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This Jamaican family-owned little restaurant is a gem! The food is simply excellent and the owners are extraordinarily friendly and care very much about the quality of their cooking.
I had a "special" dinner plate with red snapper (the whole fish) in a very spicy red sauce with onions and tomatoes, with sides of rice and beans, cabbage, and fried plantains. A lot of food, and definitely on the cheap side for the quality.
The "patties" appetizers are pretty interesting, too: some kind of dough stuffed with beef, chicken, or vegetables. You can order them with or without coco bread (delicious!). Each patty is enough for 2 people as an appetizer.
Nice touch: the home-made ginger beer. Not your supermarket's ginger beer :)
Will definitely go again!
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This is true "underground gourmet." A remarkably scrumptious culinary adventure for less than ten dollars per person, in a small, personable dining room, where the owner tries to get to know her customers.
I brought my parents here for lunch today, so we tried a lot of dishes. We all had our favorites: I loved the tender and flavorful curried goat. My dad devoured the chicken and beef patties in coco bread. My mom and I agreed that the jerk chicken was the best we'd ever had. (And for me, it was some of the best barbeque-style chicken I've had since I've moved from Texas.)
We downed our delicious ginger beers to try to cool the quick burning in our throats.
This restaurant has the real details of the food just right. The greens on the side of each plate are PERFECTLY cooked -- just the right crispness and balance of salt and spice. The heat of the dishes is enough to get your sinuses cleared but not enough to drive you running out into the street with burning hair, etc.
The plaintains are baked, which is new to me, but the delicate texture is a wonderful addition to the plate.
Bottom line: I think I've found a new addiction.
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Ortanique is a gem hidden in Huron Village that I never would have found without the help of my fellow yelpers. I tried a sampler, with ox tail, curry chicken, and jerk chicken, which came with some veggies, rice, and plantains, and a ginger beer. In addition to being very cheap, the food was delicious and plentiful. The ox tail fell off the bone, and the chicken dishes had the perfect kick to them. The ginger beer I drank while waiting seemed to knock the cold right out of me...I'd go back just to have another one of those (it puts a pleasant warmth/sting in the back of your throat).
The owners were the friendliest I've met at any restaurant in the Boston area, and seemed to do everything on their own. I'll be going back here to try all the other dishes, which I'm sure are just as excellent (coco bread...intriguing).
One warning, there aren't many tables, so take out may be a good idea.
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This tiny storefront Jamaican restaurant is a real find. My husband and I had dinner here last night and are planning on making it a regular stop. The atmosphere is nothing fancy - there are about four tables and two window counter seats, but the couple who run the restaurant are incredibly friendly and welcoming. You end up feeling like you've been invited into someone's home. They also seem to do a good takeout business if no seats are available. There was a steady stream of people picking up orders while we were there
The food is hearty and delicious with huge portions for the very reasonable prices. We each had one of the sampler plates (three meat dishes with sides of rice, vegetables and plantains) so that we could sample most of the menu. Everything was delicious, but some of my favorites were the snapper, which was served in a tangy, slightly spicy red sauce, the richly flavored ox-tail which was falling off of the bone and the brown chicken stew. I would also recommend the beef patty with the coco bread. The one thing we didn't try was the jerk chicken - we had to save something for our next trip.
If you go (and you really should!) make sure to try the home-made ginger beer. It's deliciously cool, sweet and spicy all at once.
Overall I loved this place and am looking forward to coming again.
This place is a must to visit. Pure Gem status in my book. Go here. I'm not kidding. Really... just read the first paragraph so you find it, then go go go go!
Finding the place:
Take a good look at the image on Yelp, you can't miss the door. The name is not written anywhere, but look for the big orange O on the window that looks a bit like an orange. I told everyone to look for any restaurant beginning with O... apparently, the giant O wasn't a tip off.
Dining:
I can imagine getting a seat at the place can be a challenge. Its totally worth going with some time to kill, on off hours. By the end of the meal I felt like I had swung by an old friends living room. You can see into the kitchen, the staff comes in an out to talk to you. When I was ordering, I wanted the Lamb, but it wasn't going to be ready for another 20 minutes. The owner told me to stick around, he'd let me try a piece before I went.
