St. James - Modern Caribbean — Restaurant in Washington

As someone from Trinidad, let me just say—when I hear “modern Caribbean cuisine,” I approach it with a mix of curiosity and side-eye. I mean, you’re telling me you’re going to take the flavors I grew up with and remix them? Okay, let’s see what you’ve got.

We ended up at St. James after some downtown plans fell through, and I’d been hearing about this place for a while, so we finally gave it a try. First impressions: it’s definitely Trinidadian inspired. The flavors? They’re there, but it’s clear this is a modern twist, not the “down-home Trini cook-up” you’d get at your auntie’s house. And you know what? That’s okay. It’s got its own thing going, and I respect that.

The atmosphere? Loved it. Definitely had a vibe—great music (big up to the soca and Caribbean tunes in the background), beautiful people, and a setting that felt elevated but still warm and inviting. It’s the kind of place that makes you want to linger, sip your drink, and just soak it all in.

Now, about the food. I started with the West Indian Old Fashioned, which was solid. Then I tried the jerk wings. Look, they were good, no doubt—but personally, I don’t love seeing Trinidadian and Jamaican cuisines getting swapped around like they’re interchangeable. I prefer my Jamaican to stay Jamaican and my Trini to stay Trini, you know? But hey, I let it slide because the wings were tasty.

The oxtail was solid too—tender and flavorful—but it also made me feel like my own oxtail game at home is strong, so thanks for that little ego boost, St. James. (I swear there was a hint of red wine or something in the sauce—chef, if you’re reading this, confirm or deny.)

My wife had the crab curry, and you could definitely taste the Trini inspiration there. It had that familiar essence but with a modern twist that reminded me this isn’t your typical curry crab and dumplings. It’s refined, elevated—but it still gives a nod to the roots.

Price-wise? It’s not cheap. But honestly, at this stage in life, I’m convinced everything feels pricey, so maybe that’s just me. For a special occasion, a treat, or something to shake up your regular routine, I’d say it’s worth it. Not an every-week thing, but definitely worth the experience.

Overall, I’m glad we came. It’s not a substitute for the authentic Trini food I grew up with, but it doesn’t pretend to be, either. It’s bringing something new to the table, and I can respect that. Plus, it’s refreshing to see a place celebrating Caribbean culture in this way—DC could definitely use more of it.

Would I come back? Absolutely. Would I recommend it? Without a doubt. If you’re looking for a vibe, a little taste of the islands with a modern twist, and a place to feel connected to Caribbean culture (even if it’s not exactly like home), St. James is...

I checked out St. James during Washington DC’s Winter Restaurant Week. There were 3 options for the Restaurant Week menu (at $55/person) and we chose options 2 & 3. Luckily, we arrived in time to enjoy their happy hour menu to try some of the appetizers that were not featured on the menu options we chose.

Happy Hour Menu: Jerk Wings ($9) - 3/5 Pork Pow ($8) - 5/5 Passion Me Up ($10) - 5/5

Option 2: (Starter) Crab Accras - 5/5 (Main) Fried Snapper - 4/5 (Dessert) Molten Chocolate Cake - 4/5

Option 3: (Starter) Aloo and Channa Pies - 5/5 (Main) Maitake Masala - 5/5 (Dessert) Mango Sorbet - 5/5

JERK WINGS: The jerk wings are not your traditional Jamaican jerk, they are Trini style. The wings are 12-hr marinated, pimento-smoked and had a slight bitterness to them at the end. The wood they chose to smoke them in tastes a lot like too much liquid smoke but just a bit too much of it. They weren’t bad, I’ve just had better.

PORK POW: The pork pow was absolutely delicious. They are a Trini-style Chinese steamed buns, stuffed with spicy ground pork. They come in 2 and had just the right of amount of bun to filling ratio. They were so good we ordered another serving after quickly finishing the first. If I wasn’t excited to try the other food, I would have ordered at least 2 more orders of these. Get them! As a matter of fact, you might as well place 2 orders upfront. I will be going back just for these.

PASSION ME UP (Alcoholic Beverage): The passion me up beverage was delicious! It contains Wray & nephew overproof rum, lemon, triple sec, passionfruit syrup. We had 2 drinks each and they were delicious! (Video included this review)

FRIED SNAPPER: I am a fish lover and if snapper is on the menu, I’m getting it. It was good but not the best I’ve ever had but the tamarind curry and black rice made this dish interesting and flavorful.

ALOO AND CHANNA PIES: The cumin-spiced potatoes and curried channa were excellent. The fried bread was light and the bread to filling ratio was perfect.

MAITAKE MASALA: This dish was the highlight of the night. It’s Maitake mushrooms in a masala sauce served with cauliflower couscous and a side of coconut rice, greens, and plantain.

Overall, I will go back to St. James. Our server was Tym H and he was absolutely fabulous and engaging. The service was fast and the food/atmosphere was inviting.

Highly recommended dishes: Pork Pow and...

Absolutely awesome new addition to this already vibrant neighborhood. Brings a modern and polished feel to Carribean cuisine without sacrificing a single iota of authenticity.

We started with the Jerk Wings. Incredible 12-hr smokey rub with just the right amount of heat, and the succulent meat just fell off the bone.

Then it was onto my favorite dish of the night, the Pork Pow, Trini-style Chinese steamed buns, stuffed with spicy ground pork and accompanied with a sauce that was otherworldly. Hard to describe how rich and flavorful each bite was, from the juicy meat to the al dente buns. We ordered another pair immediately after devouring the first plate. So. Good.

Everything else we tried was very good but just not as epic compared to those two starters. But boy, we tried a lot:

Aloo and Channa Pies which were fried bread stuffed with cumin spiced potatoes and channa and a red chili paste. Nice and spicy but not that memorable otherwise.

Crab and Dumplings with a single soft shell crab, Trini-style taro disc-shaped dumplings, and a delicious creamy coconut curry sauce. I loved this dish and just wished there was some starch (bread or rice) to soak up the incredible sauce.

Jerk Brisket, a 12-hr smoked and marinated brisket, served with taro chips was quite good but could have used a bit more seasoning to add some flavor, it just didn't stand up to the robust flavor of the wings we had earlier.

Pork with Provisions which was a very heavily salt-cured chunks of pork, with breadfruit, yams, taro in coconut milk sauce. If you like salted, cured meat type of flavors, this is for you. This was a bit too heavy on the salt for me but I really liked the concept and the general flavor.

Obviously, we had no room for dessert after sampling all these dishes!

Cocktails were very good, my favorites were the West Indian Old Fashioned with Caribbean rum blend, curry-chai tea, cocoa bitters and the Pineapple Chow with Angostura White Oak Trinidadian rum, pineapple, shadon beni, black pepper, lime. Really creative, well balanced and sturdy cocktails.

Big shout-out to bartender Kelvin who guided us on this culinary journey. Super friendly and knowledgeable guy. And the rest of the staff were great too, very genuine and friendly. Just an awesome vibe here.

I would give 6 stars if I could for...