Island Soul Caribbean Bar and Cuisine
| Address: | 4869 Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA 98118, USA |
| Phone: | +1 206-329-1202 |
| Site: | islandsoulrestaurant.com |
| Rating: | 4.1 |
| Working: | 3–9PM 3–9PM 3–9PM 3–9PM 3–11PM 10AM–11PM 10AM–6PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 15
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Jesse Shefford
In our ongoing effort to experience a variety of cuisines, we had lunch at this place on a mild afternoon in late September, 2011. I ordered the Jerk pork spare ribs, my companion ordered the curry chicken, and we sat back and waited for the food to arrive. Over the next thirty minutes, other customers arrived and some of them received their food before our waiter informed us that there was no curry chicken. When we changed the order to jerk chicken, our plates were delivered pronto. The chicken was somewhat dried out, but my pork ribs were tender--if a bit too fatty. Both plates were served with a salad and red beans and rice cooked in coconut milk, which was not as tasty a side dish as we had anticipated. The room is pleasant and there was reggae music in the background, but it was drummed out by the noise of trucks and other traffic coming though a door propped open to the street. Our waiter was a pleasant young man who had not yet learned how to do two things at once, and there was an attractive woman floating around the room, sipping a beverage, but doing nothing to make things run more smoothly. We were annoyed that it took over a half hour to serve us food that had been fully cooked long before we walked in the door. While the food was o.k., it wasnt special enough for us to again drive six miles, scramble for a parking place, and wait an unreasonable length of time for it to be brought from the kitchen to our table.
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Trinh Nguyen
I walked into this place because they had a huge sign out front with a picture of their chicken and waffles. Naturally, being a foodie, I was drawn in and ordered their C&W. The ambience of the place is chill, inviting and they did a good job with cultural representation. The music was my favorite, I walked in on a Monday afternoon and they played late 1990 early 2000s hits, my favorite. I immediately fell in love. The waiter was friendly and sociable and everyone who worked their seemed very at home and happy. When my food arrived, it was a big portion and served very neatly. The chicken was perfectly seasoned and fried. The waffles were fluffy and sweet. I would come back again if it wasnt too far from where I live
NO
Nori M
If youre looking for some yummy Caribbean food in the south end of Seattle, this is your spot! I like coming here for Happy Hour and a few of the bartenders are quite nice to look at while youre waiting... The wait time for food is longer than the average place in Columbia City, but the delicious food and friendly staff makes up for it. My favorite stuff on the menu includes: Seafood fritters (HH), Calypso wings (HH), Coconut Prawns, Chicken & Waffles, Oxtail stew, Caribbean jerk chicken, and Yams. Seriously, you cant go wrong with any item on the menu because its all GOOD!
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Nia Onelove
Great place for dinner. Tried breakfast for the 1st time. My daughter loved her waffle. However, the shrimps and grits I ordered with a rum punch was okay. The grits were a bit undercooked and rum punch had too much rum. The waitress did bring me an extra cup of juice for my rum punch instead of making the drink again. She was also unpleasant. Id probably eat here again because Ive been coming here for years and I know it can be hit or miss sometimes.
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Amber Smith
I was absolutely disappointed in this restaurants customer service when my family came to eat there for Mothers Day. The restaurant was unable to find our reservations, and did nothing to help us. Instead we were brushed off as if we didnt matter. The staffs lack of willingness to help was shocking. This was the worst I have ever been treated at a restaurant. For that I will never recommend this place nor will go there again.
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Ahkeenu Musa
Just absolutely bad service, the food is great Im sure, but Ill never eat there. They dont deserve my money they did my mother wrong on mothers day when she had reservations. There only reply was "it is what it is", so they just left us standing there with no wait time, or accommodations. When somebody does your mom wrong......no words can describe your anger. I know this, Ill let everybody that I know not to go there.
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Ray Ray G
This Place was amazing!!! Being a Pescatarian its hard to find Soul Food places that dont cook their greens in some kind of meat... Their greens had no meat and were amazing... From the catfish to Vatapa to the huge rum selection not only was the food so good the bar tender Marcus was friendly and knew his drinks and definitely very informative when it came to everything on the menu... Good music and Positive Vibes!!
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j spain Greene
Friendly staff in this bustling Caribbean soul restaurant. However, the times Ive been here the dishes are "too" something... too salty, too sweet, too saucy, etc. I chalk this up to a lot of the food being held in steam trays in the back where it sits out and the tastes condense. Add "too expensive" to my list of toos ($50 for 2 drinks, jerk chicken and oxtail stew) and I cant really recommend it.
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CJ Mkay
The menu suggest the Chicken and Waffles comes with "Half a Hen", though apparently its the half thats full of bones and gristle. The waffle was good, and the scant amount of meat I gnawed from the tangled mess of cartilage was well-seasoned. It took a long time to get our check, and they have an unstated policy not to split the check across a party.
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R. Jay Flaming
Island Soul is a local treasure. Theo has created a true melding of soul food and Caribbean spice. The goat curry is perhaps the best dish. Or is it the oxtail? The bar also makes a mean dark -n-stormy. The weekend brunch is also one of the more hidden gems in the Columbia City neighborhood. Chicken and waffles? Yes, please.
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Jessalyn Rae
Good service, nice people. Food was just okay though. The potatoes were underdone, and both of our dishes didnt have any vegetables like the menu said. My coffee came in a dirty cup (lipstick on the side) and the table was so shaky that our coffee kept spilling constantly. The staff was great, but I wouldnt go back.
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Daisia Goldsmith
It was too loud to were I couldnt hear my groups conversation . The food was good but the same night I ending up with food poisoning from the gumbo & was throwing up all night. Its too packed, the seating & tables are all too close together. We had to wait for our food for like 25 minutes. It was all just a hot mess
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Jeanne Frieden
They catered a family gathering of 100 at Golden Gardens Park in July. It was fabulous. The food was outstanding, the care in preparing and delivering was wonderful and friendly. My family are still raving about the experience. Wish I lived in Seattle so I could eat there more often!
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Jared Alfonzo
They always treat you like family. But I will tell you this. If you come in there acting entitled, rude, and demanding. You will be treated accordingly. This is a South end staple. Family opened. 2 generations. So offer to take your shoes off in a manner of speaking.
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Beatrice Durr-Gil
The food here was absolutely amazing!! Im a vegetarian and I thought they wouldnt have too many options but they did. The customer service was delightful as well. I will be returning again very soon and Ill be sure to bring my appetite because the portions are so big!
