The food was spot on. Our family has been looking for some culture food that reminds me of my father's food and this was AMAZING! Next time we visit my son in Syacuse, we definitely be there. My son was excited to have this home away from home comfort food. read more

Hands down one of the best meals I've had in Syracuse! The oxtail was unbelievably tender and flavorful--perfectly seasoned and cooked to perfection. The jerk chicken had just the right kick with that smoky, authentic flavor that's hard to find outside Jamaica. You can taste the love and tradition in every bite. What truly sets Jamaica Cuse apart, though, is Kiki. She brings so much positive energy and genuine kindness to the space. From the moment we walked in, she made us feel like family. Great food is one thing--but great people make it unforgettable. If you haven't tried Jamaica Cuse yet, do yourself a favor and go. You'll leave full, happy, and already planning your next visit. read more

Jamaica Cuse - Jerk Chicken - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

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Got a beef patty to go cause I saw them come out fresh from the oven, forgot to take a picture till it was almost gone. $4, very filling, spiced perfectly but not spicy. Should have gotten a whole meal of these read more

Jamaica Cuse - Beef Patty - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

There's a saying that three times is a charm. Well, all I have to say is all three times were a charm. Pretty quiet on Labor Day with very limited people downtown so very happy to see what's become one of my favorite restaurants to be open. The oxtail was once again hit. It's a tad spicy, but not over-the-top. The meat is tender and the rice and beans are fantastic. Didn't think I'd be much of a fan of the plantain or the cabbage but both were equally outstanding! The jerk chicken, was also absolutely fantastic. I'd argue the best soul food in town is right here, but if you consider this a different food style, it's the best at that one too! read more

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The oxtail is amazing and continues to be consistently tender and delicious! When we pulled up the girl at the counter glanced at us walking up and went back to the kitchen area. After we entered she came back out. It was a dark and unwelcoming atmosphere inside so we decided to get the food to go rather than eat in as initially planned so we didn't order drinks. While we waited another gentleman went in and out of the rear area on his phone but never acknowledged us. Having met the owner at a Yelp event I did not see him there. Quantity and quality of the oxtail good for the price but it will be a bit before we give it another try. read more

Cleaning out old review drafts in the new year, I realized I never posted for this place, which is pretty unbelievable considering how great my food was! Firstly, this restaurant is super convenient and walkable to many things downtown. It's right next door to Wildflowers and within walking distance to lots of great shops and other restaurants, plus Clinton Square. The owner and staff are super nice. I got the vegetarian dish. I thought it would be decent but honestly, it was excellent. I know that Jamaican cuisine tends to heavily favor meat and poultry so I don't blame places that phone in the veggie dishes. This nondescriptly named menu item impressed me though. It consisted of perfectly seasoned and cooked plantains, rice, and cabbage. The plantains might have been the best I've had. They were so tender and the perfect consistency. The portion was heaping, especially for the modest price. A great lunch spot, for sure! read more

Jamaica Cuse - Vegetarian Dish - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

The food here is the WORST!!! It flavorless and not at all what authentic Jamaican food tastes like. Ordered coco bread & 3 plates: jerk chicken, curry goat, & oxtail. All with rice & peas, plantains & cabbage. The jerk chicken tasted like raw chicken dipped in cloying, soy sauce, and had a nauseating odor to match. The curry goat was unforgivable. Way too much Whole Foods curry. Very dry. Not enough spices. I think I would prefer to experience the cruciatus curse than have another bite. I can't review the oxtail because I never got that. Instead I got a weird pasta thing. Given the experience with the other dishes, it's probably headed straight to the trash. Also can't review the coco bread because I didn't receive them either. Stay away. Your taste buds will tank me. read more

Jamaica Cuse - Pasta? Not sure what kind. The store gave me the wrong item. - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

I absolutely love their food. I could have oxtails every single day for every meal from this place.

Their chicken patty is so good I had to buy a few to go. Love the curry chicken and the jerk chicken with rice a peas, cabbage and fried plantains. read more

I'm going to start off by saying that the owner was understanding about my concerns about his food and it was replaced. However, not even 10mins after, it sent me to the bathroom. So this was my issue, the meat portion and how it was served. Everyone knows that chicken legs are chopped, it's in the middle leaving the top, more meat and the bottom some meat but still flavorful. To my surprise, this restaurant chops their chicken legs about two or maybe even three times! Nooo body does that unless they are trying to stretch the food to feed more than expected. I had more bone parts than meat in my food. Being Caribbean myself, this pissed me completely off. I brought this to the owner's attention and my food was replaced with the right portion chicken and less bones. However, nothing prepared me for the trip that sent me to the bathroom about 8-10mins after partial consumption of the meal. That was the last time that I ever ate from Jamaica Cuse. This happened around COVID-19 time. The restaurant has since moved from James St. to Downtown Syracuse at its current location. I could only hope that they are no longer using this horrible practice of stretching their meats that basically skims their customers out of a full meal. read more

got the oxtail with mac and cheese, oxtail and rice was perfect but the mac and cheese was a bit dry and bland. would try a different side but overall still fantastic read more

