Calypso Cafe

Décor/​Setup: Like a fancier shack on a Caribbean island.
Staff/​Service: Friendly. Relatively quick. No bad experience yet.
Wait Time: There might be a line during dinner time, but don’t think the wait would be too long. Pretty reasonable.
Food: Excellent! Yummy Yummy in my Tummy! Favorites? Johnnycakes (sides), Jerk chicken wings (appetizers), Jerkburger (burgers), and Calypso Combo — ½ BBQ baby back ribs and ½ jerk chicken — (BBQ the island way). The special tropical BBQ sauce will knock your socks off! Very delish! Personally, I thought the North Carolina pulled pork sandwich, Crawfish étouffée, Fried green tomatoes, Key lime pie, and Shrimp & conch fritters were good but not great.
Price: The bill can add up but overall quite reasonable for the tasty food and the portions you get.

Verdict: Will definitely go back again and again! Two thumbs up.

So, I recently moved into the Hyde Park area and let’s just say I’m excited to check out all the cute little restaurants the neighborhood has to offer. The first place I checked out happened to be Calypso.
I went on a Tuesday with a friend. There was a wait but luckily he had been seated by the time I got there. So, I sat down and sunk into the seat… not in a good way. The seats were not comfortable at all, which is why they got four outta five stars.
I ordered the Salmon and a Bahama Mama. the drink was sssoooooo good. that means a lot coming from me because I am NOT a fan on alcohol but I sucked that sucker down quickly and even felt a little buzz afterwards. The food was good, the plantains could of been fried a little longer but overall I was satisfied. Our waiter was cool, he didn’t bother us much. Took our order and let us be, which was good since I was doing lots of talking.
I’m sad I just found out about this place since they’re closing, but I will definitely be going back before they close their doors for good to try the jerk chicken and to get another Bahama mama :-)

It breaks my heart and tastebuds that this place is closing. The little sign on the door announcing the official day (June 4^th, I think) has me nostalgic already. I’m secretly hoping that they’ll snag another location here in HP; Lord knows they have the clientele to sustain them, and I think they’d do quite well in, say, that open spot on 57^th street where Florian used be.
But that’s neither here nor there. I’m just here to write a haiku ode to the greatest appetizer available in HP, at least for two more weeks: the plantain nachos at Calypso Café.
O, banana pile
Your sweet bits do warm my soul
Your savory, my tongue.
Get it while the getting’s good, folks.

I am so disappointed with the University of Chicago for finding a way to push out all (re: both) of the good restaurants in Hyde Park. The only good thing that came from the closing of Dixie Kitchen was that Calypso Café (they were the same owners) then made half of their restaurant into Dixie Kitchen, so it was like eating at both restaurants at once. When I found that out, I was given temporary solace from the sadness of Dixie Kitchen’s untimely demise. However, now I’ve found out that Calypso is being shut down as well, just so the U of C can tear down the rest of Harper Court and surely turn the entirety of it into overpriced condos. Just what Hyde Park needs — more housing that nobody can afford. YEAH! That’ll get us more residents! Half million dollar condos — rad!
UGH.
If you haven’t been, get here before it’s gone, because now is the time to go. You can get plantain nachos AND fried green tomatoes. You can get banana coconut cream pie AND peach cobbler. Strike while the iron is hot, kids, and before it’s gone forever.

Went here on double date night. that’s a story all on its own.
We arrived a little before 6pm, and good thing too because we beat the dinner crowd!
I ordered the plantain nachos, but wasn’t that impressed. Thought it would change my life, but nope. I ordered the Zombie cocktail and that was super strong! Be careful everyone! My friend ordered the jerk wings, which was good, but didn’t taste like real jerk chicken.
It’s kind of hidden, but if you’re parking next to the McDonalds, you’re in the right spot.

Three things I had never eaten before going to Calypso Café: plantain nachos, fried green tomatoes and fried catfish.
Three things that I now love: plantain nachos, fried green tomatoes and fried catfish. Especially when they are washed down with a bottle of Red Stripe.
Thank you Calypso for deliciously broadening my horizons.

