Dining Out
Jamaican food sizzles with sunshine and heat. Ocho Rios is served well by the food of all nations and the usual restaurant chains — but it would be rude to not focus on the blessed island cuisine; in our worldview it’s the bestest of the bunch.
For ‘when in Rome’ reasons, we do not currently list international food outlets* — why come all this way and not indulge in the delicious local cuisine?
Many of the so-called ‘all-inclusives’ prefer their guests not to venture beyond the gates for whatever feigned rationale, sadly taking away a lot of the tourist business from local restaurants and bars.
To escape from such wristband-required obligation and go sample the local food certainly beats queuing three times a day like ants at a picnic for yet another ho-hum ‘all-inclusive’ buffet.
*But for those who just can’t resist floating a large vindaloo on top of a belly full of Red Stripe, we will be adding a ‘selected selection’ of restaurants serving the food of faraway lands given time.
Street Food to Die For
Tasty jerk will make your fillings sizzle
Street food, glorious street food. Come early evening, the sounds and smells gather roadside as jerk carts are fired up to fill the street with the sweetest smoke and the most chickenous of temptings.
Street food is fresh and delicious. Hot jerk chicken straight off the grill, freshly cleavered and wrapped in foil with a squirt of hot sauce (and a piece of white hardo bread to cool your boots) will blow your socks off.
On weekend nights during Farmers’ Market, the street food gathering at the Market entrance is quite a commotion. Chefs come from all over God’s Creation to rumble your tummy in a dark, smoking frizzle-fest of dutchie pots, bubbling away over charcoal stoves repurposed from the wheels of cars. Just watch your step on the rubbly ground.
“Overnight boiled dumplings, fried…”
Try fry chicken, fry fish, steam fish, bammy, festival, fry dumplings and curry goat. Jamaicans love a generous helping of rice ‘n’ peas, mix veg and callaloo on the side too. Look out for the little Boston jerk pork cart… and if you can find that elusive guy who sometimes pops up to sell bully beef sandwiches, all Heaven will break loose!
Restaurants and Cookshops We Love
While it’s convenient enough to grab a quick, delicious spicy beef patty or two from one of the island fast food chains (see bottom of page), there is an abundance of cookshops and restaurants to make your mouth water and your belly full, serving up real island fare all the way down the busy strip of Main Street and beyond.
“Nuff gravy ‘pon de rice…”
For those we heartily, hungrily recommend for a real Jamaican sit-your-batty-down experience, tuck in your bib and read on.
MISS T’S KITCHEN
★ OCHI INSIDER ★
Our first-up foodie heaven at 65 Main Street with its open-plan, all-Jamaican crazy decor (pictured). This gorgeous award-winning ‘restaurant to the stars’ has dished up “Nice Jamaica Country Cookin’” since 2009. For the latest adventures with Miss T and the gang, view their Website, Facebook or Instagram. Look on the map for Yellow 1 ►
CHOSEN RESTAURANT
★ OCHI INSIDER ★
Main Street (formerly Centre Spot), opposite the Singer store. Small, cosy, no-frills restaurant run by the same family since 1989. Serving the national dish of ackee and saltfish, brown stew pork, fry chicken, mackerel and red bean soup. And Wilson’s favourite breakfast: kidneys and callaloo with a couple of saltfish fritters (weird combo but it’s wonderful). Yellow 2 ►
CIRCLE CENTRE
Just inside the Market off Main Street, this homely cookshop, family-run since 1984, is always bright and cheery, and usually packed with market folks spooning down the delicious red bean soup. Yellow 3 ►
SAN-MAR CAFÉ
Delightful little Ocean Village hole-in-the-wall in with friendly service and daily-changing menu. There are tables outside under the large gazebo where you can sit and eat with the locals. Yellow 5 ►
MONGOOSE
52 Main Street, right next to the big storm gully. Varied menu (their scrumptious jerk burger repays a glance), an open air seating option, and live reggae every Saturday night. For more useful Mongooseful info on other weekly events such as Martini Thursdayz and Ignite Fridayz, find them on Instagram and Facebook. Yellow 6 ►
OCHO RIOS JERK CENTRE
