Island CZ Cafe || Brooklyn, NY
Every time I visit NY, I have the overwhelming urge to eat Ox tail and I don't know why. Maybe it is because NY just has the best authentic restaurants to me (aside from the actual countries of origin, of course). Because New York is a melting pot of different cultures, religions, and ethnicities, you can find different cuisines on every corner.
On Friday we decompressed from the Megabus ride and spent some time roaming around Crown Heights. We came across this really good Jamaican restaurant called Island Cz Cafe.
Jamaican Sorrel
Island CZ seemed to have a good enough menu... a.k.a they had my Ox tail and I was hungry so we sat and ordered. The service was extremely slow. I don't know if they were on Jamaican Island time because they were definitely not on that New York minute.
All we had to eat were these extremely dry, tasteless plantain chips. I know it seems like I am a bit harsh on this place, but I was extremely hungry and recounting the experience has actually made me more bitter. Yet, good news..and the reason for this review is that the Oxtail Reggae pasta ($19) made up for the plantain chips!!
The food was a good portion size for me, I even shared a few bites with my friends, but honestly, it was a little too good to share. I'm selfish. The oxtail was tasty and the pasta was perfectly seasoned with a thick Alfredo sauce, which is just how I like my pasta.
If you were wondering, the plantains that came with the food were no better than those tasteless chips.... but I recommend this place for their oxtail and/or reggae oxtail pasta!!! Overall, the food was good and our waiter was really nice, but the service could have been a bit faster. They didn't have any customers when we ordered just a couple of takeout orders. There were also a couple of people who ordered takeout after us and received their food faster. Maybe there were two little cooks in the kitchen so I will give them a pass since my oxtail was delicious.