Calypso Café is located in an area of Hyde Park that I barely knew existed, but I am certainly glad I found this place.
They know how to jerk a chicken. They also know how to fry green tomatoes. I’d argue that their skills are less than stellar when it comes to po’ boying some shrimp, but you can’t win them all.
The service is friendly, if slow, but if you’re intention is to rush through a meal here, you probably missed the point of a Caribbean-​themed restaurant.
The price is right and I would definitely go back. It’s unfortunate that Harper Court is a pedestrian dead zone.

So, this was my first try at Caribbean food. We had the famous plantain nachos. I am not so sure about these banana like chips. I tried to really like them, but they aren’t very good. We had them with jerk chicken. This was again my first jerk chicken experience. Jerk chicken tastes like shredded chicken that is dried out a bit with lots of nutmeg on it. Those nachos just are not my style.
We had some shrimp and fish balls that were on the appetizer menu that were really good with a garlic mayo. Those weren’t fishy but a perfect combo.
Service was good, prices just right… The seasonings were just really strange and different. Maybe an acquired taste… May take a while to acquire for a blond haired whitey like myself :)

My husband and I went for dinner here last night and I loved the ambience.
We got the plantain nachos as an appetizer. Guys, please do note that this is REALLY a gigiantic portion. do NOT disregard what you read in the menu! else, it’ll probably be your entrée! share it with a few other people so that you still have space for the main and dessert.
The lady who served our table was really nice and sweet. However, it took us some effort and patience to get the servers’ attention.
Bottomline, I would go back there again to try other foods, but not the plantain nachos if there are only 2 of us.

I rarely have ribs but was glad I ordered them here because they were good! They came with traditional sides of fries and cole slaw. Since my friend ordered a caipirinha, I did too because I was being a copycat. I should’ve known that you should not order a caipirinha at a caribbean/​jamaican/​southern food place. My friend had to return his with instructions (add more sugar). I won’t hold this against them and next time, I’ll have an island cocktail, which is what they call their theme-​appropriate, fruity, frozen drinks that help transport you to Montego Bay.
This restaurant has a lot of atmosphere. The waiter was awesome and even the other people waiting for a table were friendly. Was there on a Sunday around lunchtime and it was obvious that a lot of the after-​church crowd was there. Maybe this is why everyone seemed in such good spirits.
Can’t wait to try their jerk chicken.

Went here with hubby and 3 of my boys. We were seated in the back corner, it seemed like that was the only round table that they had. I have to agree with the other Unilocalers about the slow service.
It took a few minutes to get service and then we ordered our drinks and waited. I’m used to beverages arriving at my table lickety split, but that didn’t happen. Perhaps I was extra sensitive about it because my 6 year old was kind of whining (we had been at the museum for 4 hours).
After we got our beverages, we ordered the appetizer but not the dinner. The whiner was on a roll and we were working on what to feed him to stop it. When we did figure out what to order, we waited awhile to place the order. Once we ordered, we did get some quick service on beverage refills which was handy.
The plantain nachos were GREAT! Other food items got mixed reviews. Two people had jerk chicken which they said was ok, nothing great. I had the fish in a bag which I liked (thanks for that tip). The «I’m not going to try anything new» kid had a burger which he said was fine. The whiner had the chicken nuggets which looked like they came from Jewel, but he finally stopped complaining, so I’m ok with that!
It was a fun adventure to go here, but I’m not loving it like a trip to the islands.

Plantain Nachos with Jerk Chicken.
It’s almost all I ever get here because it’s so, so, so good. And absolutely gigantic — I’ve made a reasonable lunch of this «appetizer», even sharing it between too people.
The rest of the food is also very good, particularly the other appetizers — fried green tomatoes are awesome. I haven’t had their entrees in a while, because I find them slightly overpriced– but I’ve always been impressed with the food and the drinks.
Good solid Hyde Park place, and much more reliably good than some of the other places around the neighborhood.

