David’s Jamaican Cuisine

Food was ok, place was dingy, and the staff was very rude. Don’t expect a menu, refills, or a check without having to get up and find somebody to ask. When we walked in we were informed «you can’t sit where you want» and it went down hill from there. We won’t be back.

Best catfish EVER. Insane potato salad. Great solid Jamaican food. Nothing fancy. If I could change 3 things… more napkins, better air conditioning and for goodness sake, please fix the inner door. It slams every time someone walks through it. It can really get on your nerves. My husband and I joked you could tell the regular customers by those who caught the door and those who let it slam.

The food is excellent. It has been some years since I’ve been to Davids, so I thought I’d give it another try. That being said, I was disappointed in the cleanliness of the restaurant, still. It’s filthy. We sat down to a table that had not been cleaned in who knows how long. And with a look at the floor, it has probably been much longer. The service was sub-​par as well. We walked in, with no direction as to if we were to be seated, or seat ourselves, and when asked, it’s as if we were a slight bother. After we sat down, about 5 or 6 minutes later, the waitress took our drink order. (5 or 6 minutes when there are only a couple people in the restaurant is unacceptable) 2 beers came nearly 10 minutes after the order. I’ll not go on about how disappointed I am with this place. The food is so good. But they could make it a hell of a nice place to dine, with just a little effort.

Great Jamaican Cuisine! David and Pauline are the best. Jerk Chicken or Pork… you can’t go wrong.

We were looking for a late lunch in Monona, and we were really hungry. David’s Jamaican Cuisine was just what we needed!
Price was very reasonable, and I like the laid back atmosphere and reggae.
I tried a little of almost everything on the buffet and was generally pleased. Highlights were: the rich, juicy, fall apart jerk pulled pork with a little extra jerk sauce; the BBQ pork, which had an amazing molasses and jerk-​spiced sauce; lightly breaded and fried mango chicken; a piece of fried fish which wasn’t labelled, but was tasty, flaky, and spiced just right; super moist but not overly sweet chocolate coconut rum cake; and of course sweet fried plantains!
The buffet was running a little low, but it was late for lunch, and everything was still appropriately hot or cold. Service was friendly, if a little hands-​off, which I don’t mind at a buffet.
I will definitely go back!

Another great restaurant in Monona, I’ve heard that their lunch buffet is the better time to go. Outside of their buffet the prices are kind of iffy which is the only really reason I can’t feel comfortable giving this 5 stars. The atmosphere is great the staff is really friendly feels very much like a family owned restaurant. The lady waiting on us asked if we’d ever been there before and we hadn’t, she gave some recommendations and when I asked what Ting was she said okay I’ll just put that on there you’ll love it and I did. I felt good about eating there and it made me smile come here for one of those rainy days I need some cheering up from good food and good people.

Tried their food at The Taste of Madison and loved it. Went on a Friday and had the buffet with my wife. Jerk chicken, pork, curried chicken, and fried plantains. All were very good. We will be going back.

We ordered take out, jerk pork and jerk chicken. My mouth watered smelling it the drive home, took all my will power not to start eating it with my hands at the stoplight. My taste buds were not disappointed. The jerk pork is my favorite, it’s so flavorful and smokey and amazing, the sides were great too, my husband loves the chicken, we will be back (again and again and again)

For the price, I really can’t complain too much! I met mom here for their lunch buffet. I tried a little bit of almost everything. The jerk pork is melt in your mouth good, especially with a little extra jerk sauce on it. The catfish was flaky and tender. The plantains were fresh and sweet. Banana cake– on point! Super moist and soft. I also enjoyed the BBQ pork and the mango chicken was not bad as well. I thought everything had a lot of flavor and there was extra jerk sauce on the table if you needed more. It seemed like fresh food was constantly being made in the kitchen and coming out. Service wasn’t super attentive, but really, it’s a buffet, so I don’t need attentive service. She cleared our plates when we were done with them and came around with a water pitcher.
Buffet price is $ 8.97 so if you’re looking for a good, cheap lunch in Monona, look no further. I don’t know if I’ll necessarily come back to try their dinner, but I did leave full and happy.

I ordered goat curry and fried plantains for dinner… let me just say Mmmazing!
The food had excellent flavor, beautiful aroma and just simply lovely. Highly recommend this place.

We ordered off the menu on a rainy late afternoon. I’ve never been here before but have tried their chicken at The Taste.
The food blew my socks off; it was crazy good. Order the chicken wings!
Jerk chicken is on point too!
Service was slow, rude, and it felt like we were putting her out by coming in.

