Donna’s Home Caribbean Restaurant

Didnt care for it wasnt favorable. .plus her daughter has a BAD attitude… for first timers she wasnt trying to help or recommend or explain anything. .oxtails to damn small mostly gravy &rice w the meat that had fallen off from cooking them. very disappointed… … :-(:-(

My jerk chicken to go! First time here I would say this is my favorite spot. Very friendly plus that punch drink is fire!!! Lol I will be coming back !!! Thanks for the good food

Truly a bland veggie plate: Vegall and cabbage, flavorless rice and beans. Satisfactory plantain and surprisingly zippy cucumber juice. If your food is boring, don’t open a restaurant. This place could be a gold mine, if Chef Robert Irvine had his way; instead it’s forgettable. Canned beans, not okay.

I’ve been coming here for years and the consistency of the food is amazing. Anything that I’ve ever tried tasted great! I would love for her to cook Festival Bun everyday instead of Fridays only. My favorites are:
Curry Shrimp
Brown Stew fish
Fried fish
Esciviche Fish
The rice and peas are ALWAYS GOOD as well as her homemade juices. My favorite juice is the pineapple and ginger and the sorrel (like a hibiscus punch). This food is worth every penny and I recommend Donna’s to everyone looking for authentic Jamaican food.

Looking for good Jamaican place near me and I dribbled across this place Donna’s. The other Jamaican restaurant I’ve tried in Hawthorne wasn’t too impressive, so I’ve been hesitant to try something other than We Jammin’ in LA. I have seen it a couple times but never decided to try it until today. I was kindly greeted as I walked in. The menu was readily available. I always test a Jamaican restaurants food quality by the taste of the jerk chicken, curry chicken and/​or goat, and their homemade juices. Those items will always give you an ideal of their Jamaican cuisine are good.
I ordered one plate of jerk chicken with rice & peas, veggies, one plate of curry chicken with rice & peas, veggies, and one to go for the road. I also ordered some fresh juice of Pineapple and ginger. The didn’t have plantain today, but the owner/​cook Donna saw how sad I was told me she’d make me some to make me feel special– perfect.
I got the juice first since it was ready to be poured and editors about 5−10mins for the food. The juice was a refreshing pineapple with just the right hint of ginger. You could tell it was genuine ginger from its kick and not some water-​down ginger. Awesome. The food came and when I looked at it my tongue began to salivate. It looked delicious. I sat down and ate the rice & peas first. Next the veggies. Any Jamaican can make those i wasn’t expecting to be «wow’d» but it. I bit my first piece of jerk chicken and yummy. The jerk sauce was a perfect blend or taste and spicy. It tasted like I was in my aunt kitchen in Kingston, Jamaica. I finished that piece and ate and second and it was great also. The meat was falling off the bone as if it had been marinated for hours.
Next I ate the curry chicken. Yummy. The curry took me back to jamaica also. The curry had potato chunks (amazing) and the sauce was perfect. Needless to say I allowed my eyes to be bigger than my stomach and I could not finish it all. I have lots leftover for later– that makes me happy. I also can guarantee that I WILL be back here again. Donna’s has a customer for life with me :)
Also the prices for the food are:
Large = $ 14.00
Small = $ 11.00
Mini = $ 6.00
I will advocate for anyone looking for solid Jamaican food to come to Donna’s!

Donnas is the best Caribbean food around the South Bay, however their prices are a lil high. $ 20 can be gone faster then you obtained it! Bomb food but high prices, ‘They need to Cut It’

Love this place. Great homecooked food, delicious spices, super fast service. Felt totally welcome and everyone coming in seemed like happy repeat customers. Also, is so clean you can eat off the floors.

oxxx taaaiiiillllllsss!!! must have everytime i go to this place! i think that you should have it too!!! the jerk and curry chicken are also amazing! cute and clean place.

Food is delicious and authentic!
Donna and her daughter are very sweet.
Call ahead, if possible, as the specials change frequently.

A little on the pricy side but boy is the food good.
I had the brown stew chicken which comes with a side of rice/​beans and steamed vegetables. The chicken is excellent and falls off the bone. For those of you that are familiar with Mexican chicken molé, this is about the closest I can compare the flavor too. The brown stew chicken slightly sweet, savory, earthy (I mean this in a good way), and juicy.
So I’d say it is definitely worth the price ($ 12 more or less). I would also recommend ordering your food to go. The location itself is small and there are only 2 small tables inside the restaurant. I noticed most of the patrons get their food to go anyway.
Also, be weary of parking as this small plaza parking lot fills up rather quickly. Keep in mind there are 2 mini parking lots within this plaza, so in case parking is full right in front of Donna’s you can park next to the liquor store next to it (same plaza). However, I have to admit that I came around the peak lunch hours (noonish).
I’ll be back for the jerk chicken, ox-​tail, and chicken curry…

