De Real Ting Cafe

I’ve heard a lot this place before just finally trying it. I went to celebrate a friend’s birthday. The company and band were better than the food IMO. I had the fried chicken plate. Honestly, I’ve made better fried chicken. It was just ok. I didn’t really drink, so I can’t speak to how good the drinks are.

Being looking at coming to this place for a while… Brought my Lady here for her surprise BDay dinner and to listen to some reggae music. Some friends and family came out to make her day special. The staff was wonderful our table was reserved and they walked us through the menu and the drinks were great! I had the Brown Stewed Shrimp and rice it was Awesome !! We also received Jerk Chicken rolls for an appetizer. We’ll be back!

I really enjoyed the Oxtail for Lunch they only put on for Friday but it was a little spicy. The fried fish was good. The Peach Cobbler with ice cream on top was also good.
The parking is the only bad part because it is in the City and you have to search hard to find a spot to put money in the Meters. All the streets look the same and when you leave the restaurant you can easily get turned around. So make sure you take down the street you park on and address so you can use Google to find your car again. But the city does have people on the street that will help you search for your car if you can not find it. Just look for them if needed.

A friend of mine invited me out to the new Wine-​Down Wednesdays at De Real Ting Café located in the Urbancore district of downtown Jax. I had never dined in at De Real Ting so I was eager to make my way downtown for a new experience! Wine Down Wednesdays at De Real Ting began in February and every Wednesday from 5pm-​close you get ½ off select glasses and bottles of wine, complimentary hors d’oeuvres, all while listening to the smooth sounds from local bands. This particular night there was a representative from Myx Moscato, doing free wine tastings. This is the new drink released by Nicki Minaj and there are several different flavors including peach, mango, and coconut. I liked the mango moscato the best but overall, I’d have to say these were on the same level as wine coolers. Nothing too special. De Real Ting specializes in authentic Caribbean cuisine and they did not disappoint. They had all of your Jamaican favorites. There were so many enticing menu items to choose from.
Here’s What We All Had to Eat:
Conch Fritters: I’m not a fan of conch but my friend who got these said they were amazing and just by looking at them, I would agree. They looked almost good enough for me to try but I exercised restraint.
Coconut Shrimp: These are part of the complimentary
hors d’ oeuvres. They were nice and crispy with the hint of sweetness from the coconut. It was just a taste and had me wanting more. They definitely prepared your palette.
Jerk Chicken Wings: These were nicely seasoned with just the right amount of heat and a slight crunch. They weren’t too spicy and they weren’t too mild. They were just right and had you licking all of your fingers.
Oxtails: This was my dish. Though it was good and tender, it definitely was not the best oxtails I’ve had in town. I thought the dish could have used more seasoning which was a disappointment because that’s what you most look forward to with oxtails. For the price I was also expecting there to be more meat but I only had a few pieces hidden underneath the gravy and veggies. Other than that, it was O.K. The plantains it came with were nice and sweet and the beans, rice, and cabbage went well together as they traditionally do with this dish.
Curried Goat: My friend who got this couldn’t say enough great things about the dish. She said it was seasoned to perfection and had the perfect amount of heat. I love curry so the next time I visit, this is on my list of things to try.
Peanut Butter Cheesecake: The chef was kind enough to treat our table to this peanut-​buttery dessert! For any peanut butter lover, this would’ve been the treat for you! It was packed with sweet peanut butter cheesecake filling on an oreo crust, garnished with cream, an oreo, and peanut butter chips.
Overall, the evening was awesome! The live music was phenomenal, the food was good, and the service was accommodating. I look forward to returning as they have so many other items on their menu I would love to try. If you are in the area for lunch. they have a buffet from what I hear would be worth your while and a nice change from your average lunch options.

usually one of my go-​to after hours spots on almost any night. last night, however, we arrived later than we usually do &were told at 3:30am that they close at 4:30am. we ask thorough questions when outing to avoid wasting money. asked the admissions lady if we’d at least have an hour and she told us yes. Lies. the three of us basically paid 10 $ to use the restroom and when we tried to explain what happened, we were given empty ended apologies. anything for that extra dolla, aye? &it sucks bc when people talk crap about this spot being rachet, i usually defend. but that was some rachet behavior last night. act like you want returning patrons you appreciate.

Visiting from Conn. Great food. Our waitress was helpful and absolutely adorable. May come back before we go home and definitely next time!

Went during lunch with some friends from work for the buffet. It was very good food and the waitress sS VERY nice! The yellow rice and fried chicken are a must try!

