Kansas City is seeing an increase in restaurants and food truck featuring cuisine from the Caribbean, including Cuban coffee shops, Jamaican restaurants, and concepts featuring Caribbean dishes more broadly. I learned about Exclusive Jerk Bar & Grill late last year. The restaurant operates in the former Panera’s space in the Watt’s Mill Plaza shopping center (in south Kansas City). I had lunch at the restaurant with my 92-year-old father.
My father has been craving goat dishes for some time. Thought that Exclusive Jerk might be a good place to take care of that craving, as they have goat dishes on the menu. They were out of goat the day of our visit (that ingredient can be hard to source around Kansas City). Our server apologized and suggested we call ahead next time to see if goat was on the menu that day.
I have a personal connection to the Caribbean. For seven years, over the course of the 2010s, I ran the websites for the V.I. Source, the online newspapers of record for the U.S. Virgin Islands. I got to work with journalists and the publisher on those islands, so I got a good feel for the day-to-day life in the Caribbean. In 2017, I actually visited the islands for a week. I had a wonderful visit, but the food did not impress me. It may have been our choice of restaurants, or the fact that fish wasn’t available on menus at that time. My host did cook me some fantastic meals at her house.
My father and I decided to both get the Jerk Catfish lunch special. I had green and rice for my sides. Yeah, yeah, I mostly eat a vegetarian diet, but I do eat seafood irregularly, as I’ve been doing for the past 6-7 years. One fish that I tried and stated liking when I resumed eating seafood is catfish. I’m not sure if I’ve ever had a restaurant meal with Caribbean jerk style entrees. So I was very interested in trying this style. My takeaway is that jerk is milder and more nuanced than I had expected.
I really liked the jerk catfish. Compared to other smoked and fried catfish I’ve had, this was different and quite well prepared. I could get this on a regular basis.
I had the red beans and rice and collard greens for my sides. My father had the candied yams. Overall, this was plenty of food for a lunch special. We both liked our lunches. Several days later my father asked when we were going to go again, so he could get his curry goat lunch.
For my return visits, I’d like to try the veggie plate, the tilapia and shrimp, and their veggie sides.
The food was good. The staff were friendly and helpful. The wait for the food wasn’t long. The restaurant could use an upgrade on the decorations and furnishings. Feels a bit large and empty.
1128 W 103rd St, Kansas City, MO 64114
