Inexpensive

Most Expensive | Expensive | Moderate

Heather's - Jamaican/Syrian

Loud, convivial, and sometimes boisterous, this establishment combines a popular singles bar with a somewhat more sedate restaurant. There's a massive mango tree thrusting its way skyward through a hole in the roof. Tasty menu items include grilled fish kebabs, sweet-and-sour fish, Cajun-style blackened fish, Heather's crab cakes, and Heather's special shrimp.

9 Haining Rd., New Kingston. Reservations recommended. Main courses J$300-J$950 ($6.90-$21.85). AE, DC, MC, V. Mon-Sat noon-3pm and 5pm-midnight.

The Hot Pot - Jamaican

Set within a short walk of both the Pegasus and Hilton hotels, this is a simple local restaurant with an animated crowd of regulars and straightforward, unfussy cuisine. Within a green-and-white interior, near a view of a modest garden, you can drink Red Stripe beer or rum drinks. The chefs are so good you'll want to hire them to cook for you, especially after you've tasted their shrimp with pineapple, their garlic chicken, their ackee with salt fish, and their sweet-and-sour fish. The place stays open throughout the day, serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner without interruption. The food is what you'd be served in a typical Jamaican home - nothing fancy, but satisfying and filling - and the prices are astonishingly low.

2 Altamont Terrace. Main courses J$200-J$650 ($4.60-$14.95). MC, V. Daily 7am-9pm.

Indies Pub and Grill - Jamaican

Indies, an informal neighborhood restaurant across the street from the Indies Hotel, was designed around a garden terrace. You can also dine in the inner rooms, haphazardly but pleasantly decorated with caribou horns, tortoise shells, half-timbered walls, an aquarium sometimes stocked with baby sharks, and even a Canadian moose head. There's a full sandwich menu at lunchtime. In the evening, you can enjoy grilled lobster, fish-and-chips, barbecued chicken or pork, chicken Kiev, or roast beef. It's a little better than standard pub grub. Pizza is a specialty. A bottle of Red Stripe, the Jamaican national beer, is the beverage of choice here.

8 Holborn Rd. (in New Kingston, off Hope Rd. Main courses J$435-J$1255 ($9-$26.20); pizzas $435-J$772 ($9-$16.30). MC.

Thai Gardens

The chefs here come directly from Bangkok, and the flavors are authentic, achieved with imported ingredients. The place is filled with artifacts sent over from Thailand. We recommend it as a change of pace from too much Jamaican cuisine. Specialties include fried noodles with Thai shrimp wrapped in an eggshell and a good steamed snapper served with chili-laced lemon sauce.

10 Holborn Rd. Reservations recommended. Main courses J$458-J$1014 ($9.50-$21). Daily noon-3pm and 6-11pm.

The Upper Crust (Guilt Trip) Jamaican/International

About a mile (2km) north of New Kingston, this open-air restaurant originated as a small-scale pastry shop that eventually expanded into a neighborhood institution. In addition to the pastries, which are made on the premises and displayed behind a glass-fronted case, menu items include crab-back salads, curried snapper, jerk chicken lasagna, grilled lamb chops with ratatouille, and an especially good grilled filet of snapper with dried-pepper shrimp in a curry sauce.

20 Barbican Rd, Liguanea. Lunch main courses J$225-J$750 ($5.20-$17.25); dinner main courses J$395-J$950 ($9.10-$21.85). MC, V. Daily noon-3pm and 6-10:30pm.

Kingston