Located on Woodville Road in Cathays, the Irie Shack’s tasty food, welcoming vibe, vibrant decor and top drawer staff leaves very little to fault.
Home for #authentic and #fresh #Caribbean cuisine, served until late! See our menu online or delivery at https://t.co/Oe5K30RNHH pic.twitter.com/f2HxtI4M4I
— Irie Shack (@IrieShack) November 3, 2016
‘Irie’ is a friendly Rastafarian greeting and upon entering the restaurent, it is certainly nothing but welcoming. A friendly staff member quickly seated me and handed me one of the restaurant’s wonderfully colorful menus.
Before choosing my meal I took a quick look around to appraise the decor, something which made for excellent viewing. The walls were practically dripping with Afro-Caribbean culture, which combined with the excellent music made the place an excellent eating environment. I would later find myself tapping my feet and nodding my head to the music as I waited for my food, thoroughly relaxed and at ease.
After sharing a joke about the speed at which I ordered, one of the staff brought me my drink for the evening. The Irie Shack, being both a bar and a restaurant boasts a impressive menu of drinks and many pleasantly thematic cocktails. Of that selection however, there was only one drink for me, the West Indies Porter Guinness.
If you would allow me just a moment to indulge in my love for Guinness, discovering that the Irie Shack served this rather elusive and wholly thematic Guinness beverage was certainly a highlight of the evening for me.
My food arrived before I was even half way through my first glass, a rather remarkable serving speed which combined with the excellent quality of the food itself, instilled in me further admiration for the staff.
My main course, for the reasonable price of £8.95 was a pair of chicken skewers, paired with ‘Caribbean slaw’, rice and peas. The meal itself was tasty and filling with my only real issue being that I did not know the precedent for going about eating the skewers. I ultimately erred on the side of caution and used my fork to remove the chicken before eating it.
Even after finishing my meal I felt in no hurry to pay my bill, being perfectly content to sit for around 20 minutes or so, digesting my food and appreciating the music. When I finally decided to pay my bill and head on my way, I took another look around the restaurant and found yet more excellent decor outside of where I had been seated which I spent another few minutes drinking it in before paying.
All in all, I would strongly recommend the Irie Shack for a affordable, relaxed evening out. For those with a particular appreciation for Afro-Caribbean food and culture, I would say this establishment is essential visiting.
Should you for whatever reason still have some reservations about visiting Irie Shack, well…I’ll let the man himself put you at ease.
4 stars out of 5