Jamaica Diner

On Monday, August 26, 2013, my daughter and I had lunch at the Jamaica Diner, at 980 Millwood Pike, which had opened only a week earlier. This is just east of Winchester, on the edge of Delco Plaza at the southeast corner of the intersection of Routes 50 East and 522 South.

The Diner serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, and is open 6:30 AM-10:00 PM Monday-Friday, 7:00 AM-10:00 PM Saturday, and 7:00 AM-8:00 PM Sunday. It offers dine-in, take-out, and delivery service, along with catering, and has two telephone numbers: (540) 450-8955 and (540) 323-7143. Their Web site is www.jamaicadiner.com.

The Jamaica Diner's floor plan is not much different from that of previous restaurants at this location. The long, narrow building faces Route 522, and you enter through a closed vestibule at the right front end. A low service counter is immediately in front of you, and a higher lunch counter with stools is to your left.

Two tables are along the front plate glass window, just inside the door. Additional seating along the window is on benches with tables having chairs along the other side. Tables are also in front of the left-side window, with one bench and table arrangement. A single flat-screen TV set is on the far right wall.

The menu's main headings are Breakfast, Poultry, Oxtail, Curry Goat, Pork, Seafood, Soups, Sandwiches, Wraps, Roti Wrap, Side Orders, and Jamaican Patties. Ice Cream and Sodas are also offered. An Every Day Special is Chicken, Rice and Vegetable w/Drink.

My daughter ordered Fish and Chips from the Sandwiches list, a British dish where the "Chips" are what we call French Fries. I ordered the Every Day Special, and had a choice of Jerk, Curry, or Brown Stew Chicken. I chose the latter, because I had never tried it before.

My daughter liked her Fish and Chips, although her fish was a little dry and she couldn't tell what kind of fish it was. My daily special included pieces of chicken with a brown sauce, rice with beans, and a cabbage dish. The platter included a small chicken leg and a number of pieces of chopped chicken.

These pieces included chopped pieces of bone, and also a fair amount of gristle. I had to carefully separate the morsels of good meat from the undesirable items. The leg was quite satisfactory, but I was unhappy with what I had been served. I may go there one more time to try something other than the daily special, but not any time soon.

The Jamaica Diner is the Winchester area's third Jamaican Restaurant, and I class it as being inferior to the other two. Island Delights at 805 North Loudoun Street is the best of the three, in my opinion.

The original occupant of 980 Millwood Pike was Winchester's first Waffle House, which was there in 2001, if not earlier, and lasted for years. It was succeeded by Gracie's Place in 2010, which was replaced by McCoy's Dairy Bar and Grill in 2011, its most recent occupant before the Jamaica Diner opened.