Day 177: Jambo Grill and Good Morning Paan

www.jambogrill.ca

Establishments Name and background
It has been at this location before as "Original Good Morning Paan". Five years ago it was renamed "Jambo Grill and Good Morning Paan". It is located in the Collingwood area right beside the Raja Theatre at Kingsway and Joyce.

Food type/Taste
It is a African and East Indian cuisine restaurant. I think it makes sense. The flavours of the East Indian and African cuisine are very similar because of the spices and flavouring they use. The menu has a page of East Indian foods and a page of African food. I am not a huge fan of East Indian food. I picked something from the African cuisine.

We ordered two dishes and shared it. The first dish is the 'Nyama Choma Combo for 1'. This dish includes one piece of lamb kebab, one piece of kuku choma, two pieces of masi ribs, masala fries, garlic naan, salad and raita for $13.95. The garlic naan was delicious. Most of the meat was charbroiled. There was also a green minty dip. I am not exactly sure which meat was supposed to be dipped in the sauce. I tried it and it was tasty. There was also a sauce similar to tzatziki sauce. This dish was a good choice because we got to try a variation of meats. In the picture, this dish is on the left.

The second dish is the 'Jungle Ribs'. 12 oz of beef ribs marinated in a Tandoori sauce. It is served with masala potatoes and salad. I got the regular ribs (non spicy) for $12.95. I liked the jungle ribs. It was a bit on the sweet side and not spicy at all. The masala potatoes were too spicy for me.

Price Range
The price range on this menu is from $5 to $17.95. It is reasonably priced. We had an Entertainment coupon. For two of us, it was about $25 for two entrees and a drink.

Atmosphere
It has a very casual atmosphere. The decor is photographs and artwork from Africa and India. The lighting determines the atmosphere of the restaurant. If it is bright florescent lighting, it is a more casual atmosphere. It makes me just want to eat and go. If the lighting is dimmer, it is a more romantic restaurant. I have a tendency to stay longer and eat slower. This restaurant was in the ' bright florescent lighting' category. We just ate and left. There was no lingering/loitering at our table. I think it is a family owned restaurant. There were two young ladies as our servers. There was also an older fellow who is probably the owner of the restaurant. He came around to all the tables to see how everything was. Usually a way to tell, for me, if it is an authentic restaurant if there are people from that nationality dining at that restaurant. For example, a good Chinese restaurant would have lots of Chinese people dining there. For Jambo Grill, there was lots of African/East Indian people dining there.

Great place for couples, singles, etc
I think it is a great place for everyone. It is not as kid friendly as Sophie's.

Overall experience
I had a good overall experience. I would give it a 3 out of 5 stars. Food was good. Service was good. Good selection of menu items. Washrooms, tables and floors were clean. I would eat there again and try something different.