Cafe De Novo

I stopped in to Café De Novo on a whim for lunch on a Saturday afternoon. This is one of the few restaurants open in downtown Middletown for lunch on Saturdays, it seems.
Café De Novo sells «Jamaican & American» food. You can get a burger anywhere, so I don’t see why you would order that here. While I don’t know much about Jamaican food, I have had jerk chicken before so that’s what I ordered. A small portion cost $ 6.50 and came with 3 pieces of dark meat chicken, rice with beans and some fried plantains.
At first bite, it was immediately obvious this was the best (and probably most authentic) jerk chicken I’ve ever had. The seasoning might be too spicy for some, but I think it was just right. You got a lot of heat without it being overwhelming. Rice and beans helped put out the fire.
Service (at least during lunch) was similar to a pizza place. You order at the counter, and then your food is brought out to you. From the time we ordered, the food was in front of us about 5 minutes later. Unexpectedly, it was served on a normal ceramic plate with metal utensils. This makes me assume they offer more traditional table service later in the day.
The lady behind the counter was very nice and smiley. She was clearly proud to be serving this food. I immediately felt like a valued customer. Café De Novo is a very welcomed addition to downtown Middletown.