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I am just now discovering David’s Jamaican in Monona. And boy do I wish I heard about this place 10 years ago! Ever since I got an office in Monona I’ve been looking for a great lunch place. David’s Jamaican is at the very top of the list.
I’ve eaten Jamaican food a couple of times over the years, and it’s never really impressed me. It hasn’t been something I crave. Jolly Bob’s makes some tasty food. But to be honest, the «jerked» foods I’ve made at home were a lot better then the stuff I had eaten out.
I figured I just didn’t like Jamaican food all that much… I was wrong. Yeah I said it… I was wrong.
David’s Jamaican, in my mind, had quite a few strikes against it before I went. It was Jamaican food, which I wasn’t thrilled about, it is a lunch buffet place, which rarely has great food, and I tend to overeat at those (Eye is greater than Stomach syndrome.) I think that’s why it took me more then 6 months of working nearby to try the place out.
We went right as they were opening, an absolutely key to going to any buffet place, the food will be at it’s freshest and will have been poked by the fewest amount of 6 year olds. The service was not exactly warm, but efficient.
Fried Catfish. OMG. This is just so perfectly done. Nice fresh catfish nuggets in a flavorful batter fried golden brown and crispy. They were still nicely crispy even in the buffet! Such a great flavor in the batter, but it didn’t overwhelm the great catfish flavor either! With a bit of red beans and rice, which is a deceptively simple dish.
The waitress brought over a couple of spiciness levels of jamaican jerk sauces in squeeze bottles without us having to ask. This brought the whole meal to another level!
Their jerked pork was a freaking revolution in my mouth. This more then any other dish made me immediately realize I had wasted the last 6 months on burritos and sandwiches. Sweet and vinegary, with a strong jerk spice level. This pork has me coming back again and again. This pork is tender and so flavorful, but with a nice meaty texture which only come from long long stewing.
Fried chucks of chicken breast in a mango sweet/​spicy sauce. Tangy, sweet, and made with high quality chicken. In this age of mechanically separated chicken, it’s good to see somewhere which doesn’t cater to the lowest common denominator.
The amazing food just goes on and on,
And everything is tastier then the last. The buffet turns out to be the way to go. At least for a first time to David’s Jamaican.
I was absolutely thrilled with everything that I tried. That is something I have almost never ever said at a buffet.
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Nice flavor in there Chicken Curry. Also plenty of food served with the dinners. Service was fast.

the deep fried catfish!!!
as others mentioned, the Friday evening buffets are really worth it. About $ 10 per person. You can try all the tasty meats and side dishes.
I like that they also have a salad bar with fresh cut watermelon, at least the night we were there.
And we got to meet David! The guy harboring all the secret recipes of the menu in his head.
The interior is very divey and I wouldn’t change a thing.

Ordered: curried goat, plantains, and patty.
Goat was well cooked — tender. Curry was bland and lacked spice and punch. Can’t really mess up the rice so no complaints. Plantains were a little soggy and lacked crisp. Patty was way more dough than filling, wasn’t flaky, and over priced for what it was (n’t).
Ambiance: chill, good space, comforting. Variety of different riddims playing was a nice backdrop.
Service: Jamaican — however u wanna translate that.
I believe the flavors have been dialed back for the «demographic.»

Although it wasn’t totally terrible, David’s Jamaican Cuisine is not a restaurant to which I will return. A friend and I met for lunch at David’s a few days ago — he had previously eaten there and didn’t love it, but agreed to go again because I wanted to try it after reading all the great reviews on Unilocal and other review sites. When we arrived, I was surprised to see a lunch buffet set up. Previous experience with lunch buffets at other restaurants has caused me to interpret buffets as warning signs, but, since we were already there, we decided to stay.
We ordered sodas, which arrived in cans. Not a big deal, but worth mentioning because I know some people prefer to drink out of cups.
The lunch buffet had approximately 15 options ranging from jerk chicken and jerk pork to plantains to rice to mango chicken to pineapple slaw with tofu. The jerk chicken was good, though not as flavorful as I had expected or hoped, but the other foods I tried ranged from blah to bad.
Based on the outstanding reviews David’s has received, I was very surprised and disappointed by my experience. I’m tempted to give this restaurant one more try, but really can’t decide if it’s worth the money and the drive to Monona.

So good. Went for the lunch buffet. 9 bucks. Everything was amazing but the mango chicken, curry chicken, and jerk pulled pork were highlights. This place is a gem for anyone that wants authentic, amazing food at a ridiculous price. I want to try the dinner buffet next time im in town.
The ladies working there are also very nice. The décor isnt anything special but I hardly noticed. Great food, great price. Go in hungry and leave happy.

An unassuming location that was packed with people enjoying their food & conversations when we arrived late-​ish on a Saturday night, David’s was a pleasant dining experience.
The Jerk Pork was shredded & very flavorful. I could detect ginger, but couldn’t figure out the spice mixture; I like flavors that keep my mouth guessing. The veggies (a cabbage, carrot, broccoli, bell pepper mix) were lightly cooked & also had some slight seasoning that really enhanced the taste without overshadowing the taste of the veggies themselves; I could have had an entire plate of the veg & been satisfied! Well, I wouldn’t want to miss the meat, but the veggies were that good!
My husband had the goat curry & he really enjoyed that as well. I knew that he liked it because all of a sudden, he wasn’t talking to me, he wasn’t looking at me, he was just eating.
We both put down our forks when we were full, but kept taking bites here & there as we waited for boxes.
The service was a little slow after we got our food, but it didn’t seem like neglect, it was busy & there just seems to be a small number of staff. But, they were super friendly & engaging, & this first visit will not be our last. I’m interested in trying the buffet to get a broader taste of their fine food!

First impression: ohmygosh it smells so good!
After that though, I wasn’t very impressed. The food was good, but they were out of several options on the buffet, some of the foods were clearly not freshly prepared, and I didn’t get the impression that cleanliness mattered much to them.
We tried really hard to like David’s, but I can’t give more than two stars.

A fun place to visit! Especially if you like spicy food and meat.
We did the buffet — -it’s kind of small but it includes a pretty good assortment of dishes + seasoned meats… I think there were a few types of chicken, curries, shredded pork, catfish, beef etc.
The jerk sauce on the table was amazing — -so good we had to buy a bottle to bring home. The rum punch was delicious (and potent).
For some reason I wasn’t expecting a Jamaican Restaurant to have Chicken Dumpling soup, but they did and it was great!
The atmosphere is ‘fun’ but not ‘romantic’. It seemed to be busy & buzzing and everyone there seemed to be having a good time.