I’ve been wanting to try this place out for some time and tonight we finally took the plunge. It’s always tough trying new places, because we hate thinking our money was wasted, but thanks to other helpful Unilocal reviews we thought this might be a winner.
I’d like to add to the good reviews of Calypso Café! It was such a great experience that it is now my boyfriend’s and my second favorite restaurant in the neighborhood.
The atmosphere was surprisingly lively, the crowd was great, full of families, couples, and random groups of friends. The staff was attentive, helpful and pleasant the entire time.
We ordered the plantain chips for an appetizer because I hear such great things about them. I’ve never had plantain anything before, so I have nothing to compare these two, but they were awesome. My boyfriend agreed, the best he had ever had. A must get starter to the meal.
I ordered the pineapple glazed tilapia, It came with so much food, we’ll be eating left overs tomorrow, Everything from the fish, to the saffron rice, the dixie slaw, the seasoned veggies (especially delicious) were perfect.
My boyfriend ordered the smothered steak, that was more like a country fried steak (Lightly breaded) covered in onion, mushroom and a gravy, I tried a bite, it was so savory and good, I might get that if Im not in a fish mood next time.
If you order anything above, you won’t be disappointed.

Calypso… one of our first dates spot. In my mind associated with cold weather, a newbie waiter who was trying just a little bit too hard, and colors. Lots of them.
Last night was the first time in something like 40 months (that would be 3 years and a half, oh no, you are welcome!) that we went there.
Light rain, lots of wind, fallen leaves… perfect autumn night that required a little bit of sunshine.
A short walk later, we were there.
And were welcomed by a schizophrenic place. We knew about it but it was still a surprise to walk through the Caribbean-​inspired front room to sit in the Old South back.
It was as if Dixie Kitchen had never closed down. And its building knocked down. It even took me a minute to adjust to the new landscape.
While I was waiting for my MONSTROUS plantain nachos (seriously — it should be served in the Wimbledon cup or something — it’s insanely huge) I was entertained by all the memorabilia around.
Spotted above our heads:
a tin of «The new era. Scientifically processed chips»
Does it sound yummy or what??!
On the wall, an old commercial for Lucky Strikes:
«Luckies are always _​kind_​to your throat.
Ha! really!!!
That beats the Marlboro guy every day!
The nachos were everything I was hoping for. You can easily make a meal out of it — who am I kidding?!? rather 2 or 3! — or share it as an appetizer with an entire table of hungry wolves. Or Bears (it’s football season after all, and there is nothing I can do about it. Even closing my eyes really hard won’t make it go away.) Add jerk chicken to the mixture — and you are ALL SET.
The sweet potato pie did its sweet job, and we left satisfied, ready to face the rain back home.
But armed with a hot latte from next door.

Calypso: (1) a style of Afro-​Caribbean music which originated in Trinidad and Tobago
(2) a Carribean-​influenced restaurant in Hyde Park
While Calypso Café bills itself as a Caribbean-​themed café it has a bit of an identity crisis. The menu primarily island themed with tropical drinks to match, but the décor is more vintage, southern kitsch; maybe that’s due to the incorporation of some of the Dixie Kitchen’s menu.
Our motley crew rolled into Calypso as the final stop on our Hyde Park neighborhood tour. Seeing that we usually start the tour off with a snack I was definitely dragging and ready to eat by the time we hit Calypso. Fortunately, service was friendly and attentive and Ralph C. ordered some Johnny cakes for the table to share. Johnny cakes are corn bread pancakes served with butter on the side. They were good, but I think serving them with honey butter would make them great.
To eat I got a side of mac and cheese and split the plantain nachos with Lisa B. The mac and cheese was ok, it was definitely homemade, but I’ve had better. The nachos were the bomb! The plantains were thinly chipped and I assume fried with black beans, pico de gallo and cheese generously poured over the top. The portion is extremely generous, two people could make a meal out of it easily.
The food is good, but as a warning to the veggies out there, the menu isn’t very veggie friendly. However, our server was really good at noting which items that seemed veggie friendly weren’t (i.e., cooked in chicken stock, etc.). I’d return if I was in the area, but wouldn’t make a special trip.

