Nestled in the heart of Camden’s Inverness Street, Ma Petite Jamaica may not be the biggest restaurant, but boy does it have a heart! What you can expect in London’s first Caribbean diner is the essence of homely authentic Jamaican cooking and put simply, great fun.
This ‘Jamaican Jerk Pit’ restaurant is reminiscent of a Jamaican beach shack - a tropical space decorated with multicolour chairs and palm tree canopies, against a background of contemporary sing-along bashment/reggae tunes. The atmosphere is cosy, vibrant, bustling and welcoming - perfect for a blustery Wednesday evening.
The menu serves up an excellent range of traditional staples such as curried goat, filled roti, jerk burgers, wraps, rum cocktails and of course, signature jerk dishes! The extensive list of small plates, sides and sharing platters, offers diners a tapas style sample of all the Jamaican dishes - there’s literally a dish to suit every palate!
Once seated, we scanned through the menu with one thing on our minds - drinks! My guest and I ordered a coconut smoothie which packed a smooth, creamy taste and an expertly mixed, refreshing Daiquiri cocktail.
After some tough decision making, we opted for a sharing platter as our starters. The platter looked delectable and there was a variety on our plate…where to begin?! The festival dumplings were deliciously doughy yet fluffy, with a light crunchy batter and the perfect side of chewy, the calamari rings were the highlight of the platter, followed by the delightfully crispy chicken tenders and sweet plantains as close runners up. This was an exciting and promising start of what was to come next.
Our attention quickly turned onto the mains - an even stiffer decision! My guest was enticed by the Jerk Pork while I decided to go for the Jerk Mixed Grill. The presentation of both dishes was impressive and the portion sizes even more so. The jerk pork was immaculate - large tender chunks of jerk-soaked pork belly, served on a bed of rice ‘n’ peas. Marinated in the rich delicious jerk sauce, the fall-off-the-bone ribs, meaty chicken wings and large chunk of pork belly within the mixed grill was equally incredible. A gluttonously creamy palm sized portion of macaroni cheese and crunchy tangy coleslaw paired beautifully alongside our mains. At this point, it’s safe to say my guest and I were ‘bellyful!’
My experience at Ma Petite Jamaica was brilliant. The vibe was laid-back, the staff were charming and the food? Couldn’t fault it. These guys are proud of their heritage and it shows in their food. We’re already planning our next visit to Ma Petite Jamaica’s brand new rum & reggae bar – an extended section of the restaurant. Catch us vibing to some live reggae music whilst sipping on a rum cocktail!
