- Chicago, the former Second City, now the third-largest city in the United States, has an ethnically diverse population. Many people of Caribbean descent have settled in the Illinois city, including lots of Jamaicans. In addition to calypso and reggae bars, there are many authentic Jamaican diners and restaurants. If you're looking for tasty, authentic Jamaican food, you'll find it in Chicago.
- Head over to Lincoln Park, on the city's north side, for home-style island cuisine served up by Ja' Grill chef Errol Gallimore, who emigrated from Jamaica in 1992 after learning to cook from his mother. Fresh ingredients and attention to detail make for good eating at Ja' Grill. Seafood dishes are the specialty of the house. Try the grouper escoveitch with julienned veggies, fish soup with pumpkin, or the delightful smoky and spicy jerk catfish. Of course, no Jamaican meal is complete without chewing the rich morsels of meat off oxtails. Wash it all down with the house rum punch, made from tropical juices and three kinds of rum. The Ja' Grill is open seven days a week.
Ja' Grill
1008 W. Armitage Ave.
Chicago, IL 60614
773-929-5375
jagrill.com - Since Hyde Park's Dixie Chicken closed, the Calypso Cafe is the place to go for tropical decor, steel drum calypso music and spicy island fare. The clientele is a diverse crowd of locals, visitors and University of Chicago students. Start with an appetizer such as spicy jerk chicken wings, cumin-spiked black beans with plantain chips, or conch fritters. For the entree, try an order of jerk chicken or fish and maybe a bowl of tomato and conch chowder. And don't forget a frozen drink--perhaps the Island Viagra or a Nutty Mon. The Calypso Cafe is open seven days a week.
Calypso Cafe
5211 S. Harper Ave.
Chicago, IL 60615
773-955-0229 - If you have a hankering for jerk chicken, the all-time favorite Jamaican dish, head to the East Garfield Park neighborhood's Ja's Jerk Chicken. Johnetta "Ja-Ja" Martin-Smith and her sister Tonya know what they're doing when it comes to jerk chicken. The spice-rubbed birds are first cooked in a charcoal-fired aquarium smoker, then finished off in an oven, which makes them extra-juicy. The jerk sauce is vinegary with high notes of allspice. The bird is served on a bed of rice and beans. Ja's is also known for its oxtails and tender curried goat. The sisters' mother is the dessert chef, and is known for her peach cobbler smothered in caramelized brown sugar. Ja's Jerk Chicken is open seven days a week.
Ja's Jerk Chicken
2806 W. Lake St.
Chicago, IL 60612
773-533-5375
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