Mama Blu's Food Co. & Kitchen — Restaurant in Melbourne

So this recipe article from Yotam Ottolenghi for a spiced grilled jerk chicken came up in my Google feed, and it looked incredible. I was excited to read that the recipe came from a Jamaican chef at a Melbourne restaurant, Mama Blu's. It turns out that I was flying into Melbourne the next day, so I was thrilled to be able to make a booking for my chef mum and me.

Upon arrival, the space felt warm, welcoming, and casual. We began with a Jamaican rum old fashioned, which came with some chocolate bitters. It was lovely, refreshing, notes of tropical fruits, spices, and molasses and really opened up the palate. I also ordered a Red Stripe because you already know 🤷🏻‍♂️

We had a great explanation of the menu from the manager and ordered the Ackee and Saltfish. We were told that it would be something hard to come by on a menu around here, so we had to try it. It was very savory and fresh, as if the ingredients had just been harvested and fished from the sea. I enjoyed this one slowly to really appreciate some unique Caribbean flavors.

We followed up with the curry goat, which was accompanied by in-house roti bread. The goat literally fell off the bone, and it was one of the best goat curries I've ever had in Melbourne or Sydney. The spice mix was on point, and the dish was so full of flavor. The roti bread was fresh, with a wonderful flavor and a char that added further complexity and depth to the dish.

We finished off by sharing a half jerk chicken, coleslaw, and yam and cassava fries.

The chicken was incredible, with the most beautiful char yet so moist and juicy. I've never had chicken like it before - it had so much flavor and was falling off the bone, accompanied by a delightful hickory barbecue-style sauce. I can confirm there were only a handful of chicken bones left on the plate, it was that good. On the side came a small salad with watercress, microgreens, baby Roma tomatoes, and the perfect light vinaigrette - a nice touch, delicious and refreshing.

I've got to say, the yam and cassava fries are some of the best fries I've ever eaten. They were not oily, and I didn’t get the texture of a whole bunch of mini salt crystals; yet they were seasoned perfectly. They were so crisp, so light, yet with starchy goodness and such depth of flavor, served with a voodoo chili mayo dipping sauce cut to the perfect size of around an average index finger.

The accompanying coleslaw was delicious—fresh, light, and with a slight acidity beautifully balanced.

I'm really glad I fasted breakfast and ate lightly throughout the day to enjoy what was one of the most memorable meals I've had in some time. As I love to seek out food spots wherever I go, I can honestly say it really stands out for the difference in its offerings and its excellence.

The service was warm, very efficient yet informal. They even opened the door for us on the way out and we felt very welcomed and beautifully hosted.

All of this food plus a beautiful cocktail and two imported beers was around $70 each, mind you we did go all out on the menu and for this quality in Melbourne it's great value. I highly recommend Mama Blu's, and I will definitely be going...

Overpriced, small portion sizes are usually the sort of thing you expect from a Michelin star restaurant. This however was more like an episode of Girdon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares.

Our entres took 45 minutes to arrive, with only ONE other table of two in the entire dining room. That was thw first red flag!

The beef patties were the size of a child's palm, bland, and bone dry, as though they were reheated. The beef ribs, if you could even call them that, were 85% fat, and so tough my partner and even myself struggled to chew them.

Then the price! Forget about it, we left as though we had paid for quite the meal, when in fact two of our party of five are feeling unwell and another, myself is currently eating a croissant back at home due to not being at all satisfied with the amount food served for the money spent.

Do yourself a favour and avoid this place....worst meal I have EVER had.

And what makes it worse is I looked thoroughly at the website and was really looking forward to trying a new...

Our visit here was sadly really disappointing. We came with a group, and between us tried a fair chunk of their rather small menu. I have to say the corn bread was really bad, it was dense, dry and completely devoid of flavour.

All the other dishes seemed to share the same middling spice mix so they all tasted pretty much identical. Portions were on the smaller size of average, but the prices definitely weren't. Service was great though, and the owner is friendly and informative.

Overall, it was the most average 'Caribbean' food experience we've had in Melbourne. Nothing about this place feels particularly authentic nor does it have much of a vibe, and the food is bland and slightly overpriced. Seating is also cramped and feels cheap.

Maybe worth popping in for the goat curry if you're local and love goat curries as theirs is the standout from the menu, but even then you're spending $28 on a small serve of curry that you have to accompany with a $10-$15 side. Money probably better spent elsewhere...