First time trying this place. The inside is super clean and nice. The owner is super nice. We ordered Oxtails with rice and peas and collard greens. As well as stew chicken with macaroni and cheese and sweet plantains. The food was pretty good however the portion sizes were small for the price. There were only 4 pieces of oxtail. The macaroni tasted good but was not what I expected. Overall I would say if you are in the area it is worth a try however it is pricy. read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Stew Chicken macaroni and cheese and sweet plantains - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

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Wish I had more to review, showed up 35 minutes before close and they wouldn't serve us. The guy at the front said they were no longer serving guests this late, which I guess I get but still very early. Then when we looked confused he said they were "out of food". Put different hours on the door if you are going to reject guests if they show up a little later than desired read more

Rock City BBQ Ribs, rice and peas and plantain lasagna. The ribs were tender and nice. The rice was cooked well. I've never heard of plantain lasagna and I was super excited to try it. This was a great blend of sweet and savory. The Service was excellent. Well done Chef! read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

The food was amazing. Loved that they were playing great music, nice atmosphere. The service was ok. The sides are overpriced aside from that the food was INCREDIBLE! read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Steak Mac & Cheese Bowl - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

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This place was way better than I expected! It doesn't look like much outside, but the food is packed with flavor. The server was super knowledgeable about the food and made the experience very welcoming and informative. The oxtail fell off the bone and the sides were fantastic! Definitely worth checking out in Orlando. read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Braised Oxtail with collard greens and mac & cheese - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

My husband and I were very disappointed. With so many reviews and great images we wanted to try this place. Both our dishes were horrible. He had the snapper and had the oxtails. The oxtails were fatty, the gravy was so watery and lacked flavor. The rice was so hard as if it was cooked and just sat in a pot for a while. Our sons jerk chicken just had a marinade on the outside but after the first bite just tasted like regular rotisserie chicken. We drove close to an hour and we're so disappointed. read more

Virgin Island Thyme - These are not oxtails. They had so much oil and they were so watered down. No flavor at all. - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

I've been to island thymes twice now, and both times it's been a wholesome experience. I like really liked their food, I'm always looking for good authentic Caribbean food and this one made it . I ordered curry chicken, black beans, baked Mac n cheese, some empanadas, oh and fried sweet plantains, and a cheesecake with guava sauce for dessert. It was really good, prices were reasonable, we were in and out fast and satisfies. I want to go back soon and try more. recommended read more

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This place is amazing! If you are looking for some delicious Caribbean food I highly recommend this place. The server was extremely helpful and helped us figure out what we wanted to order. Definitely a place to check out. read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Tropical Grilled Chicken - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

Hear me out y'all cause the pics do NO justice. All that needs to be said is 10/10 SERVICE, 10/10 GRUB, 10/10 MEMORIES. Definitely try it for yourself!! This place is dangerously good, if I worked there I'd be fat & if I lived nearby I'd be immobile, IT'S THAT GOOD:)) Shoutout to our cashier SANTIAGO he what made the experience so memorable 10/10, he made sure to make us feel special & had great conversations;)) read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Chef, Santiago, (friend)Bri - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

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Great food, I ordered the island stew, chicken with mac & cheese and collard greens and was amazed at the flavor. read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Love the flavors, customer service is really nice. I ordered the island stewed chicken so good. - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

I found this place after looking around on Yelp and decided to try it for lunch. I'm glad I did! The place was nice with pictures of the islands on the walls and the service was great. I young guy explained the options between lunch and dinner portions and I tried the lunch jerk chicken and mac n' cheese. That mac n' cheese is bangin. The chicken was tasty and cooked well but the mac n' cheese stole the show. I was full but couldn't stop eating. I'll be back soon! read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Nice portion of Jerk Chicken Mac & Cheese Bowl - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

Very flavorful food. Great spot. The service was wonderful. All the Food came out fresh and hot. The jerk chicken was on point. Meat coming off the bone. The owner came out to check on us and the food. The shrimp tacos were great also. read more

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Love this place! Food always tastes great. Their mac and cheese is tastes amazing. I always get the jerk salmon and colored greens.

