Island Spice Bar & Grill

The service here was God Awful… Only one other table was seated and we’re done… We come in and sit down, the table was dirty. We had to wait 10 minutes before the table was cleaned and another 10 for our drinks. We were dining in and our food was brought to us in to-​go packaging. This was not the service I recall I. The past!

I have been to this establishment before later and the evening and the food was amazing. Me and my husband decided to stop by for lunch and the food was horrible! I was very disappointed that we spent 35.00 on food that tasted and smell that it had not been cooked freshly only warmed up. I tried to explain to my husband that on a previous visit the food was quite delicious and he wasn’t buying it. I wanted to call and let the manager know about our experience but decided to write this review. Please stay consistent and serve fresh food. Would I visit this restaurant again no!

I was pleasantly surprised by this restaurant was small but very nicely decorated and welcoming. The food was delicious I ordered the Vegetable Curry dish with Dhal Pouri, a side of plantains and cabbage, everything had so much flavor. The employee/​owners were extremely friendly as well, the only negative was that I waited quite a while for the food as they were out of the vegetable curry dish when I arrived.

Everything about this place is 5 star !! Allen or Ellen owner is super nice and caring, the owner make food from scratch. Fresh, never frozen !!! Caribbean food at its best

Visited late on a Saturday night to pick up a bite. Apparently the restaurant becomes a reggae night club after hours but they were still serving food.
There was a door man. He showed me in and handed me a menu. Good menu selection. The bar tender took my order, let me know the wait and asked if i wanted a drink. I tried a flaming Bob Marley. Pretty drink that tasted like super strong cold medicine. I’m not much of a drinker but I’m a sucker for flaming drinks with fun names. :-)
I tried the jerk chicken with cabbage and beans n rice. Chicken was good but i forgot to specify mild (not a fan of spicy food at all) but since i took it to go, had to fight through the heat. Cabbage was super sweet but after you got past the sweetness, it was delish. Beans and rice were perfect. Will be back during normal restaurant hours to truly experience this little gem.

Had the Jerk Chicken and rice. My babe had the Curry Shrimp. We could not stop eating on both of our plates. Flavors on POINT! Gotta have the Island Spice Rum Punch!

I don’t drink so you won’t normally find me at a happy hour but I’m drinking a Mauby. It’s made from Guyanese tree bark and some other secret stuff.
It’s good but strong. I had to smell it to make sure it was non alcoholic. #VisitBlackHouston #BlackMoneyMatters

The food is very tasty. Very friendly service. They deliver. Large serving portions. Rachael is very kind and hospitable.

This place is more than it seems. It sits in a small strip mall but when you go inside there’s a stylish bar, it’s family owned with an authentic Caribbean chef. The food is fresh and delicious. The chef travels down to the coast every few days to get the freshest ingredients like shark! The best shark I’ve ever had was here. There’s also oxtail on the menu that’s just amazing. This stuff is all hand made from real ingredients and when it’s gone, it’s gone. There’s no backup in the freezer at this place, it’s all homemade, no chemicals or pre packaged food! You can taste the difference. This place is the real experience!
A few tips: HAVE TIME, the meal and service can take some time because your server is usually the chef too. It forces you to enjoy a drink and some conversation with your company. REAL FOOD, quality over quantity here. The portions are decently sized, but not huge, this is no McDonalds. SPECIAL ORDER, you only want something special like the shark or oxtail? Call ahead to make sure it’s in.
Give this diamond in the rough a try!

Love it there the oxtails are amazing… yummy
The staff was very friendly and I felt right at home.
Try it out.

I have to come back again. I wanted a beef patty or chicken patty but the fryer was closed down and they were out, so I tried the oxtails. It was late on a Saturday and it could have just been me having a long day and I wasn’t feeling well.
Several patrons conversations about sports and other stuff… was absolutely hilarious to me. Can you imagine sitting their trying to read a book on your phone and you hear these guys with and without accents going on about sports and different venues in Houston. LOL.
I will go back and then update my review.

After reading all of the great reviews, I decided to stop by during a lunch break.
The restaurant was clean and appealing, but other than a guy sitting at the bar and a couple sitting at a table with menus, that was it. I waited for ten minutes for one employee to come out and never saw one. The guy at the bar waited with an empty beer bottle; the couple just sat in disbelief. We all just stared at each other in silence until I took off for somewhere else. Such a bummer.

