my opinion. It got better with the plantains, which were soft and sweet. The chicken was well seasoned and had a spicy kick to it, but it wasn't that spicy, so don't shy away if you don't like too spicy. The Ox Tail was really good. The pieces were tender and the sauce was excellent. Definitely one of the better Ox Tail dishes in Ottawa. It's slim pickings for Jamaican food in Orleans, so I'm happy that this place opened up (it's relatively new. I think it opened up sometime in 2021). Apparently they also serve the Trinidadian street food Doubles! Doubles are a rarity in Ottawa, so I'll need to check them out here sometime ;)

I discovered the existence of Pam Cuisine Caribbean Food while flipping through UberEats, but I…read moreactually ended up going to the restaurant to check it out and ordered while I was there. They opened in the Summer of 2022. Overall, the food was good. I'd say 3.5 stars, but I'll round up to 4 because the lady was really friendly and the wait wasn't too long. I got the large Fried Chicken meal ($18) to share with my husband (we weren't that hungry, so it was enough food, but otherwise, I would say it's not big enough to share for a proper dinner). I initially wanted to get the Jerk Chicken meal, but she said she didn't have any Jerk Chicken that day. The meal came with 2 thighs and a drumstick, rice and beans, 3 pieces of deep-fried plantains, macaroni salad, a tiny container of spicy coleslaw (pikliz) and a small container of sauce. Although the menu did not indicate it was a Haitian dish, the meal was Haitian in style and taste. The chicken was good, but could have used a bit more seasonings in my opinion. The plantains were on the dry side, but they were sweet. The rice was fluffy with plenty of beans. The macaroni salad was really creamy and had little bits of carrots in it. The spicy coleslaw was excellent. Really spicy and vinegar based. I wish there was more of it. The sauce was oily and watery and didn't have much flavour, so I only had a taste and didn't use the rest. The restaurant is in the basement of the Manila Mart grocery store, so look for the Manila Mart, because there's no signage for Pam Cuisine that you can see from the street, at least not during my visit. There's free parking in the small private parking lot on the side of Manila Mart for customers.

This is a Lil secret in Ottawa! The food is delicious. Lots of vegan options. I had the Buss Up…read moreShut Roti with vegetables. Everyone at the table enjoyed their food. The service was local style. Great conversation, very knowledgeable about the menu and food options. Very willing to make changes to the menu to accommodate your preferences. The place is very clean and welcoming. A must do when you are in Ottawa. A taste of the island in the middle of cold Canada. Thank you to the Lil Negril staff. Complements to the chef.

I've only eaten here a few times, but it had been awhile and I was in the mood for Caribbean, so…read morethought I'd order from here. I don't get to have Caribbean food very often, so I got both of my cravings - the curried goat roti and oxtail meals. The curried goat roti was buss up shut. I actually like buss up shut (not wrapped) better because curry goat is always bone-in, so I find it less messy this way since you don't have to open it up. Flavour was great, not too greasy, more meat on the bones than I've had at other places. I just wish there was more of it! There were some large onion slices that I had to cut into smaller pieces, but that didn't bother me. I liked the hearty fried plantains, but could've done without the salad that wasn't as fresh as I would've liked. The roti was perfect, made with chickpeas (flour?), soft and moist, flaky, and still warm. The oxtail was marinated then braised, and came with fried plantains, steamed vegetables, Congo peas (pigeon peas, which are actually beans), and rice. The gravy was good - salty, but very tasty with the peas and rice. Like the curried goat, it also had large onions slices and more meat than I expected. There was more meat than the curried goat dish, but I still wish there was more. The veggies were nice and firm and just had a bit of butter. My husband had the bbq ribs and a side of jerk chicken (chose the white meat only option). The ribs came with fried plantains, peas and rice, and salad. He really enjoyed the ribs but also wished there were more. The jerk chicken wasn't very spicy or had much jerk flavour and had the same barbecue sauce on it, which did help the dryness. Maybe the dark meat would be better next time. We also had the fire wings with tamarind dip. There were four wings in one order - two drumsticks and two flats. They were breaded and crispy and came with the both the fire sauce and tamarind sauce on the side. We thought there would be more and would come tossed in the sauce, but I'm glad they were plain so that they weren't soggy. The fire sauce seemed to be the same barbecue sauce used for the ribs and ribs, which we didn't find very spicy. Tasty but not the spicy "fire" we thought they would be. That was okay, though, because the husband doesn't like it too spicy, anyway! The tamarind sauce was spicier with chunks of tamarind, a bit more watery than saucey, but not too sweet and good flavour. We ordered a side of fries to munch on, but they never came, and we received a refund. Our order came with a free can of coconut water. It a 500ml can of sweetened coconut water with coconut pieces from the Grace brand. All in all, the food was delicious, we just wished they had more meat in the dishes for the price, as we could've easily eaten so much more of it. Sorry, some of the photos are blurry - the husband was too hungry!

This is one of my favorite restaurants in Ottawa. Local owned, food made fresh, amazing flavors,…read morefresh ingredients, and great service. The single best Roti in Ottawa.

First: this place markets itself as Fishy's Tropical Grill. But the sign still says it's Tropical…read moreGarden. Not a huge problem until you're driving around aimlessly and Google Maps is trying to insist you're there, when in fact you're parked in front of a Dollar Store. But once that's sorted out, I definitely recommend this tiny restaurant for some take-out Jamaican eats. We sat in, but the space is small and the ambiance isn't anything to get excited about. The food, though. Much better than a lot of the Jamaican food I've had in Ottawa, especially if you can get a Groupon for 50% off, which is how we found this place to begin with. The classic jerk chicken was particularly good.

I stopped by Reggae Rooster to grab a half chicken jerk platter ($25.25) to go for dinner. Overall,…read morethe food was good, but a bit pricey (since I can get bigger portions for a lower price and just as tasty or tastier in the west end. However, I guess for the Sandy Hill area, those are the prices). The chicken had good flavour and spice. It was fall off the bone, but was a bit dry from sitting around for a while. It had a slight spicy kick, but it wasn't too spicy. The rice and beans were excellent. They asked if I wanted oxtail gravy poured on it. Oh yes, please, lol. I even got a few tiny pieces of tender oxtail meat, yum yum! I got 3 slices of plantains. They were soft and sweet and nicely done. I got to choose between coleslaw and macaroni salad. I chose the coleslaw but maybe should have gotten the macaroni salad. The coleslaw was not to my liking, it was mayo-based and I prefer vinegar-based coleslaw. Service was friendly and very quick. There are a few tables to eat in. They also sell beef patties and coco bread. And some sweets that looked like coconut macaroons. Glad to see some more Caribbean options in this part of town, but I'll likely stick to my favourites closer to home in the west end. Street parking only.

It's unfortunate the old Sandy Hill Lounge and Grill is gone but it's great that it was replaced…read morewith another restaurant, especially a Jamaican place. When I came in, I noticed it's lacking tables so I assume it's mostly counter service to go. The owners/employees are extremely friendly and great to chat with. I checked out the menu and ended up getting the jerk chicken with rice and peas. They also had patties, which obviously was ordered as well. I got my food to go and they told me it'd take about 15 minutes to prepare. I'll start with the patty, would come back for it. I got the spicy and it's not that bad. They make their own sauce in house. The jerk sauce was nice but more a bbq sauce. I like the chicken, there was some charring and it wasn't overcooked. The rice and peas was a bit dry but they haven't been open long so hopefully they're just working things out. All in all I'd come back. 3.5 on the food, 5 for the awesome people there.