Reviews - The Lighthouse
Reviews summary
Anchored in the Trenton neighborhood, this Jamaican spot is celebrated for tender oxtail, curry goat, well-seasoned jerk chicken, rice and peas and sweet plantains—authentic flavors and generous portions keep locals returning. Consistency and service are mixed: spice levels can be intense unless adjusted, orders and sides sometimes err (dry mac and cheese, occasional bone fragments), and takeout comes in styrofoam. The clean, counter-style space would benefit from brighter decor and livelier ambiance, but the food remains the main draw.
Reviews from various users
Last update : 27.05.2025
Haven?t been here in a few years and I forgot how spicy everything is. not sure why the food is so spicy. The Mac and cheese was pretty dry burnt and there was hard circle like peas in the chicken.I try to support black owner restaurants but I probablywon?t be getting anymore food from here. It was just ok, spicy took over the flavor for me. Now customers can see how nasty youpeople are as a business. I have a right to my review and what I thought as a customer tasting your extremely spicy food. I haveordered from you a few times and both times the Mac and cheese was burnt and the food was OVERLY spicy. Hummingbird Caribbeanrestaurant in Trenton is Super tasty and I rather take the 30 min drive there than the 7 min drive to your place. Your food isjust not good sorry. My opinion.
The curry goat is A1 Lawd!! Rice and peas A1!! The macaroni is a joke lol... Just noodles... Please learn a new recipe. Its really easy. Oh and my beef patty was burnt inside and out. Please take more pride in your craft.
We ordered jerk pork and mac and cheese for one dish. Oxtail, rice and peas, and plantains for the other dish. My wife, who 's Jamaican, said her oxtail dish was just ok . My pork had a ridiculous amount of bone and fat on it. Like big slabs of fat.Also, it was just drenched in jerk sauce. I like jerk, but this was way too much. The actual meat, when we were able to get toit, was not bad. But there wasn 't much of it that was edible. The mac and cheese was a joke. There was very little cheese in itand it was basically just plain elbow noodles. Very bland and plain. And they still use styrofoam containers. The food is betterat any number of Jamaican restaurants in the Trenton area, and they all use recyclable togo containers. We wanted to give thisplace a try, but we absolutely won 't be back. And we encourage others to try elsewhere as well.
My daughter goes to this location for oxtails all the time. I don't like hot and spicy food that is why I gave it a three the macaroni and cheese was dry but, the oxtails are very very good and the rice and beans was fresh it wasn't dried out. so if youlike spicy food give it a five star it's too spicy I can't enjoy it I can't eat it so I give it a three
Best oxtails and rice and beans in the area! I promise you won?t be disappointed. Good service and clean. Best food by far respectfully. I?ve never had a problem going there, workers are friendly and get straight to business. You spend money on goodquality food. Honestly speaking I will give majority of my check to this establishment whenever I?m craving good food. ???????
Last update : 29.12.2023
Tastes great, and they give you so much food!!
Oxtail meal is always my go to!!
The mac and cheese was dry and tasteless. The rice and peas had small bone fragments that kept getting stuck in my mouth, making it impossible to enjoy. I requested callaloo but was served cabbage instead. I won’t be ordering from here again—I ended up throwing the meal away.
The jerk pork was slightly too salty, and both the plantains and pork felt a bit greasy. On the other hand, the rice and peas were excellent.
The brown stew chicken served with rice and peas was rich and tasty. On the other hand, the mac and cheese was overloaded with noodles and lacked sufficient cheese.
Last update : 29.10.2023
Staff is very nice and friendly. Also helpful!
As a native New Yorker who’s frequented my Jamaican homes of coworkers throughout the years, I would say my palate is fairly versed in this type of food. Today my wife had a taste for Jamaican food, and there aren’t many options in Pa.. She searched and found Lighthouse and told me it was 30 minutes away and I said ok, let’s go. I expected high prices because that’s a standard for Jamaican cuisine, but we were not expecting the heavy handed pepper ?️ flavor throughout both dishes. We ate for about a few minutes and the sting from the Scotch Bonnet was more than I wanted to deal with as my first meal of the day.So my wife is Jamaican and Chinese and we’ve been together for 18 years so again I’m pretty exposed to this style of food. We couldn’t finish either plate. Both dishes were cooked the same way and varied only in the shade of brown each was. One was Oxtail and Cabbage, the other Stewed Beef. Both overly peppery and neither with any real flavor unfortunately. The Mac n Cheese helped with the taste a little but no much.Pluses: Rice Peas, Cabbage, Mac Cheese and the beef patties.
This is their small portion for $6.50!!!! I can easily make two meals out of it. Here we have rice peas with brown stew chicken (not spicy, just a little pepper kick)This place is the best of the best when it comes to jamaican cuisine. Ive been all over the US NOTHING compares to it. I seriously sit and think about their oxtail rice peas sweet plantain combo
I drive 45 minutes every friday to get oxtails from this place ...... best oxtails ever had !!!!!
I ordered online, but when I got there, my order hadn’t been received. The mac and cheese was a little dry, but the jerk chicken was fantastic! Adding some fresh paint, improved lighting, and music would really brighten up the ambiance.
Last update : 01.05.2023
Just someone told me that the ox tails hit and I had to find out for me, I give the ox tails the rating of 10?
I just started experimenting with Jamaican food and I really can't get enough of this place!! No exaggeration necessary. I can't wait to go back and the owner is very friendly. Very great. I'll come back. The staff could be a little nicer, but the food is on it. I got the torn chicken with rice and scratched the green and it was all very delicious. The crowned greens would have a little more taste, but different from that. Amazing!
Must take food from the menus if they no longer offer it. Curry Chicken is exceptional. Mac and cheese taste SUPER Bland.
I ordered me oxtails, curry chicken , and jerk chicken platters for me and my coworkers . The rice was hard and dry in each platter . The jerk chicken didn?t have that ?jerk? taste it was just spicy . The cabbage didn?t have no flavor it was steamed to a minimum and was very hard and crunchy. The oxtails were ok tasting bout could?ve been better . Bamboo Grill is better ? ??
