I’m looking for a current answer, not something from five years ago. Which Jamaican steam-table counters around the north side of Prospect Park / Flatbush / Prospect Lefferts are still making rice and peas with real coconut milk instead of the yellow seasoned rice out of a bag? I’ve had too many small plates lately where the rice is dry, the beans are brown, and the curry chicken is basically chicken in a loose, sweet sauce. Not the move.

I used to rely on a place on Flatbush just south of Church that did a proper small stew chicken plate with a mound of rice that actually tasted like coconut, red beans visible, a little scotch bonnet heat. Last two visits, the rice tasted like enriched rice with margarine, and the cabbage had that boiled-in-a-bag texture. I don’t need a fancy jerk spot or a counter with a website. I’m talking about one of those aluminum tray steam tables behind a glass case, maybe inside a small grocery or a storefront with a hand-lettered menu.

Anybody have a current go-to? I want white or brown stew chicken, curry goat if it’s not boney, stew peas if they make it right, and at least two vegetable sides. Walking distance from the Q/B at Parkside or the 2/5 at Church is ideal, but I’ll take a short bike ride. Under $12 for a small plate, no table service.

Yesss. This is the question I didn’t know I needed this week. The coconut milk thing is the whole ballgame. If the rice is bright yellow and every grain is separate, they’re using the food-service yellow rice or the powdered seasoning with oil. Real coconut milk rice and peas often looks a little duller, almost gray-purple, because the bean liquid stains the rice. You might see little red oil spots from the coconut fat seizing up. That’s what you want!

The one I still like is inside the old fish market on Flatbush between Parkside and Woodruff. It’s not a restaurant, just a few trays by the register. They do a small brown stew chicken that’s not shy with the browning sauce, and the rice actually has that coconut residue at the bottom of the pan if you get there early enough. Ask them for a little of the ‘bottom rice’ if they know you.

Has anyone tried the one on Church near 18th with the green awning? I keep walking past but haven’t committed because their oxtail looks like it’s all bones and no meat, but the cabbage looks bright, not gray.

I’m not a rice scientist, but the spot by the Nostrand Ave B/Q stop does a decent small for the price. I get brown stew chicken, cabbage, plantains, sometimes mac pie if it's fresh. The rice is not that dry yellow stuff, but I can't swear it's real coconut milk every day. They're heavy with the gravy, which covers a lot.

Curry goat there is hit or miss. Some days it's mostly bones, but the sauce is nice with the rice. For under $12 you can do worse. Just don't go after 3pm; the good trays are wiped out.

Just moved down to the area and this is exactly what I’ve been trying to figure out. Is this stuff walkable from the 2/5 at Church? I tried some oxtail near Franklin last week and it was so salty I couldn’t finish. I don’t know if that’s normal for Jamaican food or if that place was just bad.

Do you ask for extra gravy at these places or do they charge you? I saw someone in front of me get a plate and it looked like they gave him way more sauce than me.

@bronx_newbie, the oxtail on Franklin is a different beast from the steam-table spots around Flatbush. At the Franklin restaurants you’re often paying for a sit-down plate; the steam-table counters are more like cafeteria trays, and the food is usually less salty because it has been sitting and gets thinned by the vegetable water. Not always, but it’s a different style.

For the OP: one thing I look for before ordering is how the rice is held. If it’s in a full pan and the pan is still steaming, you’re in good shape. If it’s half empty and crusted at the edges, the bottom rice can be fantastic but the rest is usually dry. Real coconut milk rice will have red beans that have started to break, so the rice clumps a little. If the rice pours out like yellow confetti, skip it.

The spot I’d recommend right now is on the east side of Flatbush near Parkside, about a block from the Q. It’s easy to miss because it’s half convenience store, but the steam table is right inside the door on the left. They do a stew chicken with a dark, bitter-ish gravy that’s not sweet ketchup. The plantains are cooked hard, which I like. I haven’t found a reliable weekday curry goat under $12 around there in a while; most places use too much bone.

I moved here in January and I still can’t always tell the difference between Caribbean food and Jamaican food. This thread is helpful. Quick question: is a steam table plate always meat? I don’t eat chicken or goat. Is there a vegetarian option, or should I just order rice and peas with sides? Not sure how to ask without sounding clueless.

