Miss Lily’s is Serving Authentic Jamaican Delights in NYC

[Updated]

Exterior view of Miss Lily's NYC Jamaican restaurant with a bicycle leaning again the brick building with white window trim

Miss Lily's in Soho has been open for a while now. In the beginning, Serge Becker, the restaurateur behind the always-a-party La Esquina was feeding classic Jamaican delights to a fantastically beautiful, invite-only crowd. Becker and crew started letting the rabble (like us) into this terrific-looking Jamaican restaurant space in March of 2011. The front is total tropical diner; the back a dimly-lit loungy room with, for example, tables embedded with reggae records–to join the festivities and, as it turns out, tuck into some first-rate island-ish cooking. 

Interior of the funky Miss Lily's NYC restaurant with a row of orange and metal benches on the left, counter seating on the rigth and fun round wall lights for ambiance

Enjoy Every Bite of Jamaican Food

We stopped by Miss Lily's NYC last night on the way from one thing and to another–located as it is on Houston and Sullivan, right on the Soho/West Village border, ideally situated for such a stop–and though we're a bit worried that attitude will soon triumph over friendly service, for now the Jamaican food, the music, and the decor make Miss Lily's well worth a visit. We tore through four dishes (the menu is short but focused and appealing), and enjoyed every bite. 

Orangy pumpkin soup with a swirel of sour cream served in a colorful green bowl at Miss Lily's Jamaican restaurant in Manhattan

The Winning Starter Items

Miss Lily's Spiced Pumpkin Soup was a satisfying starter, thick and lively and studded with toasted seeds. Even better–and, as soon as it finally starts warming up for good around here, even more appetizing–was the glass of Red Snapper ceviche, a crazy generous amount of melty fish soaked in a coconut-lime marinade, with pickled onions and celery and coconut bits and plantain chips for a nice textural balance. 

A wine glass of Red Snapper ceviche soaked in a coconut-lime marinade, with pickled onions and celery and coconut bits and plantain chips at Miss Lily's

A Menu That Keeps Us Coming Back For More

For our entree at Miss Lily's Jamaican restaurant we went with the Curry Goat (though the Oxtail sounded good, too…), and the on-the-bone meat was tender and spicy and filling and reminded us of late-nights at this place we used to go to in our youth, up on 100th Street. The finish on this evening was Banana Cream Pudding (mostly because they were out of the Rum Cake with Toasted Coconut Cream), which was a sloppy, sweet-and-bready tropical delight, topped, of course, with the requisite Nilla wafer. Good stuff, all around. A return trip to Miss Lily's in NYC is already in the works. 

Creamy goat served with white rice and vegetables sprinkled with fresh herbs at a Jamaican restaurant in Manhattan

More Information: Miss Lily's NYC

Miss Lily's Jamaican restaurant is located on the north side of Houston Street, just west of Sullivan Street, and is open every day from 6:00 p.m. until 1:30 a.m. For reservations, please see the Miss Lily's website or download Miss Lily's menu

The backroom at Miss Lily's NYC Jamaican restaurnat with walls full of speakers and vinyl record album covers

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