On DaCosta Drive, back of Turtle River Park just by the gas station interchange, is a haven for jerk lovers (pictured) to take away or sit down to stuff their faces in the big wooden atrium or the bar area front of restaurant. The succulent jerk pork and platter are exceptional and will freak you out. Instagram and Facebook. Yellow 8 ►
GOLDEN LOAF & PIZZA KING
59 Main Street. A bakery with a sort of Jamaican pizzeria, but — here’s the deal clincher — they do a top notch hot jerk chicken sandwich and are Wilson’s #1 provider of emergency cheesecake. A pleasant out-front shady seating area awaits you too. Yellow 9 ►
JACK RUBY’S
Brightly coloured walls and rustic decor (pictured) with a side order of reggae grace this spotless den of esculent eatables at the top of James Avenue. The restaurant is named after the music legend, and located in the Jack Ruby Plaza near the site of the great man’s Ochi HQ. Yellow 10 ►
ALMOND TREE
Along Main Street to the east of town. Hibiscus Lodge’s own restaurant has a gorgeous clifftop location and garden walkways. Perhaps get there early before the views are diminished when the Jamaica sun sets around 6 each evening. Visit their Website or find them on Instagram and Facebook. Yellow 11 ►
SPRING GARDEN SEAFOOD
…& Steak House. Along the Ochi Bypass just before you get to Irie FM. “Since 1999, this garden oasis has served up scrumptious seafood and mouth-watering dishes to locals and travelers alike.” Get a taste of their fulsome seafood and steak menu over on Instagram and Facebook. Yellow 14 ►
FISHERMAN’S VILLAGE
Though Fisherman’s Village falls outside of our featured area, there are not many places on earth where fans of the James Bond movies can feast on amazing seafood whilst gazing over at the headquarters of Dr No!
Of a dozen or so cookshops to tickle your fancy at this clinical revamp of the old Fisherman’s Beach, two we like so far:
Jangalee Seafood (pictured) — see Instagram and Facebook. Yellow 12 ►
Veggie & Ital
Derived from the word ‘vital’, Ital (or I-tal) is the Rastafarian food of choice to promote health and energy. Natural and from the earth, any processed foods and meat products are out.
For both spiritual and health reasons, Ital heightens your sense of livity, the “universal energy and life force that flows through us all” (it says here).
HEALTHY WAY
Shop 54 at Ocean Village is home to this bright and airy vegan cookshop and health food store (pictured). Let us let them big up themselves: “The one stop store for all your vegan dishes, Jamaican herbs, natural juices and so much more.”
Take a glance at their Facebook page.
Look on the map for Yellow 15
►
CALABASH RASTARANT
DaCosta Drive, up the stairs to the first floor at Fung’s Plaza. Big helpings, good vibes... lovely veggie food and fresh juices abound in a clean, sizeable hallowed joint. You can also purchase from a display of gift items, packaged foodstuffs, nic-nacs and items of clothing too. Yellow 17 ►
Ice Cream & Tasty Treats
Not strictly speaking Jamaican cooking but ice cream is a tasty treat nonetheless whenever the sun is shining — which is every day!
You can really taste the rum in the local rum ‘n’ raisin — more than two of these and it’s Party Time!
RIKA’S DELISHUS TREATS
★ OCHI INSIDER ★
An independent smoothie, juice, protein shake and milkshake bar at #24 Beecham Plaza. (Wraps, hot dogs, fries, ciabattas and other savoury things are also on the go.) Lots of photos to swoon over on Instagram and Facebook. Yellow 27 ►
Jamaican ‘Fast Food’ Chains
Island Grill breakfast — now just you try eating yam with a plastic fork!
We will soon add this bitesome bunch of Jamaican chain restaurants to our map. Until then...
ISLAND GRILL churns out breakfasts, jerk and amazing BBQ from their Little Pub Complex premises. “Our own special BBQ, Jerk and Yabbas have all the goodness that makes island cooking delicious and exciting.” They have a Website.
JUICI PATTIES, located just by the Clock Tower with another at the Eight Rivers Plaza, put the emphasis on the delicious staple Jamaican patty (you’ll need more than one, washed down with a grape soda). See the Website.
MOTHERS offers breakfasts, fried chicken and patties at 17 Main Street, right opposite the Clock Tower. “Fully Jamaican-owned, our priority is to serve and empower our people with true Jamaican pride.” Visit their Website.
CAPTAIN’S BAKERY for typical Jamaican fast food fare but with extra points awarded for their pastries and cakes and stuff. Look for the big yellow and red pole thing on Rennie Street which runs parallel to DaCosta Drive.