Obama made me do it! I mean, how can you come to Hyde Park and NOT eat at the Dixie Kitchen? It’s tasty good Sout… er, what’s that? It is? Really? Oops! Um… cue the steel drums! Wehlcom tue Calypso Café, mon! Me lovin’ de island flavors!
Actually, I was a little bored by them. By the time we got to CC, we had traipsed all over Hyde Park. I wasn’t as hungry as I should have been due to an ill-​timed (but sooo yummy) Istria Café super-​sized chocolate/​raisin/​nut cookie. So, maybe I should try the Café on an empty stomach. Nothing was bad and a few things were really really good. Too bad for me, the majority of it was nothing I ordered.
The bland: I ordered the pulled pork sandwich. Figuring that CC had absorbed Dixie Kitchen’s southern gems, I thought I’d hit a home run with my order. The sandwich was a good size but the sauce was a little too vingegar-​y for my tastes. Add to that, the pork was more dry & stringy than wet & pulled. I tried to salvage it by topping it with my cole slaw but that didn’t help too much. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t memorable. The red beans that came with my sandwich were pretty disappointing. They were mushy and devoid of great taste. I’d had the black eyed peas at Dixie. I should have ordered them again.
The good: peach colada. Like Dave Foley before me, I am not ashamed to admit I am a girl drink drunk. The colada was frosty, refreshing, blended and I drank it with a straw. Also good: everything Ralph ordered. As Rhonda detailed, Ralph had the magical plate. Johnny Cakes: delicious. Fried green tomatoes: didn’t try them because they came without remoulade but Rhonda liked ‘em (I don’t know that Ralph got to eat any). PLANTAIN NACHOS: holla if you hear me! You know how that crazy woman with the super botoxed face on So You Think You Can Dance just screams because she hasn’t mastered the art of speaking in full sentences? These nachos will make you do that. Hot. Damn those are good! And they’re loaded. Every chip is full of bean and cheese and pico. Aw man, I could have made a meal of Ralph’s lunch. Rhonda did.
Moral of the story: if you come to Calypso Café, bring Ralph and eat his food. And make him pay for it. It _​is_​, after all, his food.
P. S. Thanks to our waiter for great service. Due to the size of our group, we were stuck with automatic gratuity. Because of this, our waiter could have disappeared and given us attitude. He did not. He was attentive and helpful… and appreciated. Thanks!

Fish in a bag! Fish in a bag!
Ok, I think most of my Unilocal friends know I’m a freak, but for some reason after reading the online menu, I couldn’t stop sing shouting «Fish in a bag!» in the car on the way here. I feared I’d blurt it out while ordering but for once I managed to compose myself. It was still fun to order.
Calypso Café did a great job of handling our large party (13 people!). Even though they don’t take reservations, they had a big table set aside for us in the back and we had a really great time. The drinks are massive and pretty affordable. My banana daiquiri reminded me of the one I had and loved in the Bahamas, and one pal’s Zombie had her well on her way to drunk city. Mojitos were also delish. Our group ordered two appetizers and both were tasty and big enough to satisfy all of us. The wings were massive and very zesty.
I ordered, you guessed it… fish in a bag! My roomie got the jerk ribs and we shared the two entrees. Definitely a good way too go. Dear fish in a bag, I love you. Everyone else seemed to really enjoy their meals and several people joined the clean plate club, no problem. The only thing that made me sad is they ran out of jerk chicken. Nuts to that.
The key lime pie was a perfect finish to our meal, and even though the décor is a little Red Lobster style, it was warm and cozy and made me not want to go back out into the shitty snow. Our birthday boy had a great 30^th b-​day dinner here, and I would definitely come back.
PS– Fish in a bag!

Went in for lunch and I thought the prices were a bit steep for what you get during lunch service. I tried the Jerk half chicken for $ 12.50 with an extra side order of plantains for $ 3. The chicken was anorexic. They were cheap with the plantains, only six pieces for $ 3. Compared to the other jerk chicken joints in Hyde Park, it maybe the tastiest, but no thank you. I still prefer Jamaica Jerk on the northside, better value, better taste.
I also tried the mahi which cost $ 14.95 for a measly piece. I would rather go to Aloha Eats for twice the mahi, half the price.

