Cafe Mobay — Restaurant in Bloomfield

Does Mobay mean flavor in some other language? Well, it does to me. This review is selfishly long overdue because I have been enjoying Patrick and his family's scrumptious meals for several months. Whether brunch, lunch or dinner, I have never been disappointed eating here.

Ok, let's get specific: Saucy oxtails in a rich, brown gravy over perfectly seasoned rice and beans. Tenderly sauteed spinach with a hint of smoke--so good you will want to lick the plate. Or how about the perfectly fried chicken that is crispy on the outside yet moist on the inside (how do they keep it from being greasy??) Did I almost forget to mention they have refreshing homemade juices--my favorite is pineapple, but my husband loved their sorrel. BYOB if you want something stronger.

The weekday lunch special is reasonably priced and an excellent value for the generous portion sizes. But then on Saturday and Sunday, they serve breakfast like all their other meals--piping hot and made to order fresh from the kitchen.I will post a picture instead of telling you about that. #yummy.

Island tunes give you a happy vibe and the service is always with a smile. The intimate, clean and brightly decorated dining room has good sized tables and if that was not enough, they even had a live steel drummer and singer perform on one night when my husband and I went out on a rare date.

Plenty of parking on the free public parking lot tucked in the middle of the block on their side of Broad street. Or you can order pick up from Ubereats, but beware, this is not fast food and deliberately prepared, so please do not try to rush the process. This has quickly become my go-to nevertheless, so if I am in a hurry, I just make sure to call ahead. I work hard and am too busy to get hangry, ok?

Seriously, I live in a town with alot of restaurant options, but nothing in this immediate area even comes close for Caribbean staples. Why would you wait in line, fight for parking and overpay for subpar food when this local (largely undiscovered) gem is right here?! No reservations needed and now that the secret is out, I hope you are properly grateful....

I love supporting good small businesses with a positive buzz. Add in the fact I had Jerk chicken on my mind for last couple of weeks this was the perfect time to see what this place was all about. A friend accompanied me to this lovely clean establishment.

We were the only people there so plenty of peace and quiet with some reggae rhythms jamming in the background. The customer service was not horrible but could have been a little better for me personally.

I ordered the Jerk Chicken dinner it comes with Coconut Rice and one side (I replaced the rice with plantain to cut back on carbs) . My friend ordered the fried chicken, cabbage and mac n cheese. I also had some Sorrel which I Loveeeeeeeeeeee !!

Pros: The PLACE IS EXTREMELY CLEAN !!!! Very comforting environment and cool ambiance. I loved it !! The Calaloo was some of the best I have had in Jersey it was down right PERFECT. (5 out of 5 stars) They took a while to prepare the food which I appreciated. I could tell in my meal The Plantain was perfect not over done just right. (5 out of 5 stars) The Jerk Chicken was very good and I would definitely order it again. (4 out of 5 stars) The Sorrel was SOOOOOOOOO GOOOOD Good Lord !! Cant Put In Words.The first sip took me mentally back to Jamaica. MUST ORDER FOR TRUE JAMAICANS (6 out of 5 stars LOL)

Cons: (But Not really That Bad) LOL Fried chicken was good but not the best but this is a Caribbean spot which is not their specialty so no biggie their (3 out of 5 stars) Cabbage had no flavor and lacked seasoning. (2.5 out of 5 stars) Mac N Cheese was average and it is advertised as 3 cheese and I beg to differ based on what I tasted. (3.0 out of 5 stars)

I would still like to come back to try other things on the menu such as the Jerk Turkey Burger,Salmon, Ox Tail and many other items that caught my eye and still has my curiosity going. The Sorrel alone is worth coming back for lol. I say give them a chance. I will definitely be...

8/11/24; 8/13/24 & 8/16/24

We found Cafe Mo Bay through Grubhub. We don’t like going out on Sundays hehehe

Our order was Ackee and Fish and Jerk Chicken and a side of Cornbread with Mango Butter. Everything was delicious!!

Of course we had to go out and try in person. We got Mango Punch, Snapper Roll, Oxtail with Rice and Peas and Jerk Pork with Rice and Peas and a side of Collard Greens. Mango Punch has a hint of ginger which gives it a super refreshing taste. Snapper Roll, is genius, we’ve never seen fish inside a roll that wasn’t sushi and it was sooooooo good lol. We wish it was more than just 2 rolls. Oxtail was tender and flavorful and Jerk Pork was delicious. The Collard Greens were good but something was missing… I didn’t see any meat pieces so probably not made with ham hock or turkey so it was plain.

We went back again by chance, we saw another restaurant on our way the 1st time so we wanted to try it but they were close so since we were already in the area we stopped in again :)

Cod Fritter, Curry Goat with Coconut Rice and Snapper with Callao Rice and Spinach. Cod Fritter needed more fish but it was delicious and the sauce was perfect. Curry Goat was tender and so good, and I don’t like goat because it can be gamey but this was not gamey. Snapper in brown stew sauce, this was different but worked! I just picked up the fish with my fingers lol

Patrick the owner/chef was pleasant and a pleasure to chat with.

Food does take a bit to come out but you know it is super fresh and totally worth the wait. Luckily we were there during weekdays where there are less people.

I think we just found our favorite...