The Food:
Amazing. The Jamaican patties were crispy on the outside, and moist on the inside. Just the right amount of spice (well, my roommate Chris turned red, and almost died afterwards... but he's a wuss when it comes to hot food. It did make for good entertainment for everyone. Memorable quote 'even the diet coke tastes hot!'... I swear though, this is very mild food). I split two dinner plates with my other roommate. He got the jerk chicken. Not very spicy, but amazingly tasty. The other chicken plate I got was just as good. It came with rice (nothing of note) and a small serving of fried plantains (amazing). I also had a sorrell (a great blend of some root that tasted vaguely like kiwi and a hint of ginger). Another person in the party picked up a bottle of Twist (lemonade with a dab of beer). Amazing, and worth a try.
We had to leave quickly (the roommate in pain, really wanted to get out of there) so sadly, I didn't get to try the lamb, but I will be back. I honestly can't say enough about this hidden gem. Everyone was so friendly, quick and attentive.
HINT: If you want the fish, lamb or ox tail, I strongly recommend calling in advance. This is a very small operation. As the owner said "I'm sorry, I try not to make too much. I don't like to waste food, and today was really busy".
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HELL YEAH. i don't know much about jamaican food, but this place is so good.
i got a chicken patty (which is kind of like an empenada) and some of the plantains. the patty had just the right amount of curry for my taste buds, and the pastry was light and yummy. plantains are hard to find on most menus around here, so i always jump at the chance to order them when they're offered. theirs are real good.
the patty and plaintains were 2 bucks each.. $4 lunch!!
awesome addition to huron village, finally something different. now all they need is a burrito joint, and i'll be a happy woman.
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Super cool, friendly, great prices, delicious food! what else can you ask for! It's my and my husband favorite place for enjoying sweet plantains and ginger beer! Definitely check it out.
Coco bread, beef patty
ziz, boom, bah
Curry goat, rice and peas
rah, rah, rah!
Fish sandwich and plan-tains
ziz, boom, bah
ginger beer and sorrell drink
yah, yah, yah!
Salad greens and ox tail
ziz, boom, bah
frowning Latina at the counter
blah. blah. blah.
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My family just went to this restaurant for the first time tonight and here I am writing my first Yelp review! The food and service were excellent. The food was perfectly spiced for the adults and perfectly NOT spiced for our 4 year old daughter! The plantains were yummy and the ginger beer was very quenching. It's quite a find and we will be going there many more times to eat in or take out.
Excellent, friendly service and wonderful food. If you are craving Jamaican food this is the place to hit!
Very good Jamaican food. I'm from Toronto, where there is a huge population of people from the West Indies, so grew up with a lot of yummy roti, patties, coco bread, and various jerk meats. The food at Ortanique isn't super spicy as I am used to with Jamaican food, but they have authentic scotch bonnet bell pepper hot sauce, so you can flavor as you please.
The friend plantains are really, really yummy. I think their large jerk chicken, the roti (usually only on Saturdays), and the jerk roast pork have been my favorite so far. I also really like the Hibiscus drink that Valerie makes in the summer sometimes. Price is great, around $8 or $9. I'm sad I no longer live in the area, and have yet to find as good a Jamaican place here in San Fran.
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WOW.
When you find a gem amongst the freaking yuppies that have made Huron Ave. their own you must rejoice. My girls and I celebrated by ordering a beef pattie, a chicken pattie, and a veggie pattie. We cut the pieces equal as to not have to fight over the biggest piece. I would have won just so you know, but fair is fair. We wash down the tastiness with HOMEMADE ginger beer. My friends do you know bad ginger beer from good ginger beer? Reeds is bad, Ortanique is good.
We moved on from our pattie delights to the main course. I had curried goat. It came with rice and beans, fried plantains, cabbage and a kiss.
Well, the kiss I may have imagined, but the plate of food was delicious. It was also $8. Unbelievable.
While we were sitting in this tiny place a group of 12-13 year old boys came in. They were greeted by the sweet owner that was running the show. She must have a boy this age. She shelled out sodas and beef patties and all was good. When I was that age there was no place I could get a 1.50 snack, a soda, and a smile from a nice lady.
I will frequent this place and be a better person for it.
Amen.