When I heard «Rhythm of the Night» by Debarge on the way down to Calypso Café last night, it seemed like some kind of cosmic karma. You don’t hear Debarge every day, so when those tinny steel drums kicked in on the track I knew I was in store for a memorable meal. And I was right!
Just a forewarning… Calypso Café is not necessarily the easiest place to find. Google Maps’ directions are vague at best and there really isn’t a sign out front. If you park in the lot by the McDonald’s, you’re in the right place.
Enter into Calypso Café. For some reason, I was expecting the restaurant to be bigger, but it’s actually on the smaller side without a bar area (or if there was a bar, I didn’t see it). The décor, well, it leaves something to be desired. It reminded me of those cheesy Southern Florida outdoor restaurants with lots of palm tree accents, dark brown wood a faux island look. Mmmm… what was I getting myself into?
Then, everything changed. Teresa, our fabulous server, made some great recommendations on Calypso’s specialty cocktails (Zombie for me, which was A LOT of rum and tropical juices, the Calypsorita for one of my friends and the Island Viagra, a blended rum drink for my other friend). Since the servers at Calypso pour and mix their own cocktails, you’ll have a better experience with a server who knows their way around a bottle of booze and some mixers.
We decided against the plantain nachos for an appetizer because Teresa told us they were super-​huge and filling, so we went with the plantain chips with guac and spicy bean dip. Yum! The bean dip was spicy and light and the guac was tangy and flavorful. I’m not even a big fan of plantains, but I dug into these bad boys with gusto. They were great.
I ordered the jerk tilapia sandwich, which came on a huge Cuban bread roll and was toped with lettuce, tomato and some kind of spicy mayo. Sweet mother of god, it was phenomenal. The jerk spice was just right… not so hot that you can’t enjoy your food, but enough kick to wake up those taste buds. I decided on the side of mashed sweet potatoes, again, another thing I’m not usually overly fond of, but when they’re mashed with butter and lots of brown sugar, they are rockin’. My friends both ordered the grouper dinner, one blackened, one grilled, with the spicy tequila sauce and garlic mashed potatoes. The garlic mashed potatoes were okay, but the fish was excellent. Moist, tender, flaky and perfectly done.
And because we didn’t eat enough already, we decided to split a piece of key lime pie, the house specialty dessert. Teresa was so sweet; she cut it into thirds and served us each our own portion… AND being the fabulous mixologist she is, she brought out a complimentary mojito, complete with 3 straws, to enjoy with our rich, creamy and absolutely delicious key lime pie.
Thus ended my Calypso Café voyage. I’ll be back, Calypso! All that grub at a low, low price of $ 33 bucks each (including a hefty tip for Teresa) is on target for a price-​conscious dinner in a great neighborhood.

A fun group place. Relaxed atmosphere, big plates, strong tropical drinks.
The wings is the best! It was grilled to perfection with meat almost falling off the bone. They grill the whole wing, drumstick, winglet and the tip, so the wing stays moist and juicy. We had the fritters too, I understand it’s supposed to be more hushpuppy than conch, but it just wasn’t very tasty. Fried plantains was very crispy, how can you stop eating fried plantains and guacamole, right? It’s simply impossible.
There were 4 of us but we ordered only 3 entrees and we had a lot to take home still. Tilapia with pineapple glaze was delicious, and the sides (sweet plantains!)were all good. For $ 15(I think), it was worth the money.
Others got the rib and chicken combo, you can specify whether you want bbg or jerk for each meat. The plates were loaded, it was ok, but not knock your socks off kind of good.
Pineapple jump up cake. That was a disappointment. Couldn’t taste the rum at all, we were kind of expecting a pineapple upside down cake that’s soaked with flavor. But the cake is just kind of bland.
We would go back. Maybe try the sandwiches and the key lime pie next time. Definitely the wings. Hmmmm.