Jamaican Curry!!! Where has this been all my life??? I love this place more every time we visit. Everything on the menu is amazing Awesome service and the food is unbelievable!!! You will not regret. Great staff and the chef makes sure your food is amazing! read more

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I have been coming to Virgin Island time since it opened and the food is always spot on would highly recommend this place

The food is DELICIOUS! So many things here are SO GOOD! Yum! The owner and chef, Vern Thomas , usually comes out to greet our family and check on how we like the food. The atmosphere is quite casual but the food can't be beat! Best wishes to Vern in his endeavors to feed us with his amazing dishes with island flair. My favorite restaurant food in all of Orlando! read more

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I had wanted to like Island Thyme Caribbean Grille and had given it a try a couple of times, but have not been overwhelmed by their food. Perhaps it is me. When I think Caribbean food, I automatically think of Jamaican food. This a very generalized and homogenized version of Jamaican food and I understand the Caribbean is more than Jamaica. However, this is just my opinion and my overall feeling on this place and its food. The staff here is friendly and professional. The ambiance is pretty basic and nothing fancy, but that is okay enough. The jerk chicken here is okay enough. Nothing special, but nothing terrible. With it being in a shopping plaza, there is plenty of parking. It is in the same shopping plaza as the Walmart Neighborhood Market. I guess I can only give it three stars overall. The staff is friendly and all, but I was just hoping for more. read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

Island Thyme is a small local fast casual Caribbean restaurant over in the Avalon Park area. Their food is renowned in Orlando and has great review through many local publications. I've had the opportunity of coming here a few times now. The ambiance is one of a local shop that if you know you know, evidenced by the many to go orders that are placed. It's not too big, enough seats for maybe 15-20 people. Their food does not disappoint... I ordered the Jerk Chicken with rice and peas and the Jerk Salmon with rice and black beans. The jerk chicken was cooked to perfection, the perfect amount of spice and the inside still moist. The rice and peas fluffy and tasty to pair perfectly with the entrees. The salmon was amazing, cooked to perfection and juicy on the inside. The jerk seasoning hit it perfectly. I personally recommend eating there as this food just hits different when you have it fresh. Super good find in Central FL if you want some good Caribbean food. read more

Virgin Island Thyme - jerk chicken and jerk salmon - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

The food is amazing!! I go there when I can and have told people about this place. The workers are very kind, pleasant and professional. read more

You can't come to Orlando and not try some Caribbean food. And this place is really a hidden gem! The name itself, "Virgin Island" indicates what kind of food you should expect, authentic Caribbean cuisine. As you walk in the place, you automatically see the quality of the food based upon the awards on the wall. The owner and chef Vern Thomas has made a name for himself in the Orlando area, and he did it through his food. So let me tell you what did it for me. I ordered the curry chicken with rice and peas and fried, sweet, plantain. Little did I know when they say chicken, they mean a half of a chicken. Such a huge portion of food was amazing. In addition, it was amazingly delicious. The spices were on point the flavors were layered and everything was perfectly cooked. Needless to say, I was absolutely, totally impressed. read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Curry Chicken, rice and peas, fried plantain! Did I say it was HALF a chicken? - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

Spotted this place on IG, figured let's give it a shot! Love that it's locally owned and great Caribbean Fusion. It has a little bit of everything. I will be back! Place was clean & quaint. Service was professional and friendly. Owner/Chef came out to serve us and speak with us for about a minute. So why 4 stars and not 5?! Let's jump right into it! Wings- OUTRAGEOUSLY Good! If You don't have anything else have the wings. Quarter chicken & Ribs combo- chicken was so flavorful and juicy. The ribs had a good taste, but nothing that made me in love with them. Rice & beans- not a fan. Didn't have much taste for me. Loaded Tostones- surprisingly really good. Ground beef was a tad salty. Mac n Cheese & steak bowl- steak was salty. That killed it for my wife. Steak was chewy, but skirt steak can be chewy at times. The Mac n Cheese was great & so cheesy. Maybe we will go the Mac n Cheese with wings. Either way, I think this place needs some Serious love from anyone reading this. Go give it a shot! read more

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Five stars is just simply not enough to give this restaurant. Once again thank you to another fellow yelper (Joe) that gave me the recommendation for this place. It's a shame that it's so far out from Central Orlando main areas. But I can say without a shadow of a doubt that this is one of the best Caribbean places that I have been to here in the state of Florida and the drive is most definitely worth it. I ordered the salmon, and that was absolutely delicious. What I did to that salmon was a crime because I devoured every part of it. I ordered the jerk salmon, my partner decided to go with the stew chicken with a side of mac & cheese and plantains. When I dug my fourth into it that was a absolutely delicious as well and season to perfection. We decided to get the business card because it was the best thing to do going forward for any catering/wedding or anything else me and my partner plan in the future. I must even take out time and say, it was a pleasure actually meeting the business owner. So I actually complement him personally on his work, later on in the day I decided to dig into the history of this restaurant and I must say that I was happy to see what he's been through and how he finally opened up his own restaurant that is thriving. Before leaving I decided to order some more. So I decided to get a oxtail taco and then the jerk wings. I hate them both on the same day. The flavor what drew me in and it was so delicious. To the owner: Keep up the good work. No doubt about it this is the best that I've had and I'm sure many others have already said the same thing to you and in these other reviews. You'll definitely see me back before month end to try other options. read more