If you’re looking for the real thing you have to go to De Real Ting! My wife, daughter and I went here for the lunch buffet while we were in Jacksonville recently and we loved it. It’s got character and the atmosphere was really cool. Almost felt like we were in a little hole in the wall place in Jamaica. The service was great, both servers were very friendly and polite, and made sure to check on us often but not too often if you know what I mean. The food was even better than the service, the ox tails were my favorite. Everything was really good. If we ever go back to Jacksonville we’ll definitely be back.

Stopped here for lunch and had not been here in a while. We went around 12:30 and it seemed the food was at a bear minimum but before you knew it more fresh hot food came out. I was in the mood for something light so I avoided the Curry chicken, brown stew chicken, stew pork and if they had oxtail, I would have avoided that also. I had the Escoveitch Fish, (light breaded catfish) in a very nice vinegary based onions and carrots over it (had 2 ½ servings). It was good and light. I had few sweet plantains and some collard greens which were very tasty (had 2 servings). I enjoyed De Real Ting Café again and as always go in thinking of eating light and end up leaving with a full belly.

All I can say is I had a blast! They had enough security for the amount of patrons that were in attendance. The food… oh my the food is awesome, buffet style an at affordable price. Good reggae music mixed up with r&b, hip hop. Definitely will be going back because it has been year since I’ve been. Love it love it love it!!!

Went during lunch what surprised the food was very good and very affordable 8. 75 for brunch and they had fried chicken, oxtail, Mac and chesse and many more but get there early because when they’re out there out

My husband and I stopped in around 7pm after leaving a restaurant because there were some guys playing dominos outside and mentioned happy hour going on. Went down a flight of stairs into what felt like could end up being a Dexter kill room. I’m not going to lie, I was a little nervous…
We were the only ones there for the duration of our time, which we were toally fine with. We stayed for an hour or so, had a few drinks and chatted with the bartender. He talked to us about the food samplings and the night life.
Overall, it was a nice change from the normal and we may have to come back to try the food!

Went for after hours after leaving a different club. Music was jamming, great mix of types of music. Also the food afterwards was amazing, my first time having Caribbean food and it was AMAZING! Next time I’m in Jacksonville I will definitely be paying these guys a visit!

This is the best jerk chicken ever! The service is awesome! Great way to get an authentic Jamaican taste without leaving the states.

They treat you like family. Great service. Went just for drinks and they were delicious, the vibe was chill and loungy.

. They cancelled my delivery order stating it was outside their delivery area. 1 MILE AWAY.

Good buffet!

De Real Ting Café has converted me. I may never attend a «club» night but I’m in love with the Poetry Nights. Spice up 1^st, 3^rd, and 5^th Thursdays with open mic nights with talent, laughter, poetry, rhythm, song, good food, a few drinks and friends. Come share your new, developing, or old works of poetry with fellow poetry enthusiasts. Or just sit back and enjoy the entertainment. Jacksonville is filled with talent, but there are poets and performers coming from all over the country. (There was a guy from Minnesota or Montana? and United Kingdom to name a brief few).
Show starts about 9pm. That gives you plenty of time to order some food ($ 5 Delicious wings) and. grab a few drinks. The 3−4−1 special on wells and $ 3 wine can’t be beat.
I think it might be open to 18+ since I was banded. But that might have just been to allow free reentry. Only down side — club is located downstairs and cellphone signals is nonexistent if you’re with AT&T or Sprint.
Sing loud, rap proud, speak easy, be free!

I was very disappointed in this club, the drinks was good but the music was awful, the DJ was entertaining himself instead of the crowd, the guys were in one corner and the girls in another leaving the couples to make the most of their date night by moving to their own beat instead of the B.S. reggae that was playing, I waited all night hoping it would get better, this is not a good reggae club.

As a Jacksonville local I have seen this place go through different identities through the years. When I was younger it was the club everyone came to on Friday’s for Rap and Hip-​hop. Lots of thugs around. The whole shabang. After a few shootings it became all reggae on Fri, Sat, & Sun. I moved out of the state last year so when I came back to town I thought I would give this place another shot.
Security is rude and unprofessional. Now that they have a second room that plays R&B and Rap, it seems as though they don’t play any reggae at all anymore in the WHOLE club. The reggae that do do play is not good reggae!!! The bar SUX!!! Not enough bartenders and they all look like «friends of the family» type employees. And the drinks are weak as well. The thugs have overran this place, so I did not feel safe. The men are too comfortable with grabbing on you and overstepping their boundaries.
The last time I went a guy grabbed my shoulders and tried to tell me something and as I backed away in surprised he looked at me as if I had done something wrong. He continued to try and grab me. After this failed, he began to blow his breath in my face repeatedly. When I walked out the club to leave, I told the officer at the door the problem and he also looked at me as if I was crazy.
So to sum it up, this club SUX. I think that it always has, I was just too naïve to see it back then. STAY AWAY
S/​N The Jamacian food is okay. Average at best.