Eat at the Spot in Radcliff: Experienced Eater Review

Key Takeaways

• Eat at the Spot Caribbean Restaurant, 865 S Dixie Blvd in Radcliff, is a revisit for Britten and one of his go-to places
• He had the jerk chicken plate, a smoked leg and thigh quarter with steamed cabbage and peas and rice, plus a spicy beef pie
• The jerk chicken plate is listed at $11.50 with a choice of sides, and Britten calls the prices super affordable
• The Spot recently added a bar and a liquor license, and a food trailer is on the way
• Verdict: 4.5 out of 5 forks

Summary

Britten McDowell went back to Eat at the Spot Caribbean Restaurant on South Dixie in Radcliff, a place he first reviewed for Hardin Local earlier this year. This time it was lunch with his mentor, and both of them ordered the jerk chicken.

His verdict was 4.5 out of 5 forks. The jerk chicken has heat without setting you on fire, the sides are mild on purpose, the prices are affordable, and the restaurant keeps growing, with a new bar and a food trailer on the way.

Full Article

The Experienced Eater is Hardin County's go-to foodie review team, Britten and Michele McDowell, and this week Britten sat down with Phil Taul to talk through a return trip to one of his regular spots.

A lunch, and a revisit

Britten has a mentor meeting every couple of weeks, and they always go to lunch. This time his friend suggested a place to try. "I said, I've already been there," Britten said. "I said, we won't be disappointed." So they went to Eat at the Spot, which Britten described as Jamaican cuisine, here in Radcliff on Dixie Highway.

It is not far from his house. "I know when they start cooking, I can smell it when they fire up the grill," he said. It is one of his go-to places when he is ready for dinner.

This is a revisit, and Britten said several people messaged him after his first review to say they went, tried it, and loved everything they got.

Growing fast

Britten said the owners have really grown the business in the last few months. They recently added their bar and got their liquor license, so there is a little nightlife going on there now. They are also getting a food trailer, so they will be able to go mobile.

The menu

Phil asked what was on the chalkboard menu. Britten ran through it: goat and curry goat, jerk chicken, oxtails, hand pies and chicken wings. "It's a very broad menu," he said, with some very traditional Jamaican vegetables.

The plate

Britten's plate was the jerk chicken, a leg and thigh quarter that they smoke on an open pit smoker. It came with cabbage and what they call peas and rice, and he added a spicy beef pie. His mentor did not mix it up. "He goes, I want what he's having," Britten said, unlike when he and Michele go out and order different things so they can share.

On Phil's heat scale of tingle, sweat or call your mama, Britten went with the tingle end. "Jerk chicken is going to have a little bit of heat," he said, but it is not going to set you on fire like some things they have had around here. What it has is flavor.

"I want to go somewhere they've got big flavors, they've got love in the food, and they're doing it because they want to be there," Britten said. He does not want to pay for bland food and wear his arm out with the salt and pepper.

Phil read the jerk chicken plate at $11.50 with a choice of sides, including white rice, steamed cabbage, sweet potato and plantains. Britten said the cabbage is a steamed cabbage, and you can taste the coconut milk in the rice and peas. He calls it black beans and rice; they call it peas, "same difference." The sides are on the tame side, which he thinks is on purpose, to offset the excitement from the spice in the jerk chicken and the curry.

The verdict

Britten gave Eat at the Spot a solid 4.5 out of 5 forks. When customers at the Red Brick Cottage ask him what is good to eat, he first asks how adventurous they are. If they like jerk chicken, this is where he sends them. "The prices are super affordable," he said, "and like I said, it's a plate full of flavor every time you're there."

Coming up from the Experienced Eater

Britten has a new-to-them place in Lebanon Junction lined up for a review, and as the year winds down, he plans a top ten bites of the year: the places that made the routine. He also has a question for you: what are your top three restaurants in Hardin County? He wants to see how viewers' lists stack up.

Michele has not been on camera as much lately, Britten explained, because changes in their business have cut into her free time. That is why many recent reviews are Britten bringing lunch back to the shop. "We like to be able to make good recommendations and help support small local businesses," he said. If you see them out, say hi.

Eat at the Spot Caribbean Restaurant

• Address: 865 S Dixie Blvd, Radcliff. Going north on Dixie, Britten says it is on the left right after Radcliff Elementary, not far from the Red Brick Cottage.
• Phone: 270-706-2399
• Hours: Monday and Tuesday 11:30 AM to 6:30 PM; Wednesday through Friday 11:30 AM to 7:30 PM; Saturday 12:30 to 6:30 PM; closed Sundays
• Try: the jerk chicken plate

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