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The food was delicious! The mac and cheese tasted like it was made in a restaurant. The fries were delicious, the fried fish was excellent but the sauce smelled kind of gross. But overall, the food was amazing and I can't forget about the beef empanada that was the second best thing on the entire meal first coming with the macaroni. although I wasn't at the restaurant in person, it was the best food I have ever tasted. thank you to all those people who made the food. read more

I enjoyed having the following: garden salad, macaroni and cheese, and curry chicken! I definitely recommend that you try this meal!

It's been a while since I wrote a review and even post covid, this place is 5 stars. They have excellent food, excellent service, and some of the best jerk chicken wings on the planet (at least to the parts I've seen). It's hard to pass them up. Must Try Items: -Mac N Cheese -Jerk Chicken Wings -Oxtail Sandwich -Mac N Cheese with Oxtail -Oxtail -Empanadas We've eaten here many times and everyone loves it. One of the kids even requested their Mac N Cheese for their birthday party, and they love that boxed orange crap! Love this place and the owner Vern is amazing! Stop in and say Hi and get some food. read more

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I ordered the steak and Mac & cheese bowl. It's rigatoni pasta in a creamy cheese sauce with " steak" sliced on top. The reality however is that the steak seems like discarded steak ends from god knows where. 6-7 so called slices and 4 of them are fatty cartilage. To each his own on that one. Finally the Mac and cheese is bland and just taste like someone poured milk in a pan and heated it up. 21$ of here you go damn...won't be returning read more

Good, well prepared and presented food. The jerk however is not real jerk. It is homogenized version for those who can't take real jerk. Not to put it down at all. I eat there! Just letting those who expect jerk jerk prepare yourselves. read more

Work brought us to the area and we were looking for a place to stop for dinner. Lots of places came up but the name and great reviews caught our eye. Wow this place did not disappoint . he server was warm and helpful, the restaurant was clean and inviting and the food ... oh my! We ordered the jerk chicken and ribs, sides of beans and rice, collard greens and plantains. Everything was delicious, hot and ready quickly. This will be our choice stop anytime we're back in the area and we highly recommend this one of a kind delightful experience. read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

Run here! As fast as you can... Ox tail, Rice and Peas with sweet plantains. Devine. Also, Jerk Chicken... Transports you to another place. Love love. We will always come when we visit Orlando 2-3 times a year. read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Ox Braised Oxtail - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

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Food was delicious! Family meal jerk chicken and 5 sides. Mac and cheese, sweet plantains, rice and beans, yuca and corn! read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Could not wait to start eating!! It was delicious! We ordered the family meal jerk chicken with sides! - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

My husband and I went with the kids last night for one of our "cheat meals". We switched to a vegan diet at the beginning of the year but still indulge for one meal every 2 or 3 months. My husband just can't quit the wings and I can't resist their baked mac and cheese.... I had fallen in love with their braised oxtail sandwich last year, so of course I had to get that with a side of mac and cheese. The oxtail is so tender and pairs perfectly with the collard greens and cheese. This sandwich is huge, so come with an appetite, especially if you order the mac and cheese too. I actually decided last night that this is officially my favorite sandwich. Ever. For real. Pro tip, get the mac and cheese and pour the side of oxtail gravy all over. It doesn't disappoint. You can actually get a meal of oxtail mac and cheese but I enjoy the flavors in the sandwich too much and can just make my own with the side of gravy. Mid meal we glanced at the menu and realized they had a side of something called "plantain lasagna" which sounds an awful lot like pastelón so I was immediately intrigued. We ordered a side to take home since there was no way I'd have room for that too. I sit here now having just eaten it for a late lunch and OMG... it's better than any pastelón I've ever had. The contrast of the sweet plantains with the savory meat and decadent cheese sauce is a combo sent from above. Holy crap! (More like holy amazingness!) I wish I'd taken a photo but I was hungry... sorry ;) As for the rest of the meals, my husband swears by their wings. I love wings but they're a bit too spicy for me. He also ordered an oxtail taco. Normally I'd balk at a $5 taco but the size of this thing certainly justifies the price tag. My daughter enjoys their empanadas. The pastry dough is always flaky and crispy. The beef filling is delicious too. (Same beef used on the lasagna.) Everyone but Joe got the mac and cheese because it's just that good. We've ordered it for catering too. It's a must try. Chef Vern is always there and makes a point to greet all the tables before they leave. Great customer service and man who is clearly passionate about his food and service to the community. Photo credit to my hubs, Joe S. No read more

