featured

Turtle Bay Cardiff Review

By Ms Pretty L Things - 12:06

Turtle Bay, Turtle Bay Cardiff, Cardiff Restaurants, Caribbean Restaurants, Jerk Chicken, Jamaican Food

I'm after a bit of sun, jerk and reggae so I head to the Turtle Bay restaurant in Cardiff to put a smile back on my face*.

Turtle Bay is Caribbean based restaurant taking some of the best love dishes from the Caribbean and bringing them to the mainstream.  The restaurants are brightly decorated and feature posters of Caribbean iconography like Red Stripe & Bob Marley.

Turtle Bay, Turtle Bay Cardiff, Cardiff Restaurants, Caribbean Restaurants, Jerk Chicken, Jamaican Food
I literally want all of the posters

The decor is really well done I love reading all the posters & the displays of hot sauces makes me wanted to or try them all out - even though I know this will be a mistake!

Turtle Bay, Turtle Bay Cardiff, Cardiff Restaurants, Caribbean Restaurants, Jerk Chicken, Jamaican Food
Great interior
Once we settled down into our seats we checked out the menu which appeared to be bigger than the one that we found online earlier on in the week. This threw us into a spin being greedy guts we had already pre-selected what we wanted to eat!

Back to the drawing board!!

 After perusing the menu for a few minutes I ordered the Jerk Pork Ribs with spicy fries & my friend ordered the Chicken Festival salad. Being greedy guts we also ordered a extra portion of spicy fries (for the salad chick), plantain & fried dumplings

 Whilst we waited for the food, we sat back took in the ambience and had a good old gossip. The food only took about 20 minutes to come out & when it arrived it looked gorgeous.  We couldn't wait to get stuck in.

 My friends Chicken Festival Salad had mini fillets of jerk chicken laid on top of rocket, baby gem lettuce and was stuffed to the gills with mango, avocado, sugar snaps not just salad leaves.

Jerk Chicken Salad, Chicken Festival Salad, Turtle Bay, Turtle Bay Cardiff, Cardiff Restaurants, Caribbean Restaurants, Jerk Chicken, Jamaican Food
A festival of flavors
The side dishes were ok. The fries were nicely spiced, dumplings were dumpliney but I like my plantain a little more ripe so it tastes really sweet when fried.

Turtle Bay, Turtle Bay Cardiff, Cardiff Restaurants, Caribbean Restaurants, Jerk Chicken, Jamaican Food
Side chicks

My dish looked tasty - meaty ribs, nicely cooked fries with salad I was just about to tuck in when I noticed the ribs came with the sour orange chutney I asked to be left off (twice) so I sent it back. My friend of course was salivating so I told her to go ahead and tuck in!

Turtle Bay, Turtle Bay Cardiff, Cardiff Restaurants, Caribbean Restaurants, Jerk Pork, Jerk Pork Ribs, Jamaican Food
Dinner time!

 When my dish arrived back from what I could taste of it, it was fine. The ribs were full of flavor, but before I managed to tuck right in I found the ribs with the chutney had been placed underneath the other ribs. I couldn't finish that part of my meal.  Not impressed. But I did speak to Turtle Bay regarding this and the matter was resolved.

 Anyway my friend said her Festival Salad was scrummy & it was so huge that she asked to take the rest home with her so she could make room for dessert.

Rum & Raisin Bread Pudding, Turtle Bay, Turtle Bay Cardiff, Cardiff Restaurants, Caribbean Restaurants, Jerk Chicken, Jamaican Food
Too bad I dislike raisins :(

My friend ordered Rum & Raisin Bread pudding - it looked and smelt amazing.  My friend really really enjoyed it, great texture, well made but maybe just a touch more rum was needed.

 We ordered quite a lot of food for two peeps - 2 mains, 3 sides & a dessert which came to £34. I thought it was good value but £2.50 for a can of Ting is outrageous.

Lunch deals, Lunch deals Cardiff, Turtle Bay, Turtle Bay Cardiff, Cardiff Restaurants, Caribbean Restaurants, Jerk Chicken, Jamaican Food
Rainy outside but always sunny inside

If you have never tried Caribbean food this is a great place to have a dabble especially with lunches from £7. But if you're used to the 'real thing' then the food might not be for you but their cocktails are amazing & should not be missed by anyone.

 *This review was written in February 2016 but unpublished 

  • Share:

You Might Also Like

33 comments

  1. beautyqueenuk1 May 2016 at 15:14

    I absolutely love Caribbean food, so this is right up my street x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ms Pretty L Things1 May 2016 at 16:37

      Yes, give it a go. It's definitely worth a visit

      Delete
  2. Mellissa Williams1 May 2016 at 16:22

    I've never been to the Caribbean but I was looking at visiting Turtle Bay. Shame it wasn't exactly to your taste. I may give it a go though as I don't live far away.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ms Pretty L Things1 May 2016 at 16:38

      I would recommend their cocktails - they are amazing!