Took home a medium size jerk chicken dinner. The flavor of the chicken was fantastic, nice and moist, and just falling off the bone. Lots of rice/peas, good cabbage, and a few slices of plantain. Love plantains, I wanted more! This one dinner was enough for two of us. Service is fast, and $14 for a full dinner that fed two ... Awesome! We will be back next week to try out more dinners! Can't wait. Jamaica Cuse during a Syracuse winter.... Mmm, Mmm, good! read more

It's surprising to me how many Caribbean we have in Syracuse, let alone Jamaican. This is the first Jamaican restaurant we've ever been to, after trying and failing for months to go to another place not too far away. The first time we ordered, we did it blindly online. After coming to pick it up, we realized they had other options on the menu we didn't see online. Also, we weren't sure what a lot of the "snacks and pastries" were, but most of the items are pre-packaged products. We also ordered the Coco Bread, because it sounded like a dessert, but it's pretty much a Hawaiian roll. Still delicious, and after we looked, it seems like common knowledge. As expected, there's a lot of overlap from what we know from other Caribbean places. Oxtail, stew chicken, plantains, that underlying blandness that tastes like unflavored beans. On the plus side, whatever you order is going to be warm and fresh. We had been eating only garbage food for like a week before we went here, and you could probably tell just by looking at us. It was like a breath of fresh air coming here and actual, unadulterated food. I don't usually go for oxtail unless they've specifically been cut from the bone. It just doesn't seem like you're getting that much when your box is still half full when you throw it out. We did try them here despite being on the bone. While they had the same bland taste I described, they were melt-in-your-mouth tender. You could pop one in and simply spit out the bone ten seconds later. This was our first time with Jerk Chicken. Here too, the taste was a bit underwhelming but the chicken was cooked perfectly and delicious. Fell off the bone like everything else and purged us of the week we had. My favorite thing was the Curried Shrimp. I don't see it on the menu looking now, but I'm guessing they had it on their menu inside. Great quality shrimp, and lots of it, and the curry was amazing. I also really loved the Escovitch Fish, but had to talk myself into paying more than $20 for it. I'm a sucker for a whole fish cooked like that, and it's one of the things I enjoy splurging on when I cook at home. You don't see a lot of this outside of Caribbean places, so I was excited to try it, and was not disappointed. The only thing holding me back is the price. Everything comes with rice, veggies and cabbage. Their Patties taste a lot like the ones you'd buy frozen at Sam's Club. I happen to love them, but with my current experience, I'm not sure I could tell the two apart. In terms of other Jamaican food, I couldn't compare them as they're still our only experience. But we've been here three times and I'm sure we'll be back. It's a great, unique option for lunch or dinner any day of the week. read more

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Great food with no-frills interior seating. Ox tail and stewed chicken are good dinner choices!

The perfect spot to satisfy my tastebuds. I have not stopped coming back since a prior event. Service always nice very clean and prices are perfect. I had to swing by this joint and grab some jerk chicken & decided to try the Rasta pasta! I have to admit it was not flavorful and lacked spice not to mention any chicken. I had to come home and fix it up a lot! Otherwise this spot is my go to for Jamaican cuisine. I would frequent here everyday honestly! read more

Jamaica Cuse - Grabbing My ToGo Order - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

This quality Jamaican spot is a perfect addition to the heart of downtown Syracuse. I've tried the jerk chicken and curry chicken so far. Along with rice and peas, cabbage, and plantains. All delicious! Excellent flavor and well cooked. I will be back. The space is large but not yet optimized, though there is a decent amount of tables. I look forward to seeing how they develop the space. read more

Jamaica Cuse - Curry chicken (top) Jerk chicken (bottom) - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

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We ordered the oxtail and curry goat dinners. The meat was tender and flavorful, however there wasn't much of the oxtail meat due to how many bones there were. The plantains are a must get as a side! They were some of my favorite parts of the meal. The rice itself was a bit hard in some bites and could've done with more cook time. I'd be open to trying other dishes here. read more

Jamaica Cuse - Curry Goat Dinner 8/10 I really liked the curry & plantains! I wasn't a fan of the potato salad & the White Rice had a few hard pieces - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

