Negril The Jamaican Eatery-Washington DC

This place is awesome. I love Jamaican food.

vegans/​vegetarians: 2 vegetable entrees, + a veggie patty and sides
vegetable roti was dope. highlighter green décor had me feeling a little loopy.

This is by far the best n most authentic Jamaican food I have ever ate. The owner is such a sweet Jamaican woman… Love her! You can’t go wrong with anything you order here. My personal favorite is curry chicken. Jamaican beef patty is on point too. And make sure you ask for hot sauce!!!

Went there yesterday food was good. Although I knew it had been sitting for a while. The staff wasn’t friendly at all .they weren’t rude either. Not returning either way

Nothing quite like taking a $ 20 cab ride to a restaurant youve been wanting to try for ages just to get stared at through a locked door. One whole hour before their posted closing time at that. Pretty dissapointing. I’d recommend calling first. As for myself, I’m not sure if i will be making that journey again. I’ve been wanting to try them for awhile but that really annoyed me.

Honestly I love this place every time I go here. There coco bread is my absolute favorite curry chicken, peas and rice is good, and the chicken patties are my go to. I honestly want to try their rum cake and see if its as good as the ones I ate in Jamaica. Service is friendly and polite and Friday’s may be their busiest day… not sure. But check it out food is awsome.

Why oh why did I come to a Jamaican eatery and buy a chicken roti??? Maybe blind faith…
On a serious note I should have stuck to my gut, Jamaicans for my jerk chicken, Indians/​Trinidadians for my roti. I’ve grown up eating roti and my taste buds have become pretty well tuned to a tasty chicken roti. The foundation is knowing how to cook a good curry, good curry + good chicken+ good channa & aloo + pepper sauce = a good roti. This chicken roti wasn’t that. Not bashing Negril as I haven’t tried any of the other menu items but it is a Jamaican eatery so I recommend sticking to Jamaican dishes or if nothing else lower your expectations for the Chicken roti. Also wasn’t a huge fan of the beef patties… they say you’ve gotta know to be ignorant, well now you know.
TLDR
service: ⁴⁄₅
cleanliness: ³⁄₅
chicken roti: ²⁄₅ hence the two star «Meh, I’ve experienced better»

Good Afternoon:
I visited the Georgia Ave location this afternoon and interacted with the cashier/​employee. I haven’t been to the location in quite some time due to poor customer service on my last two visits but decided I would support local business instead of patronizing with a large chain (Potbelly, Starbucks, etc.)
Upon approaching the register and seeing her, I walked up and she said nothing, just looked blankly. I finally said Hi and she muttered hello and I placed my order. Tone, attitude and just plain disdain oozed across the counter. At that moment, I knew why I hadn’t patronized for some time and confirmed that I won’t return. Customers have a choice and I know working with the public isn’t easy and we all have bad days but this young woman (Receipt said Trudi) consistently fails to provide pleasant customer service. On the other hand, the more mature woman that hands over the food always has a smile and pleasant demeanor. It is a shame when customers want to support local/​small business and keep their dollars in their local community but interactions with employees force us to take our business elsewhere.
The food is average and I usually go here only when I have forgotten my lunch at home (like today).

The coco bread, jerked chicken and curry dishes make this restaurant stand out. Good food, fresh food, friendly service and a convenient location. What more can you ask for???
I recommend the flavorful curry chicken roti, jerked chicken and warm cocoa bread dishes for a guaranteed good time. And the cabbage is awesome and worth skipping the rice.
Enjoy :-)

Jamaican Restaurant run by Mexicans or so. I was so disappointed. The food is mediocre, service barely acceptable and price, not the best. Don’t go there if you need good Jamaican food. The ginger beer is the best thing they have there. Beef patty is disgusting.

When I first came to the area, I lived just across the street from Negril. I had never really eaten Jamaican food, but was will to try just about anything that didn’t come with mumbo sauce.
At Negril, I never looked for good customer service (and there always seems to be a rude male cashier). All I wanted was some of that good coco bread (butter glistens off it and you can smell the better when they open the case).
The coco bread is but one reason why I continue to come back for more (obviously the bad customer service is out the door) and here they are:
1. Pretty good food. I frequently get their chicken soup (has dumplings, chicken chunks, veggies and a really tasty broth), jerk chicken sandwich, tilapia plate (with cabbage, plantains and beans and rice), ooo ooo! And rum cake. None of these items are the best Ives ever tasted before, but they are reliable and pretty darn good nonetheless.
2. They are pretty much on campus and one of the few places around that don’t sell processed food. (Or do they??)
and…
3. That rum cake and coco bread! My goodness!
Yea…who’s a bread lover? This girl haha!

