Taste of the Caribbean Restaurant & Lounge — Restaurant in Maryland

I would like to share my recent experience I had at Taste of Caribbean, which unfortunately left me very disappointed. I have dined here on multiple occasions, and while some dishes were enjoyable, there is a lack of consistency in their food. Despite this, I have continued to support the restaurant due to my commitment to patronizing small businesses, especially those owned by Black people. However, my most recent visit was a letdown, and the subsequent customer service I received while trying to address the issue was deeply troubling. On a late Saturday night, I ordered the oxtail. When I arrived home, the cuts of the oxtail were mostly fat and bones. My stomach turned after I ate one oxtail piece so I didn't eat any more of it and placed it in my fridge. Since it was already late at night, I knew they would be closing soon,, I decided not to return or call. I called the restaurant to discuss the issue on Monday early afternoon (around 12pm)) I explained to the person who answered the phone the issue with the oxtail. The person I spoke with (a male) simply replied, "No problem, bring the food back." I informed him that I would bring the food later that night around 9 pm as I get off work late. I asked if there was someone specific I needed to speak with when I got to the restaurant, to which he replied no. Arriving at the restaurant around 9 pm on Monday, I approached the cashier (a short gentleman) and explained the situation, stating that I wanted to return my oxtail order from Saturday night due to its poor quality. The cashier immediately responded with in exasperated tone, "Saturday night?!?!" I calmly reminded him that it had only been one day since Saturday and that I spoke with someone earlier that afternoon (Didn't follow up as I was busy running errands on Sunday and I don't live close to the restaurant). I handed him the nearly untouched food as evidence and explained that this was the earliest I could return it due to my work schedule. I mentioned that I had spoken to someone earlier who had said the return was ok. While I was fumbling to find my DoorDash receipt on my phone to validate my statement, another employee, who had been sweeping the store, stood nearby (#hovered), to listen into the conversation. Their actions suggested that they anticipated aggression on my part regarding the return, despite my calm demeanor. After presenting my receipt and reiterating my request for an exchange for jerk chicken (although part of me by this time wanted a full refund), the cashier's temperament seemed to somewhat ease.. I waited for my food. After my food came out I also purchased a sorrel, Jamaican cola, and a piece of cake, of which the cashier gave me a complimentary sorrel I guess as a gesture of goodwill (kinda sort of as oxtail is more expensive than jerk chicken :) ). The food I received this time was good but my experience with costumer service left a poor taste in my mouth- the rude response to my reasonable return request and the employee's standing guard just in case I became aggressive was entirely uncalled for, disrespectful, and demeaning. I am writing this review in the hopes that the management or ownership will take notice and address these issues. It is important to train your staff in respectful customer communication, regardless of the circumstances. I also write this to make other potential customers aware that the restaurant's food quality is inconsistent, and they provide very poor customer service. As a small business owner myself, I encourage Taste of the Caribbean to strive for improvement. I won't definitively say that I will never dine there again, but I will be taking a break from their establishment for the time...

I have an issue with my order literally every time I order here. I try to give them the benefit of the doubt because the food is somewhat decent but aside from that this business is a joke.

If you order online and pick up in store they will make you fill out a form that asks you to write down your FULL credit card information on a piece of paper that they keep in a flimsy green folder with the others at the cash register (which they routinely leave out in the open while they do god knows what in the back). They wont give you your food until you fill it out EVEN IF YOU ALREADY PAID ONLINE. or they will refund and make you pay AGAIN in store. They say they’re doing this to all online orders to avoid chargeback liability but it sounds like BS to me because in store purchases can lead to chargebacks too. I asked them if they shred the forms later, and they do NOT! I filled it out because I had no choice and wasn’t going all the way back home for my card. 2 seconds after I left I requested a new card and my card number was changed immediately. So all that for what? The form isn’t even valid anymore. AND you got my order wrong. This place has no idea how to run a business.

Edit:

Just look at the managers response and the complete lack of accountability for their strange, unnecessary, and barely legal practice. Which, by the way, was not in bold red letters like they say. What would I do in their situation? hmm Idk..maybe GET SOME INSURANCE LIKE A PROPER BUSINESS and stop putting every customer at risk to credit card fraud just because of the actions of a few. EVERY business experiences chargebacks but in all my years no credible business has EVER asked me for the information Taste of The Caribbean is asking for. I also find it hard to believe that a bank is telling you to do this when they routinely tell their actual customers to never give out their card information. Banks also tell their customers to change their card information when it might be compromised, rendering your little form USELESS. This is awful service and blatant stupidity at it’s finest. Save your time and sanity and go to irie cafe or dat jerk instead. The food is better...

Update: I just attempted to order from this establishment and they left me hungry again! They called one hour later me to notify me that they didn’t have two items in my 3 item order asking me if wanted a substitution.

I will never understand how you offer items and can’t provide it. I waited one hour and paid for expedited delivery only to find out later that they don’t even have the items I ordered. I spoke to an employee and she told me that when I order Uber Eats, I should call first to make sure they have the items that I want to purchase! I do not do this with any other restaurants!! She had an attitude with both me and the Uber delivery driver. I will take this as they do not want me to patronize their establishment. I really wanted to love this place!

The last two times I ordered from Taste of the Caribbean my order was missing an item. I want to be fair that the food used to be AMAZING when they first opened. We were so excited and happy to support but somehow it has fallen off. The Doubles with Tamarind sauce is my favorite but I didn’t even taste the tamarind today and the last time I ordered my doubles was missing. Today, I didn’t get my pholourie. It’s disappointing when you had your heart set on a dish and it doesn’t show up. I also called the restaurant before ordering to assure they had the items that I wanted but no one answered my call. If you don’t have an item please consider making it unavailable to customers.

I really want this Caribbean spot to succeed so please take this feedback and put the love you used to put into the food. I will try to support a few more times since I love seeing Caribbean Americans win. I will happily update my review if the food gets better because I have enjoyed the food...