@recently_relocated, good question to ask before you order, not after. Jamaican steam-table spots are not always vegetarian-friendly, but you can often build a plate from sides. Some of them cook rice and peas with a little salt beef or chicken bouillon, so ask directly. The safest bets are callaloo (when it’s actually callaloo), steamed cabbage, carrots, mixed vegetables, and festival or fry dumpling if they’re not already hard. Some places have ital stew or curried chickpeas, and those are usually meatless, but ask if they used chicken stock.

One difference between Jamaican and broader Caribbean: the rice and peas, the escovitch fish, the patty, and the stew peas are distinctly Jamaican. If you see pelau or roti, you're likely looking at Trinidadian/Guyanese. Both can be good and cheap, but they’re not the same pantry.

@ProspectParkPicnic’s point about the dull rice color is exactly right. I’d add: if the rice looks shiny and uniform, it’s probably not real coconut milk; if it has a slightly greasy film that breaks when you press a grain, it is.

@astoria_arch, yes! The shiny-uniform rice thing is how I spot the fake stuff from across the street. Real coconut milk rice has that weird film because the fat and bean starch separate. I get so excited when I see it.

@recently_relocated, if you’re vegetarian, ask for an ital plate. Not every spot has it, but the green awning place on Church near 18th will sometimes do ackee with cabbage and no saltfish, but you have to get there before noon. And ask for extra callaloo instead of mac pie because the mac pie usually has cheese but sometimes also has chicken stock in the sauce. I learned that the hard way.

Has anyone else had curried chickpeas from the fish market spot? I think they only make them on Friday and they go fast.

Yeah, ackee from a steam table after noon is playing with fire. The bottom of the tray gets watery and it starts to look like scrambled eggs left in the rain. I stick to curry chickpeas or ital stew when I don't want meat. The chickpeas at the Nostrand spot are fine but they may have a little scotch bonnet stem in there if you're unlucky. Watch your teeth.

Thanks for all the tips. I walked over to the Parkside spot yesterday around 1 and got the small brown stew chicken plate. The rice was not dry at all, and the beans were breaking a little like you said. I asked for extra gravy and the lady didn't charge me, she just put a ladleful on the side. Is the lunch special only on weekdays? I asked but the person didn't really answer, just said 'we serve until it's done.'

@bronx_newbie, that's the real answer: 'serve until it's done.' Most of these places don't do a printed lunch special. They cook a batch in the morning, set the trays out around 11, and when the pan is empty that's it. Weekdays before 2pm is the most reliable, but Saturday late morning is the sleeper hit because some places cook extra for the after-church crowd.

One correction to my earlier rec: I went back to the Parkside spot this afternoon and the rice was clearly from a new batch that had not settled. It was still a little wet and the coconut flavor wasn't concentrated. If you have flexibility, go after 12:30 but before 2:00, after the first rush, when the pan is half-empty but not wrecked. The bottom half is where the best grain is.

Also, if anyone sees curry goat with actual meat on the bone, not just heel and neck bones, say something. I’ve basically given up on goat under $12 in this neighborhood.

Update: I went and got the ital plate with callaloo, cabbage, plantains, and rice and peas. It was under $12 and I’m still full. I asked the lady if the rice had meat and she said no salt beef, but she also seemed like she wanted to get back to the counter, so I’m not sure if that’s always true. The callaloo was good, not too salty. Thanks for telling me to ask! I would have just ordered a vegetable side and missed out.

Good thread. A few final notes, since a couple of people have now asked about vegetarian plates and timing.

If you’re vegetarian, the phrase that works best at these counters is 'no meat, no fish, no chicken stock—can you make me an ital plate?' They may not use the word ital, but they’ll understand you’re serious. Some places still use a powdered chicken bouillon in the cabbage; if that matters to you, ask to see the tray before they spoon it out. Callaloo is almost always the safest side; ackee is a gamble after the morning.

For the rice, look at the pan, not the poster. Coconut milk rice will not be aggressively yellow. It often has red beans that have broken and stained the rice. If you see little orange-red oil beads, that’s a good sign. If the pan has the crispy bottom layer still stuck to the metal, even better—ask for a little 'bottom rice' mixed in. Not every place will give it to you, but the ones that do are the ones worth returning to.

I still think the green awning spot on Church near 18th is inconsistent. I’ve had a great stew peas lunch there and a terrible dry rice day within the same month. The Parkside place is more reliable for the rice, but their sides can be bland if you don’t ask for pepper sauce. Add a little of the scotch-bonnet vinegar they keep under the counter, not the squeeze-bottle hot sauce by the register.