The food was decent. The jerk chicken is sweet instead of spicy. The skin is good, but the meat is a bit bland. The rice and peas / cabbage are both good. The ox tails are okay.. the gravy that comes with it is good, but the actual meat lacks flavor. They just need to marinate and season their food better. They're black owned so I recommend supporting! read more

I love this ox tail meal soooo much!! Ordered three times already! Tried their pulled pork, it's very spicy. Lamb curry is a bit spicy. They are very delicious for spicy food lovers like me. But I like ox tail the most! The meat is so tender and juicy, and the rice soaked with sauce tastes perfect! Definitely gonna order again! read more

Jamaica Cuse - Oxtail Dinner (Large) - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

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Nice Jamaican restaurant in Syracuse, NY. The food was delicious. The owner came over to check on us to see if we enjoyed our meal and we sure did. (Sorry the food was so good I didn't have a moment to take pictures of it). I had the curry goat with rice and peas and cabbage with sweet plantains. Try it if your in the area, you won't be disappointed!! read more

Jamaica Cuse - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

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The food is authentically amazing. Everyone is friendly. Highly recommend. I am here for work and as a Jamaican I like to have something close. I am very happy I found this place. read more

Incredible home cooked food! Healthy and so fresh. The food is so delicious and it was so convenient to just stop in and pick it up to go. Ordered the oxtails right before the restaurant closed and they were ready quickly! Had the best dinner I've had in a long time! Honestly the best Jamaican food! There's a lot of love in this food, so be prepared to fall in love! read more

I ordered it to be delivered and it came hot, flavorful and delicious. Excellent portions too. Will be back! read more

Jamaica Cuse - Jerk Chicken - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

"Not the best Jamaican food I've ever had, but still good Jamaican food." Jerk chicken wings! read more

Who knew I would love Jamaican food. I'm not a huge fan of spicy food but I bend for this place. The jerk chicken is wonderful. You can request not spicy so no worries. The veggies and rice are all seasoned great as well. The spices they use are so good. They make really good fried plantains as well. I would say I'm a daring eater but I was skeptical about trying their oxtail dinner. I told my son I was bringing oxtail home for him and he asked if the hair was still on it. I assure you there's no hair . I devoured it and so do my eight year old son. It was my favorite item I tried. Try this place you won't be disappointed. read more

Let me say the food was sooooo good! I ordered the large oxtail dinner which came with rice & peas, cabbage, and plantains. I am not a fan of sweet plantains so I got mine without. The large oxtail dinner is a bit pricey at $24 but I get it, everything is going up these days. I can say at least for the price you really do get a lot of food, and with it being so delicious I honestly don't mind paying it. I'd definitely recommend trying this place out, you won't be disappointed. I plan on making this my go to Jamaican food restaurant from now on. read more

Jamaica Cuse - Large oxtail dinner with rice & peas and cabbage - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

I got the small jerk pork dinner today. Been hearing a lot about this place lately and it definitely lived up to expectations. The pork was flavorful and super tender. *chefs kiss*. Not too spicy if you have a mild palate. The dinner comes with rice, cabbage, and plantains. All were delicious. I got the rice and beans rather than just plain rice. I ate every single bite. The small dinner was enough to fill me for the rest of the day. The owner and staff are very helpful and sweet. Give this place a try! read more

You want authentic Jamaican food? This is one of your best options. The owner is a down to earth man from Jamaica and his family work in the kitchen. Nice spot for events as well. Prices are very good. They keep drinks and snacks from home available too. read more

Ordered food. Paid. I was baffled that the woman preparing my food had NO GLOVES on!! Seriously? Food safety at bare minimum involves gloves. I was grossed out as I watch her hold my container with her fingers touching the inside where the food would go. To make things worse, the meat I ordered (oxtail) was sitting in about a cup of oil. I expected a nice sauce or gravy -- not oil. The preparation and lack of food safety just seemed sloppy. I just ain't into getting sick. So, just to be safe, I decided not to eat the food. I threw it away. Wasted money BUT worth my peace of mind and health. read more

Jamaica Cuse has the best Jamaican food in Syracuse hands down! Shane and his staff go above and beyond to create a culinary experience for you! He delivered 10 meals, placed them on placemats and set-up with napkins and silverware. The food is always incredible! He brought extra festival and coco bread as well! read more

It's good. Go here. I had jerk chicken, which came with rice and peas and a couple plantain slices (will get those as a side next time). Well seasoned tasty food will have me coming back. All things considered with inflation what it is, priced not too high. People working were super friendly, Shane came by the table eager to know we liked the food and to connect. read more

My husband loves the food here. He's a big fan of Curry Goat. So when he heard they had it he was impressed.