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Good lord I'm pissed I drove by this place over a bazillion times and never thought about that giant O in the window. Well I went in last night and it was amazing. I had the carribian sampler with curry chicken, eschebew fish and ox tail. The chicken was perfect with a delicious curry sauce, the ox tail was good just not what I was expecting but I would get it again, but the fish stole the show the sauce it was smothered in was so damn good I mixed the rice in to it. Cost 11 dollars for all that plus boiled cabbage and carrots with a delicious spice. Just had the beef patty with cheese on cocoa bread on my lunch break and for 2.50 goddamn now I know why the fuggees talked about that on a verse on the score, how can dope ass lauren hill be wrong.
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An absolute pleasure to be eating here. It's not a fancy, wear a tie, restaurant like place...it's a small, 2 table ,"to go" restaurant with an unbelivably friendly staff wiht tons of stories, personality and some lovely home made food including one kick butt snappy ginger beer. you can eat a meal for under $10! Very simple menu. a few salads, a few starters, a few main dishes, and little sides to keep ya happy.
I came here with 3 others and we shared the Jerk chickan, Ox tail, Goat Curry, and another chickan dish. The owner/husband even brought us some fresh made fruit bread towards the end. He also patiently spent a good amount of time explaining each dish, how it's made, and how the place was run.
The dishes are very very home made. No fancy this and that...just the good lovely warming food. Come here with some friends to catch up...have a good time... perhaps not a place for a fancy date or for graduation...but if you liek home made food and a great personality in a comfortable environment...come here!
Space is small here, but the real jewel besides the food was the staff gleaming in smiles and curisoity. But do be aware that there are 2 small tables combined to fit 6 ppl, and a few side stools for 2-3 more.
It's a bit far from the T, but parking is plentiful. We stayed until 9ish, 30 mins aftter they closed.
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Walking down Huron, I saw the sign for Ortanique a bit aways and thought to myself "not ANOTHER specialty store".......it just "Looked" like it from where I was. Was it a tomato? More Pasta????
Is that an Apple? NOT another children's store............
As I got closer, I thought I was going crazy. Jamaican Cuisine! On Huron Ave??? Ahh...ok....Why not.
I got the jerk chicken wrap. Boy. Was it good! The chicken was perfectly cooked -not dry and not rubbery -just perfect and moist.
The sauce was amazing! It had that kick notable in most Jamaican food. Yummmy.....bring me to my knees why don't you!
I also had a glass of the Ginger Beer. It is homemade and it is basically rocket fuel. Drink with care. If you like this type of thing-you will LOVE theirs........
The menu is small, the space is small (get take out) ...........but everything else is just right. The portions are perfect and the spices and colors used in each dish are colorful.
The owners are super nice and back their working at lightening speeds. You can tell they love what they do and this is their dream.....they didn't make me feel silly or uncomfortable while ordering. I will definately be coming back.
Maybe for some Ox tail?
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Novel by Kenny L.
Cambridge Jamaican Journey
*November 2007 Yelp Bestseller*
On a cool sunny winter day, I emerged from the subterranean space that is Harvard Square T station all the way from Brookline. I looked left and right, looking for Garden St. and for tasty Jamaican that I read about on this magical place called "Yelp". As I was walking and Garden St. turns into Concord Ave, I began to admire the nature and buildings around me. The colonial style houses, picket fences, fallen leaves of orange-yellow hue, and squirrels running around paints a picture of this beautiful country we called the USA. One should opt to take the bus of 72, but what scenery would be missed!
As one turned left on Huron Ave and into Huron Village, an Orange O can be seen on the window. Ahhhh, warm Jamaican food awaits me indoors. But upon entering the restaurant, the cozy feeling was immediately felt. There were five tables and a counter near the window. In front of me is the open kitchen where the life is. Leon and his wife were cooking in the family kitchen. Family because that is how one would feel when you dine here. Leon wanted a place where he can really know his consumers and he was able to do by stopping by to ask if my meal was to my taste. He even had a chance from his busy cooking to talk about what he has accomplished here in the two years here. I admired the Yelp sticker on the door and was proud to tell him I was from the pack. He in returned was very enthusiastic and even had me sign his book of guests.
