Irie Diner Caribbean Restaurant — Restaurant in Orange Park

*I RARELY WRITE REVIEWS, HOWEVER!!!

Sharing my Dinning Experience at Irie Diner.

I had called Irie Diner a couple of weeks in advance to ask questions about their menu. Inquiring about their Oxtail and Roti. Curious if this is available daily. I spoke to a very soft and warm welcoming woman by the Name of Ms. Laquanda.

I finally make it over last week, excited and hungry. I had about a 30~ 40 minute drive. We (partner and I) arrive roughly around 6:45pm or so, understanding that Irie's diner closing time is 7:30pm.

We take some time to go over the menu due to my partners diet as a Pescatarian, we had a few questions. Our waitress was very new and couldn't answer most of our questions. No problem at all, I fully understand. We kindly asked if she can double check with the kitchen. She was doing her best to get our concerns answered, and was very sweet.

I order One Jamaican style Oxtail dinner, with double sweet plantains, and an added side of Roti. Partner orders Akee and salt fish, with double sweet plantains, and and added side of callaloo.

My dish comes out first about 10 minutes later. The portion of Oxtail is sitting in a very small glass bowl. I get more bones then meat, maybe about 4oz. Of meat in total, and it was barely warm. My double sweet plantain came with an order of three pieces ,and some sprinkled paprika on the plate for garnish.

I immediately felt disappointed at the portion and wondered if this was the correct. Especially at a price of $35 dollars a plate!!!! Roti was mediocre, on the dry and a bit hard side.

Partners dish comes out about 5~10 minutes after my dinner, not off to a good start but maybe it took longer to get his dish prepared. Again, immediately noticing the truly small portion of Akee, in a glass bowl. Roughly 4oz. His double plantain was a count of 4 pieces, and a small callaloo. Initially upon ordering we were told that the Callaloo was a pretty large order on it own. So this was even further disappointing. Even more so for such a high rated restaurant.

I wanted to give the diner a benefit of the doubt. We finished up and quickly left as they were closing. In total we spent around $75-80, with tip, which I was not happy to pay as we left hungry and unsatisfied. We felt as if we had only ordered appetizers for our dinner.

I got in my car and instantly went to their website to better understand what we just paid for. First picture that pops up is a nice size portion of Oxtail accompanied by a small sauce bowl on the side. I continued searching for pictures for further reference. I then went to Google review on Irie Diner for photos of customers Dinning experience and portion sizes.

I found more pictures of what was featured on their web page. At this point I felt so ripped off!!!

My small bowl of Oxtail was meant for the broth, while my Oxtail portions was meant to be placed on the plate. I contemplated to go back in and bring to their attention the level of dissatisfaction for what I had just received for dinner and payed. However~ the girls at the front were not to blame as they were both very kind. All in all, this dining experience was " Not Anywhere Near" what I was looking forward towards, as a nice evening, with Authentic Jamaican Dinner.

Considering all the great reviews, it was an Unfortunate Experience. And, Maybe it was just a really...

I have to say that the food is pretty good however I had a recent experience that left me thinking I won't be returning. I'm a vegetarian and order same dish all the time, usually to go. I ask for gravy (Curry or Jerk) with my order without issue but this past weekend the cashier person apparently didn't add my gravy request and it caused a big deal. I'm not a strict vegetarian and I don't like peas and rice without gravy. I would have paid extra if need be but a big issue was made about the dish I ordered and how it doesn't come with gravy. How hard or difficult is it to provide gravy with the food I ordered (peas and rice, steamed cabbage and sweet plantains), especially when it has been done in the past? They made me feel like was asking for something odd or hard to manage. Then after much discussion and my food sitting there on counter getting cold, the owner hands me gravy in a small container that barely contained any (less than half full) and wasn't jerk or curry like I requested. This is how establishments lose good customers. You make unnecessary complications out of nonsense. Gravy?! Seriously??? The gravy was important to me but to them it was more important to the point of making a big fuss out of it and them still not giving me enough. It added insult to the already embarrassing experience. Just charge extra if it hurts your pockets that much Sir. But don't deprive the customer of their preference with food! Think I'll go back to the Jamaican restaurant on Blanding. Never ever give me an issue about gravy. They are authentic Caribbean and they know folks from the Caribbean do not eat dry food. We love gravy! Sad indeed because their food is good and the establishment can become something great if it wasn't for silly nonsense such as this...do...

VERY DISAPPOINTED!! I have been coming here for a couple of years now, mostly take out but have dined in a couple of times. I literally chose them today over Subway bc I thought I would get better value for my money. The food flavor is good and is always hot. I ordered a lunch bowl of curry chicken and red beans and rice. When my food came, I thought, well there's probably more meat underneath the rice. I started looking and nope. I honestly don't think I actually gotten an entire piece of chicken. Two really small end pieces or gristle with a bite of meat. So I flag down the server, and tell her about the problem--no meat in my dish. She seems sympathetic and I initially think she's going to help me. That was the last I saw of her! The manager comes by seemingly oblivious to the problem, and instead of saying--"I'm sorry to hear that you're unhappy, what can I do for you? " He literally says, I can see that you're enjoying your meal, and moves on. Here's some advice, when you're in any business, not every customer is going to be happy--you need to address the issue quickly and with satisfaction. Not acknowledging that you didn't meet expectations of the customer just ruins their experience. Yes. the rest of the food was good, but the meal was ruined. We all work too hard for our money to not get out money's worth. I didn't want a free meal, just a fair one, and that was...