Housed in authentic 1950's-60's style diner is the Mi Hungry BBQ restaurant featuring authentic Jamaican cuisine. I stumbled upon this place simply because its an old diner and I thought it was rather intriguing. I happened to be on one of my routes on St. Charles Rock Road, but needed to take a lunch break. The sign advertises Jamaican food with the original diner’s iconic “burger boy” server sporting dreadlocks. I took a trip to Jamaica 5 years ago. It was a great place with great food. I have been missing the taste of jerk chicken since I left the island
When walking in I was greeted by both owners Ava, and Rueben. They are extremely polite and friendly. I informed the two that I was craving jerk chicken in the worst way. They got me started right away by taking a freshly smoked chicken and applying all the necessary sauces to the bird while frying him up. So many choices were offered as sides. I decided on home made potato salad, beans and rice, and their very own coconut bread. My entire plate, or should I say plates because it filled two of them up, was ready within 5 minutes. They had a choice of both domestic and exotic beverages but I decided on water.
The jerk chicken reminded me of what I had while vacationing in Jamaica. It was very tasty, just the right amount of spicy, and very juicy with a smokey flavor. I’m not a huge fan of beans and rice, however this stuff is great. Rice is usually dry to me. The rice here was very flavorful and moist. The beans were tasty too. I could have ate an entire plate of beans and rice and been happy. I was unsure about the potato salad at first. It resembled what you would see from a grocery store, so I had to ask about its origins before sampling. Ava responded with a very surprised, “yes we make it ourselves!” So I gave it a shot and need no further reassurance on whether it was “real” or not. The potato salad is like none other I have ever tried. I has a near makeup and consistency of mashed potatoes. It has a sweet and tart flavor to it. I found it to be very delicious. The coconut bread was good. It had a mild sweet flavor to it, not like someone just basted it with sugared butter. You could tell that the flavor was baked into the bread. Ava informed me that customers come in just to buy the bread.
Overall I had a delightful experience. I love old cafes and diners and I love trying new food. This place offers both and does a good job. You can really tell that the owners are passionate about the food they are creating. Ava and Rueben have been operating for 18 months now. They also offer full service catering that includes not only their Jamaican recipes, but a host of American foods as well.
Be sure to stop by and grab a bite. They are hosting a Customer Appreciation Day on June the 20th, 2011 starting at 6pm and lasting until 10pm. They are having games, live reggae music, art, and free giveaways.
Phone Number is: 314-218-5465
Address: 8660 St. Charles Rock Road. St. Louis MO, 63114
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