The menu stimulated my salivary glands. Holding it in, I decided on the brown stew chicken with rice and peas, as well as the unique and refreshing glass of home made ginger beer. The meal was delicious to say the least; the stew chicken was very moist and flavorful, the vegetables were warm, crisp and refreshing, the rice with red beans was a delight, and the plantains were caramelized and tasty!
It is family restaurants like this that makes me appreciate life and living here in Boston. It was a long trek to get to but most definitely worth repeating. To complete my journey, I ran to Christina's for two scoops of choco chip cookie dough and azuki bean ice cream.
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BIZARRE that they stay open until only 7pm. Someone should call them and tell them that nearly all of their yelp reviews complain bitterly about this fact. Maybe you should do it. Go on, do it.
Anyway, I come here on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Here's what you like about it:
1. The extremely nice, cool family that runs it. This is a business that is family owned and operated in all of the best ways.
2. Cheap.
3. You can get goat there.
4. Jamaican Patties with coco bread cost three bucks for a big meal and make you feel good.
5. Homemade ginger beer that makes Reed's Ginger Beer taste like Pepsi by comparison.
A couple of weeks ago they had ackee and saltfish on special, and it was one of my top ten meals of the year. Ackee is this fascinating vegetable that looks, tastes, and acts like scrambled eggs. Pair it with salt cod and peas and rice and some tasty sauciness (and pay the kind dude behind the counter six bucks), and you'll be in heaven.
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Can I just say... I've never encountered the stereotypical Cantabrigian until I rolled up on Huron Ave looking for some Jamaican grub.
But that aside, I really liked this place. I don't think I'd hit it up on a Friday again, or at least I'd call for take-out first.
When my dining companion and I pulled up, we saw through the window there were a bunch of children in the windows, so NanoMags comment came to mind immediately.
The family who runs Ortaninque is soooooo nice. They were very welcoming to newcomers, and friendly with their usual crowd.
We had to wait awhile, but the place is so small, and it was very busy. But I really didn't mind. The owner gave my companion and I a ginger beer on the house. Suh-weet!
Once a table cleared up, we jumped on it before it could be fully bussed. I would have done it myself I was so 1) excited for the food, 2) greedy for a seat. The gentleman bussing our table said apologetically "We're a Mom and Pop place, and it looks like tonight everyone wants Mom's cookin'" Awwwwww. That's so sweet. I love this place.
Anyways, my special salad was really great - it had pecans, gorgonzola and dried cranberries, over very fresh lettuce/greens. Nice. I had a vegetable patty on coco bread (delicious); and picked at my boyfriends rice, cabbage and plantains. His meal (jerk chicken plate) looked excellent, with very reasonable sized portions (like human size, not elephant size). When we paid, the owner was still very apologetic for our wait. She was so sweet, she definitely has our business again (maybe on a Tuesday night... or something not so busy).
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I read about Ortanique on Yelp first, and wanted to check it out for a while. I've never had Caribbean food, but I figure that home cooking in all cultures have that domestic, made-with-care taste, and so wanted to give this place a chance. I live in Brookline, and so had to travel for an HOUR to get here, but it was WORTH EVERY MINUTE. I had jerk chicken, curried goat, and oxtail, as well as a cup of ginger beer. Damn, that was the best food I had had in a long time.
The jerk chicken was just the right amount of spicy, salty, savory, and sweetness. Not sweet enough to be coy, but enough to be pleasant. The curried goat was tender and very yummy, but the oxtail stole the show for me. I haven't tasted beef so slow-cooked and flavorful since my grandfather died. It was heavenly. I will definitely come back for more.
The ginger beer was a great accompaniment; so gingery it was like a kick in the teeth!
And OMG, I almost forgot about the plantains! They were just the right combination of tender and crispy. A hint of sweetness, and just so very good. We ordered more food just to have an excuse to get a side of plantains. Yum! Oh, and we also got a beef patty to see what all the hype was about. It was ok, similar to most other beef pastries I've had.
Leon, the proprietor/owner/cleaner/waiter, was as friendly and enthusiastic as everyone said he'd be. He came out to talk with us and explain how each dish was made, and was a great host. On our way out, he fished out a loaf of coco-bread fresh from the oven and handed it to us to snack on on the way home. And I think he undercharged us.
Now if only I lived nearby...