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Let me start by saying my husband doesn't eat Caribbean food & i always tell him he's missing out. So i told him i was going to Island Thyme and asked him did he want anything around that side of town. Fast forward i get there and it wasn't too crowded. I was second in line. I told the waiter cashier Jordy i was there for the Yelp Yes meal . Since my husband never told me what he wanted i began to add on food for him to taste just in case. I ordered quite a spread along with my Yelp meal some may even say i got arrived away. Yelp Meal : Jerk Chicken plantain Lasagna side Rice and peas side Carrot cake dessert Added items -Jerk Chicken Mac & Cheese -Jerk Wings -Island Meat Empanadas w/ corn & Rice and Beans as a side (comes with 2 sides) -Braised Oxtail Taco -Jerk Pork Taco Drink I got both flavors of slushees - Pina Colada - Strawberry Lemonade The customer service was AMAZING and Jordy even let me take pics before he bagged my food up. Once i got home and my husband tasted the wings he said wow this is so good. Then he tasted the empanadas and he ate them both i only got a taste. He took half of the Jerk Mac & Cheese to work with him so overall he loved the food. I ate my meal and i absolutely loved it. I'm mad this place is so far from me but that won't stop me . I'll def be back. I ate my food over 2 days it was so much and it still tasted delicious the next day. Thank you so much for having me read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Outside - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

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I got a tasty meal for a special Yelp price. The jerk chicken meal came with two sides, dessert and I selected a water for my drink. The order process was easy and my food was ready at the promised time. It was all packaged up and waiting in the counter for me. I was able to social distance and felt safe. The macaroni and cheese was crazy good as was my favorite the key lime pie. It was a cool lime with a dollop of whipped cream. The plantain lasagna was more of a meat pasta with fried plantains mixed in. I got a generous two pieces of chicken but it was too spicy hot and smokey for a wimp like me. I will definitely be back for the Mac n cheese and the key lime pie. read more

Food was not good and overpriced. Would not recommend. I should have known better when the place was empty at 6pm.

We were excited to visit after seeing the reviews and the favorable articles about Virgin Island Thyme. But in all honesty we were disappointed in the food. Were the dishes hot and ready to go? Yes. But we were underwhelmed due to the lack of Caribbean seasoning and style of preparation. It's fine if you're looking for a hot meal in the Avalon Park area. But if you're looking for real, flavorful, vibrant Caribbean food you'll need to look elsewhere. read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Oxtails w/rice + peas and mac + cheese. Really shocked that they would serve us oxtails with so much fat on them. Mac and cheese was okay. - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

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I ordered to take out. The food wasn't first great. I remember the tostones being too thick, rather hard and not at all crispy. The prices weren't great either. There are a couple of caribbean spots in Waterford Lakes where the food is better. read more

One of my favorite restaurants in all of Orlando! I always get jerk chicken when I come here but I have tried other options at this restaurant and I've never had anything bad here. inside it's nothing special but it's always clean. Personally, I never dine in, but I see people eat here all the time, the service is always great. The desserts are also always really delicious! I moved briefly out of the area and I missed this restaurant while I was gone, that's how yummy it is! read more

Stopped here on my drive passing through Orlando & honestly everything was amazing! The customer service was really good. I got the jerk chicken with rice & peas and the macaroni & cheese. I also added a side of sweet plantains. The food was so delicious and I would recommend this place to anyone. I dined in & I must say the place was very clean. I particularly enjoyed the fact that the owner came to check up on me. 10/10 and would definitely try again! read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Sweet Fried Plantains - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

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Ok I finally remembered to snap a picture because I usually devour this as soon as it arrives lol. Once again the jerk chicken is 10/10. The seasoning is everything and it's cooked perfectly. The corn, amazing. Collard greens, amazing. My to-go orders are always accurate and fresh. One of my favorite spots in Avalon! If you haven't tried it yet you're missing out! read more

Virgin Island Thyme - Jerk Chicken - Caribbean Near Me - Orlando, Florida

Always delicious food. My go to is the plantain lasagna. I know they have other delicious items- like their jerk chicken or ox tail- but I go back to that side dish every time! read more