Nice clean restaurant. Friendly staff. I ordered the JerkPork to go. I was told it was cubed pork with a little bit of fat, and spicier than the Jerk Chicken. I was hesitant about the amount of fat, but told it would be minimal. The dinner was very flavorful but so not spicy. Cabbage must have been a premium as it was only a few forkfuls. The beans and rice could use a bit of help ( though it being cold was my fault). The pork itself was dry. And the amount of fat was crazy! I ordered a medium dinner and honestly it was 90% fat. 2% bone and 8% pork. If I wasn't already warm in my hotel, I would have walked it back. read more

Jamaica Cuse - Jack Sprat could eat no fat and barely scrape any meat off that bone. - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

It was my first time in downtown Syracuse. I had just done a 7.5 hr drive from Detroit and was just hoping to find a coffee and walk about to revive myself. My senses guided me to Jamaica Cuse. Like a mummy with my eyes covered and arms out, my feet just walked in. The aroma was irresistable. I ordered jerk chicken and a ginger mango juice. I admit because I was handed the food so fast I had a moment of disappointment where I was like, oh maybe it's not fresh. I opened the to-go container at a seat by the window and it was loaded, I mean loaded with chicken on the bone and huge boneless square chunks resting up against a generous scoop of hot cabbage, and topped with delicately fried plantains. It was so good I didn't try to eat pretty. The meat was perfect. Rich spices touched the entire taste palette. The owner and chefs were so nice and the industrial building had good vibes, minimally but powerfully painted with the colors of the Jamaican flag, airy ceilings and a black and white artwork of Bob Marley. The customers inside were lovely too and praised the owner who humbly smiled and complimented them back. I feel lucky to have stumbled into such a space with unbelievably delicious food and ambitious, talented chef/owner. Thank you! Please do come to Detroit! read more

Jamaica Cuse - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

This place is delicious! I came here for a quick lunch recently, I was so excited to try, and I was not disappointed! I felt so welcomed by the staff and they made excellent suggestions which I appreciated having never had Jamaican cuisine before! They recommended the jerk chicken and their oxtail dish, I ended up getting the jerk chicken which came with rice and plantains. Everything was so delicious! The chicken was just the right amount of spice in that I could feel the heat but all of the beautiful flavors got to shine through. The plantain was cooked perfectly and each component complimented the other. The restaurant was super clean and organized and the yellow paint on the walls made the whole place feel like sunshine. I can't wait to go back and try more! read more

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Stopped in for a quick lunch on a weekend. Service was very friendly. The food was wonderful - we ordered the jerk chicken and oxtail. The jerk spice was well done with a good amount of heat. The flavors were seeped all the way through the meat. The oxtail was also delicious! read more

Wow wow wow. This new spot is a gem in the downtown food scene. Big open clean eating space with amazing food. We tried the jerk chicken and curry chicken. The jerk chicken had a great heat level and wasn't dry like some other jerk chicken I've tried at other places. My wife preferred the curry chicken. Rice and beans and cabbage comes with the meat and they are excellent. Plantains cooked perfectly. The owner, Shane, introduced himself to us as we ate. Seems like a great guy. Definitely get here and try it out. read more

Jamaica Cuse - Small sized curry chicken and jerk chicken. Both came with rice/beans, cabbage and plantains. - Caribbean Near Me - Syracuse, New York

My co-worker and I are in town for a quick work trip and the owner of this restaurant was our Uber driver. He was chatting us up the whole drive and mentioned he owned a Jamaican restaurant. He gave us a menu and we went on our merry way...while we're thinking of what to eat for lunch, my co-worker mentions the menu, so we decide to try it. And OMG! Delish! I have no pictures because the food was gone instantly after the first bite lol. I got the jerk wings with cabbage and plantains and he got the stew chicken with cabbage and rice and peas. Everything was perfect! If I'm ever in Syracuse again I will definitely be back! read more

I ordered a large oxtail dinner and a separate side order of mac and cheese. the oxtail was good, cabbage and plantains were amazing. the rice was ok instant rice, was expecting not instant rice. the mac and cheese was a different kind of bland. it tasted like someone took mexican blend cheese and mixed it into over cooked pasta read more

This is a must-try in downtown Syracuse. The jerk chicken is consistently fresh and authentic-tasting. Try the curry chicken as well, it is very well-prepared. If you are in the mood for a no-frills Jamaican spot that will give you clean food and quick service, give this place a shot. Just wish it was open on Mondays! read more