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I CAN NOT understand why this place has so many 5-* reviews.
I went at 3pm on Tues Feb 19, 2008. I got the chicken wings and plantans, and a salad.
The chicken wings were overcooked. The plantans didn't taste good. The salad was pretty good, although the tomato wasn't that ripe.
I paid my $10 and left hungry. I went to another restaurant immediately afterwards.
The floor looked like it hadn't been mopped in a long time. The chairs also needed cleaning. The cook had a loud TV on which was blaring an annoying soap opera melodrama.
I will never go back.
GREAT new place in Huron Village. Hard to find but worth the search. Check the hours so you will be in time for great Jamaican food.
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amazing food. we tried almost everything on the menu.
taste and flavor of food = 5 stars
quality of meat = 5 stars
friendlyness of staff = 5 stars
all for a very reasonable (less than $9 dinner) price.
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not understanding all the rave reviews.
-jerk chicken wasn't spicy at all. the main spice should be scotch bonnet peppers. it was more like stewed chicken.
-rice was overcooked and mushy. had very little flavor, extra gravy usually helps but not this time.
-plaintain weren't as ripe as i prefer. i grew up on plaintain, and i prefer that they be nice and caramelized.
-cabbage was alright but i kinda hate cabbage so that's not saying much.
-on the up side their patties were fresh out of the oven. first time i had a chicken pattie. tasty but it burnt the shit outta my chin. in a way i guess that's a good thing since patties are usually kept under heat lamps until they're dried out.
i must've gone on the wrong day or something. there's no way this could be the same plate everyone else is talking about.
i'll be back.
Great food and drink (homemade ginger beer)
The only bad thing is when you're craving their beef or chicken patties (often) late in the day, it's a crapshoot as to whether or not they'll still be open.
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Much has been said on Yelp about Ortanique. I'm not sure what new I can contribute, but I will do my best. The "O" in the window is so subtle yet so appropriate for this little restaurant. It's location is not what I would expect. This rich yuppy family part of Cambridge.
They door has a "People love us on Yelp" sticker. Yay!!
It is indeed very small. Only about 5 small tables and a window seat area. Everything is fresh and cooked right in front of you as the kitchen area is wide open.
I love me some Caribbean food. I usually eat Haitian food, but Jamaican food is a close second for me. And this, my friends, is some good Jamaican food.
The dcor, just like the outside is subtle. Just a few painting and pics up. One is an old school looking map of Jamaica. I knew that it was British owned but it was funny to look at the names of all of the places in Jamaica and see that they are all places in Britain too! Surrey, Middlesex, Cornwall, etc....
So, back to the food. They have a very small and limited menu yet the choices seem abundant. My group got: a Jamaican beef patty, the chicken wings and plantains, brown stew chicken, escabeche fish. And of course some ginger beer.
We will start with the ginger beer. It was a light yellowish color which surprised me. It was tangy, and of course gingery. But, what was surprising was that it also had a splash of citrus. Lemon I think. Anyway, it was good!
The Jamaican beef patty was like all other patties I have had, but fresher. And really good. Different than your regular Haitian patty, but really, really good. Soft and spicy.
The plantains were sweet plantains which is normal. I am weird in that I like salty plantains. Oh well. They were cooked just right. Soft and not too fried.
The stewed chicken was so, so good. So tender, juicy, and the sauce it was stewed in was tasty. It tasted almost like BBQ chicken but better.
The fish was excellent and fresh as well.
Great food! The staff was wonderful. It is family run and you can tell. They work hard!! Great experience, wonderful staff and of course wonderful food. I will come here again!
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I am so glad that a Jamaican place made it across the river!
The food is home made, very casual but very good! Try their beef appetizer (I forgot the name), it is very tasty.
Their menu items are limited in choice, but you can't go wrong with any of them. I highly recommend you to try them out, but not too late in the evening. My first time, I got there after 7:30 and the place was already closed. We ended up eating at the Full Moon.
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The best jamaican ive had in boston! Tried the curry goat, jerk chicken and curry chicken, and all were great, especially the goat. Plantains were just right, crispy on the outside soft on the inside. They were out of beef patties (darn) but the chicken patties were great, coco bread is on the lighter side (which is a good thing). Homemade ginger beer is invigorating. The people who own the place are really nice, so nice that it'll make you feel good to go here. Enjoy!
