Island Grill — Restaurant in Ottawa

DON'T GO, IT'S BAD

Extremely disappointed. Not the food so much, but how they run the place. I ordered boneless jerk chicken, plantains, ox tail gravy and can. What I got was chicken with bone, extra ox tail meal, half done plantains and no can. I asked them to give me an ox tail gravy rather than the whole meal itself later on but still had the wrong chicken and did not get my drink that I paid for.

The cashier girl looks like she hates working there and hates the customers, didn't even apologize when she realized she brought me an extra meal I did not ask for. I realized the chicken had bones and plantains were half done and the absence of my drink when I got home since it was a pick up order.

There are two possible explanations for this. Either the cashier has serious problems or she mistreates customers who don't tip. I have two suggestions, 1) find new employees who are going to at least smile and be polite towards customers and own their mistakes. 2) Don't expect to get tipped just because you are cooking. There are no tables and no hospitality on your part, you are just taking orders and packaging the food. That does not qualify for tip, and you shouldn't treat your customers depending on that.

At the end of the day, I did not enjoy the food I got, and they owe me a can. Horrible experience for someone who loves...

When I first found this place it was great, but it seems to have gone down to a hit or miss now. I always get the oxtail plate and usually it tastes great, lots of big pieces of oxtail and flavorful sauce. The last few times I went, the rice was dry and I barely got any sauce, with 3 or 4 tiny pieces of oxtail that don't fall off the bone. Not sure if they have a new cook or maybe I ordered too close to closing and they were almost out of food so I ended up with the bottom of the pot, but it sucked. Especially since I usually order on UberEats where the prices are higher than getting it in person and I pay for delivery. Decided to try it one last time today before giving up and it was back to normal, but the quality seems inconsistent so I won't be ordering as often as I used to.

The restaurant itself is a nice small place, you can get take out or sit and eat. Whoever is at the front desk/bar that day is always welcoming. Only thing I don't like is that they don't open until late afternoon on most days, usually either 3 or 4 so I can never get it for lunch. Compared to Toronto, the portions are much bigger for around the same prices, and it tastes way better too. Never disappointed unless it's one of...

Sorrel juice was good. I am sure the kitchen was having an off night or something because I never leave reviews but wow. Terrible food. I was really exited to find a Caribbean food place that looked good in Ottawa (I’m from Toronto where there’s a place on every block and they’re all amazing). Ordered on Uber eats and the roti was doughy and sooo thick, veggies where definitely frozen veg medley they just threw in a pan with some spices. I asked for chana (only chickpeas and potatoes) got basically all veg and I think I found 1 piece of potatoe. Also weird veg like… green beans and Lima beans in roti???? Very odd. Flavour was lacking salt as-well. Also in the salad the tomatoes and cucumbers were massive chunks and the dressing was so sweet I could barely take 3 bites. Tasted like candy. Maybe I’m crazy because they have good reviews but that wasn’t just bad because it wasn’t authentic it was just bad food period. I have no problem spending money on good food but I paid $30 for duttines when at home I get the best Caribbean roti for $10 or less. Ottawa needs more culture and authenticity.

(I don’t mean to hurt anyones feelings I was just so so disappointed...