I’ve been living in California for 8 years now and I’ve spent most of it looking for authentic, delicious Caribbean food. I’m a Trinidadian, born and mostly raised, so I know good Caribbean food. Donna’s is it!
I went there today for the first time. The restaurant is small but clean, and the girl at the front who was taking the orders seemed very nice and efficient.
The oxtails were amazing! My hubby had the curry goat and that was pretty tasty. My daughters had the brown stew chicken and loved it.
My only negative issue (which is why there are 4 stars and not 5), is that when I called around 11:30am, I was told the jerk chicken would be ready in an hour. When I got there around noon, I was told the jerk chicken would be ready in an hour. Then when I was leaving at 12:30, I was told the jerk chicken was just done being prepped, and wouldn’t be ready for (drumroll)…an hour!
But I will definitely go back. I’ll just make sure next time that the jerk chicken is actually ready before I get there.

Yes Donna’s is a homey friendly place off Prairie Ave. below El Segundo Blvd in Hawthorne. The only Jamaican catered place that serve gungo peas and rice; which I love.

My boyfriend has never tried authentic jerk chicken and it just so happens to be one of my favourite things in the entire universe. I was in town visiting and decided it was time. It was July 4^th weekend and we hadn’t considered the idea that service might be affected. We arrived at the shop. It was small. The interior was simple and reminded me a bit of grandma’s kitchen. It was cute. We walked in and were greeted by two older ladies, one, presumably, Donna herself. They were friendly and sweet.
There was no jerk chicken to be had that day. They were on a limited menu but the lady at the counter so graciously explained that it was due to the holiday weekend. She let us know what was available. Oxtail it was. We decided to share a plate as I just wasn’t sure.
After some issues with the credit card machine and my card having been swiped several times, due to printer issues, I think the concern on my face was apparent. The kind server told us to take the food and check my bank statement at a later date and come back if the funds did not get drawn. The honour system, what? We paid anyway not wanting to put her out and headed home with our take out.
OH MY GOD. The oxtail was to die for. My boyfriend almost stabbed me with his fork and was behaving like a rabid dog protecting his food. :) There’s nothing that makes me happier than to see him enjoying a meal. Will definitely be back to see Donna and to try the Jerk Chicken.

–Super delicious food! My fav is the Curry chicken w/​rice & peas + plantains.
–Call before going in because sometimes the dishes you want aren’t ready yet. Festival served pretty much on Friday evenings only.
–I usually have a nice appetite for lunch and the mini size is very filling.
–Try the cucumber/​ginger juice! …They also have pineapple/​ginger and carrot/​ginger juice.
–The service is decent, but I don’t loooove it lol. I’m not picky tho, so it’s okay.

Momma makes THE best Caribbean food! Her Ox Tail with rice and peas are to die for! I always get the mini because the small is way too much for me I feel like it’s a 2 – 3 person plate! Over all this place is awesome because it’s a home cooked meal!

Went in today and the place was spotless everywhere. From what a saw a very clean kitchen, bathroom was clean as well.
Had the goat special and it’s true what the other Unilocalers say the meat was falling off the bone.
Food was fresh and delicious… Nice Caribbean spices!
Quick and friendly service.
Will definitely be back.

Great place to go for Jamaican cuisine. The service was very good and not to mention the food was great. I totally recommend this place if you are ever in the area.

Best Jamaican food. If you want somebody serves you to the table, go some where else. But this restaurant is where you come to get real good food for affordable price. Fresh cooked everything. Donna the owner is a nice lady.

The chicken soup brought me back to life! Thank you so much Donna, you’ll be seeing more of me

I rarely play the «I’m Jamaican card,» probably because there is so rarely a game in which that card wins me any points… Today however I’m playing my hand.
I was so excited to try this place out. Ever since moving back to the west coast I’ve been seriously craving the delicious eats from Avenue D and Utica in Brooklyn… Yes, I know that’s not Jamaica but if you’ve ever been you know it’s as close as it gets. Beef patties, curry goat, rice and beans and plantains with some super questionable looking ginger beer to wash it down, all for ~$ 10.
That’s all I wanted when I walked through Donna’s door. Instead there were no beef patties (???) and my meal wasn’t that good. The plantains weren’t even ripe so they were hard and dry, the chicken barely had any meat on it, just lots of bones.
Three people = $ 50? In what world?
I’m glad I gave them a try but I think next I’m craving Jamaican food I’ll just ask my mom to make it… Or fly to NY. :)