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i'm going to make it short and simple:
1. this place is small~ 3 bar stools, 4 wee size tables
2. friendly atmosphere
3. good, cheap food- think homemade food without the frills
"valerie's special salad" is just greens, dried cranberries, goat cheese, and store bought salad dressing.
4. ginger beer is really really ginger-y- too strong for me. almost spicy!
5. jerk chicken and ox tail was yummo!
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More like 4.5 stars... Ortanique is cute... and their ginger beer is fabulous. They don't have a veggie entree on the menu, but they're more than happy to cook one up from scratch for you if you ask nicely. My Tofu with jerk sauce and veggies was great, but the portion was a bit small, and took a while to make.
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Oddly located Jamaican restaurant with genuinely friendly ownership. Never purchased a full meal, but the beef/veggie/chicken patties are yummy and tagged at essentially Caribbean prices.
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tiny little place, great atmosphere! i love doing take-out since there isn't a ton of space for dining. totally didn't expect such a down-to-earth place in this neighborhood (very chi-chi).
the beef patties are so delicious and cheap. just spicy enough to keep me happy. the owners are incredibly warm towards everyone and really make you feel like you're dropping by their home for something tasty.
yummy comfort food, can't recommend them highly enough!
Just wanna throw my additional two cents in here. This place is indeed fantastic. But 7 pm? It's been several times that I have raced over there in the hopes of eating some delicious coco bread and a ginger beer, but alas they are closed.
However, this has only made me want one of their tasty veggie patties more. Ortanique, you are a cruel mistress.
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A tiny establishment nestled between the shops in Huron Village, and a real find. Wonderful, savory food at very good prices, and super-friendly staff. They do a brisk take-out business from the neighborhood, but you can sit and eat, too. The curry chicken, brown stew chicken, and fish are my favorites. After the Boston Globe "cheap eats" raved about Ortanique earlier this year, more people have discovered it, but it's still one of those tucked-away treasures. Don't miss it.
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goat curry, good peoples - this is what huron ave needed.
it's a little too small to eat here, but takeout is easy. cabbage was amazing. rice was amazing.
i'm not sure if it's the best location for a place like this, so hopefully they're getting enough word of mouth good reviews to keep it in business. i'm not sure if there's room for yet another high-end kids/pets/mommy boutique in this area.
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It's true, this place is awesome. Cozy with fantasic and cheap Jamaican food. Strangely out of place in Huron Village but that somehow adds to the intrigue. The staff are cool and the decor is very appealing. Love it.
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please, ortanique, stay open later!
every time i want to go here it's either too close to 8:30 (7 on thursdays) or it's a monday (closed!)
i absolutely love their homemade ginger beer. it's super spicy, and has a great kick to it.
also, they need to put their vegetarian dish on the menu. it's not there, so you just have to ask for it. once i had jamaican jerk tofu which was great, but the last time i was there, they were out of tofu.
still, a great place if you can get there early enough!
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Good stuff...although I still prefer Flames or the places across the street from the Franklin Park Zoo (can't remember the name). I have to admit I'm happy there's a jamaican joint in Cambridge...driving to Mission Hill sucks.
where has this place been all my life?!
i called up to place an order to take-out and said "i'm vegetarian, what can you make me?" they are totally laid back and when i got there the woman was like "hold on a minute" while she stirred something on the stove. it's very mom and pop. they made me curried tofu with cabbage, plantains, and vegetables over rice and beans. it was a little bit spicy and SO GOOD and at $7, there was enough for at least two lunches in there. I am so overly full. I also had a vegetable patty, which wasn't what I pictured..I kind of pictured a hash brown type thing of vegetables but this was actually more of a pop tart full of spinach and spices and vegetables.
this place is WELL WORTH a visit. i would recommend going out of your way to check it out.
they take visa & master card too.
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Ortanique is a cozy little jamaican restaurant that is perfect for a nice dinner, a quick lunch or a leisurely meal. The staff is great, especially the owner, Leon. They are talkative and welcoming, The prices are very decent and the portions are ample. Stop by... but before 7pm! It's a family run business, so they close up shop that early!
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People thought this was:
Useful (4)
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