My fave Jamaican dive. Staff always really friendly. Fish sandwiches and Tilapia good and everything comes in large portions.

Spot right next Howard University. Got a jerk chicken sandwich and it was pretty good. The store doesn’t have much Caribbean workers, I see a lot of Mexicans working there. Anyway the food is decent and also the staff is very friendly.

Love this spot! Amazing Jamaican food and the people who work there are really friendly. I usually get the curry chicken with rice/​peas and a side of plantains. Everything is flavorful and they give you a hefty portion size! This is not a sit down and eat spot more of a pick up and go. I usually call a head and place my order and by the time I get there it is ready. it usally takes about 10 – 15 minutes.

I live in Silver Spring and had tried that location several times and always left disappointed. Having read a few reviews that the Howard location was better and being in the area I decided to try it. It was pretty good. Jerk chicken sandwich was delicious in fact. Not as spicy as I think it should be but a definite improvement over what I’ve had at the Silver Spring Negril. Plus the staff just seemed friendlier and the over all atmosphere was consequently pleasant. While it may not have been the best Jamaican food ever, it was overall decent in that realm and either way very tasty. Service plus blowing away my negative experiences at the other location gets them an extra star here.

I had lunch here while working nearby. The food was ok to eat and I finished most of my lunch, but I didn’t enjoy it. I usually love Jamaican food, especially Roti from other places. The flavor profile for Negil was properly Jamaican, but it just wasn’t that good.

A friend took me to the Negril Eatery on Sat. 11/​/​10/​12 for treats. Umm Umm Ummm.
The bread is so delicious that while on a special diet, I will break a bit to enjoy. It is good. We had oxtails rice and beans as well as a special Jamaican chicken dish. The place is small and unpretentious but there are about 16 tables that can seat 4 people. It also has home made delicious Jamaican pastries, some beers and a variety of soft drinks. Why 5*****? Simple. The food is delicious and people come from all over to stand at the counter and order, sometimes three abreast. The prices, as others note are very reasonable. The soups are delicious with some having a curry taste. The next time there I am going to order one of the salads with jamaican goodies and perhaps some sliced chicken breast pieces on top. Take home some of the delicious bakery items along with carry-​out dishes. Maybe take them a park and have a pleasant picnic. There are many areas nearby to do so. Parking can be a bit tricky but we found a space nearby within five minutes. The meal was memorable.

Place is right by howard campus… while In dental school; that used to be my lunch spot. I pretty much tried everything in the menu.
Jerk chicken is ok. it is not too jerky more like barbecue
Curry chicken and curry goat taste good. The gooat roti always make my day.
If you are in the go and need sometning quick; beef or chicken patty with coco bread and a jamacain soda is the way to go:)

Ahhh, the many days I ditched class to go buy a beef patty and cocoa bread because Lauren Hill told me to (Every Ghetto, Every City…)
I can’t speak on anything else in this place because that’s all I get. The beef patty is hot, the cocoa bread is soft and moist and the place looks clean.
That’s good enough for me.

For cheap, made pretty much fresh to order lunch, this place is definitely a good choice. Especially for this area mainly having Subway, McDonalds, etc. being able to eat a locally owned and operated spot always make my lunch better!
I got the chicken roti which came with their own curry sauce with some cabbage on the side, and it was way more than filling. I couldn’t finish that portion for lunch in the least bit, which means I went back to my conference extra full! Definitely almost at food coma level, don’t come here if you are expecting a light lunch, because everything here is made with a little soul at this caribbean style order at the counter spot. There are also not a ton of tables, so most people tend to take i t to go. The roti itself was pretty good, but I would have liked a little more spice and the chicken was a hair dry for my tastes, but for the price, you really can’t beat it. Their jerk chicken I thought was maybe a little better, and other people in our group really liked their beef patties too. But they are friendly here, and you will definitely leave full and spend well under $ 10, so what else could you really want at lunch?

I’ve lived by Negril for several years, but avoided trying it for quite awhile, due to the mediocre reviews and it’s close proximity to Jam Down and Sweet Mango. But then Jam Down closed, and Sweet Mango started burning itself down somewhat regularly, so when I jerk chicken craving struck I finally tried Negril, and I’ve been a fan ever since.
The jerk chicken is pretty good, but it’s now the goat curry and the chicken roti that keep me regularly coming back. The last time I had the goat, it was falling off the bone tender, not at all tough, which is sadly rare, and the curry sauce was rich and flavorful. Chicken roti is one of my ultimate comfort foods, and Negril’s version is quite good, though definitely be sure to ask for hot sauce. I’m also a big fan of their vegetable patties, which can be a bit dry sometimes, but they’re always flavorful and never overly greasy. Portions are huge, as I’ve gotten two meals out of all the entrees I’ve had.