The Bay Area’s Caribbean food scene is more vibrant than you may know! With brick and mortar restaurants, trucks, and caterers, it’s only growing across the region. Below, you’ll find ten of our favorite local stops for enjoying classic dishes and fresh, California-influenced takes on food from Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Haiti, and more. Bonus: All ten food creators can be booked for your next event with Off the Grid.
AlaMar Dominican Kitchen
100 Grand Ave #111, Oakland
Top Chef alum Nelson German grew up in the Washington Heights area of New York City, and he channels the hometown vibe into his beautiful Oakland restaurant. AlaMar is a wonderful place to share a family-style meal with dishes like his mother’s braised oxtail “Encendido,” slow-roasted pork in sofrito garlic butter or a smothered whole crispy branzino. About seven blocks away, you’ll find German’s tapas spot, Sobre Mesa (1618 Franklin Street, Oakland), which is another great option for exploring his Dominican roots. 100 Grand Avenue, Oakland
Back A Yard
1189 Willow Road, Menlo Park; 457 E. San Carlos Street, San Jose; 1011 E. Capitol Expressway, San Jose; 638 N. 13th Street, San Jose; 1740 S. Winchester Boulevard, Campbell
With a 20-year history and locations in Menlo Park, San Jose and Campbell, Back A Yard is one of the most prominent Caribbean food businesses in the Bay Area. Chef/owner Robert Simpson hails from Kingston, Jamaica, and his specialties include a famous jerk chicken and beef oxtail plate, curried goat and even a vegetarian jerk tofu. Note that the North San Jose and Campbell locations are takeout only, while Simpson’s other locations are dine-in restaurants.
T’chaka
901 Washington St, Oakland
Caribbean Spices began as a food truck and then owner Frantz Felix expanded by opening a brick and mortar restaurant in San Rafael in 2019. Besides his new Oakland restaurant T’chaka, it’s one of the only places in Northern California with Haitian staples such as griot (fried pork), Haitian spaghetti with chicken and hot dog and ackee fruit with salted codfish.
Get Caribbean Flavors at your next company event.
Calabash
2300 Valdez Street, Oakland
A world-wise collaboration between Kingston-born Nigel Jones and Hanif Sadr, who is the founder of the Northern Iranian restaurant group Komaaj, Calabash offers a creative cocktail menu as well as brunch and midday bites including jerk chicken, curry goat, roasted lamb leg salad, and a 10-hour braised short rib sandwich. Jones’ former Oakland restaurant Kingston 11 is now operating as a catering and special events company.
Fiya Spice
1343 Buchanan Road, Pittsburg.
A restaurant and food truck that specializes in Jamaican jerk chicken, oxtails, fried escovitch fish, rasta pasta and the fried dumplings called festivals, which are hard to find in the Bay Area, Fiya Spice is a good choice for catering corporate or personal events in the Bay Area. If you can handle the heat, the Fiya Spice hot sauce is bottled for your home use (or to keep in your bag at all times, no judgment here).
Experience Bold Caribbean Flavors at Your Next Event
Peaches Patties
One Ferry Building, San Francisco
Shani Jones and her Jamaican delights from Peaches Patties is another smart choice for catering or lunch. Jones’ mom is from Kingston, Jamaica, while her dad is from New Orleans, so she grew up with home cooking that was a beautiful blend of both cuisines. Try her savory, hand-held Jamaican pastries (patties), vegetarian Rasta Stew, jerk chicken, freshly brewed ginger beer and more at the Ferry Building in San Francisco.
Get a Taste of Authentic Jamaican for Your Next Catering
Sol Food
901 Lincoln Avenue, San Rafael; 401 Miller Avenue, Mill Valley, 151 Petaluma Boulevard South, Petaluma
Sol Food has served as the brightest Puerto Rican restaurant in the Bay Area since opening in San Rafael in 2004. Not only does it mean sun in Spanish and serve as a play on the phrase soul food, it’s also named for the chef and owner, Marisol Hernandez. People come for big plates of rotisserie meats, sandwiches and hot and cold salads, but there’s also a “not-so-secret” taco and burrito menu that reflects Bay Area tastes. Sol Food also has locations in Mill Valley and Petaluma, and the restaurant’s famous pique hot sauce and lemon-garlic dressing are sold online if you want to upgrade your pantry.
Sweet Fingers
5859 Foothill Boulevard, Suite 1, Oakland
The East Bay’s OG Jamaican restaurant and club, Sweet Fingers offers live music and vibes from Kingston native, Chef Clive (who doesn’t need a last name). Stop by for Jamaican patties, jerk chicken, whole snapper fish and fiery Spanish Town Scotch bonnet shrimp. There’s also a sweet VIP suite for private parties that has a high-quality sound and video system.
All of these creators (and hundreds more) are available to you with OTG catering. Get your authentic Caribbean experience here.