We decided to try this place through finding it on Unilocal at 4pm on a Sunday. We went to the grocery store first to see what goodies we could buy and decided we would eat first.
We walked next door and the man from the grocery followed us over, seated us and gave us menus. We were the only table.
He took our drink order and then our order. Two things we wanted they were out of– oxtail, tilapia and black pudding.
Kinda bummed about the oxtail the most.
We then ordered a chicken meat pie and a beef along with the jerk chicken meal and the chicken curry. Both came with sweet plantains and rice with beans.
I showed him my Unilocal check in for the free beef pie and he took my phone, stared at it and said oh uhh oh uhh the manager isn’t here right now so he can’t give me the free pie.
We waited 10 minutes and the meat pies came out. We still didn’t have silverware, so he brought it to us when I asked for it.
Sooooo delicious. Each pie wonderful in their own way. I could eat just these for a meal.
Then the wait begins.
Over 20 minutes after we finished the pies our food finally came out. Everything was terrific but then again we were so hungry and the pies just wet our appetite.
While we ate another man came in to sit and eat and another for a Togo order.
The one man working does it all, grocery store, waiter, bartender and cook, it seems. Still, this service is ridiculous.
We waited another 7 minutes after finishing to get a box to take home the leftovers and asked for the check. Another 5 minutes for the check to arrive.
Overall we were there well over an hour for two meals and an appetizer and we were the only table at the start.
Other than the one Togo order and the one other man who ate a meal, we were the only business.
IF we decide to come here again, we will order to go as the service was just unacceptably slow.
The food, if they have it, was fantastic. I’d hate to come here when it’s actually busy.

I was pleasantly surprised by this place! I’ve passed the establishment several times and finally stopped. The food was very good and I’ll most definitely be going back as a regular. Got the opportunity to engage with Ms. Ellen who is a sweetheart and made sure everything was to our liking. Basically… good food, good people, and good drinks!

After living in Hawaii for many years, I have finally found my island home in Houston. I didn’t expect to find it on West Little York however, and only 15 minutes from my house. I am a fan of good, clean food that represents the heart and soul of the person who cooked it. That was my lunch today. In addition to a flow of smiling faces and Bob Marley in the background I was transported back home.
I had the vegetable curry plate, peas and rice, and fried plantains. It was beautiful. Flavors were amazing! And this was the first time I’ve ever eaten cabbage in a restaurant that was NOT soggy.
The staff was genuinely friendly as was the owner of the restaurant. Apparently they have a club on Friday nights. Island nightlife in Northwest Houston??? Whaaaaat? They will be seeing a lot of me :).

They are going through renovations it appears, and is a bit of a work in progress. Service was awesome, my server was a little overwhelmed managing everything going on but super nice.
So all of that… and the food was fabulous. I’ve had Jerk chicken before but decided to try jerk pork. Amazing!

I have frequented this restaurant maybe 6 or 7 times now. Also used Ms. Ellen to cater my son’s graduation party last year. Everything is wonderful, well seasoned, not greasy, and very fresh. I have tried the jerk wing appetizer (which I love), oxtails, curry goat, roti (delicious), lo mein (fresh and delicious. you will never order from a Chinese restaurant again!)
With that being said. Only one, well two complaints. they often run out of curry beef which is just absolutely amazing. Number two? Well the curry goat is not consistent. My family is Jamaican so I know good curry goat when I eat it. Sometimes great, sometimes not so great, but never bad.
Ms. Ellen made a lasagna that served 50 ppl, a hot shrimp & pasta, mixed green & yellow green beans, jerk chicken, and a beautiful salad. The lasagna was the best I have ever tasted honestly. Several people asked me where I bought it. One gentleman (Jamaican guy) said when he came to this country, he lived in New York. He fell in love with lasagna there and has never since tasted one quite like his first one in New York until Ms. Ellen’s lasagna. I know I’m laying it on thick but the lasagna was amazing!

My husband and I went here for the first time tonight, we ordered the Jerk Chicken, Plantains, the cabbage and rice with beans. We were really hungry and the portions here are very small. The Jerk Chicken was so small and it barely had any meat on the bones. The cabbage I was so excited to eat the cabbage as soon as I put it in my mouth, I spat it out, it was disgusting. The cabbage tasted like pickle juice with vinegar. That’s not how the other restaurants fix it. I won’t be returning to this place, it was way over priced for just a few bites of food. I will be going a extra twenty minutes up the street to our usual place, the only reason why we came here is because someone mentioned it.

Great food with friendly staff!
The oxtails are AMAZING… OMG, so tender, and don’t get me started on that DELICIOUS gravy.
Beef patties are also delicious. I also had a great cocktail of cocoa liqueur and coconut rum.
This is a tiny spot, but well worth checking out.
The owner told us that on Friday nights, there is a DJ, drink specials, and complimentary appetizers. Get there early, because there are only about 7 tables in the restaurant.

I have to say, one more star is deserved and yet I need to go back again to verify it!
This is a great little place. Tons of character and fantastic home cooking, super friendly service and such a welcoming owner. The food had a great flavor, perfectly cooked and oh so tender. I had the curried goat which was dark and rich in its flavour and served with some great beans and rice. The homemade hot sauce is wonderful, very hot but still sweet with elements of every single spice.
They have a grocery store next door and it adds to how well worth the drive was. I hope to be back someday.
KT