      Delete
  3. Samantha Donnelly1 May 2016 at 17:18

    I have never been to a Caribbean restaurant before, but would love to go as it sounds amazing, and the sort of place my husband and me would love to go to x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ms Pretty L Things1 May 2016 at 17:53

      Give it a go there are a few of these restaurants popping up all over the country.

      Delete
  4. Jenny1 May 2016 at 17:30

    I've never really fancied Caribbean food before, too spicy for me!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ms Pretty L Things1 May 2016 at 17:54

      Not everything is spicy - a bit like Indian dishes/restaurants - something for everyone.

      Delete
  5. Simplyfood1 May 2016 at 17:54

    I wish I had known of this place a few weeks ago as I was in Cardiff for along weekend. The restaurant looks great , do they cater for vegetarians???

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ms Pretty L Things1 May 2016 at 18:09

      There are quite a few fish dishes on the menu or straight up veg dishes so I think a non meat eater could definitely get there eat on here.

      Delete
  6. Helen1 May 2016 at 17:54

    I've never tried Caribbean food before but it all looks and sounds gorgeous. Such a shame they got your order wrong twice though!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ms Pretty L Things1 May 2016 at 18:08

      It was a shame and it kinda put me off them but I have been back since this occasion ... but ordered something else just in case!

      Delete
  7. Unknown1 May 2016 at 20:01

    I love Turtle Bay so much! The food is incredible and the cocktails are to die for (especially during 2 for 1 'happy hour'). I was so pleased that one opened in Bristol when I loved there, I'm hoping we get one in Dundee soon! :) x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ms Pretty L Things1 May 2016 at 20:08

      Yes, those cocktails are everything. The one in Bristol is lovely. You should send them a tweet about Dundee - you never know!

      Delete
  8. Nicol1 May 2016 at 20:05

    ive heard so much about turtle bay but never actually been to one before. i have heard great things about their cocktails mmm

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ms Pretty L Things1 May 2016 at 20:10

      Nicol, You need to try them - its the same guy from Las Iguanas that started the chain. What he doesn't know about cocktails is not worth knowing.

      Delete
  9. Sarah Bailey1 May 2016 at 20:39

    I keep hearing about Turtle Bay they sound absolutely amazing - I don't think I've actually tried food from the Caribbean before. x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ms Pretty L Things1 May 2016 at 20:47

      What??!! Okay, I need to do a recipe or something so we can all have a bit of sunshine in our lives :)

      Delete
  10. Life-As-Mum1 May 2016 at 20:50

    I've not tried Caribbean food before but it looks delicious!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Unknown1 May 2016 at 21:31

    Food looks yummy. I would love to try this.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Rebecca Smith1 May 2016 at 21:40

    Sounds like an interesting place to visit, I haven't really tried Caribbean food before

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ms Pretty L Things1 May 2016 at 22:19

      I'm really surprised by so many people saying this but I guess that's how Turtle Bay have seen the gap in the market.

      Delete
  13. Melanie Edjourian1 May 2016 at 22:05

    I have never been to a Caribbean restaurant I do love the sound of that salad and dessert.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Elizabeth2 May 2016 at 06:07

    This sounds like a very good, affordable, place to eat out. I've never eaten at a Caribbean restaurant before.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ms Pretty L Things2 May 2016 at 08:20

      Lots of these popping up all over the country so I think you might get the chance soon if you're in the UK

      Delete
  15. Helen @ Fuss Free Flavours2 May 2016 at 08:07

    We had the lobster mac 'n' cheese in Turtle Bay and it was very good, and very rich. And so much of it that it did us both for breakfast. Looking forward to going back.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Victoria - WTPP2 May 2016 at 08:13

    Sounds like a great place if your looking for an affordable treat. The pudding looks amazing and I don't like raisins either! I love places with atmosphere ,shame about the chutney mishaps!

    ReplyDelete
  17. misskittykaos2 May 2016 at 16:07

    We have a turtle bay in Birmingham I keep meaning to go check it out. The food looks lovely and I heard the cocktails are really good too X

    Miss Kitty Kaos - Adventures Of A Riot Grrrl

    ReplyDelete
  18. WhatLauraLoves4 May 2016 at 01:57

    A Turtle Bay restaurant has just opened in Newcastle near to me and I was really wanting to try it. The variety of food does look great although I'm not so sure I'd want to go given the rib swapping incident. It seems so careless as simply changing the food is the right thing to do and less costly to a company in the long run xxx

    ReplyDelete

    Follow on instagram