This is home away from home...awesome food, music, and most of all staff! Not sure if the Rasta pasta, steak, oxtail, or snapper is my favorite! Mon péché mignon? The crème brûlée!

I headed back to iNine Bistro on Wed 2/21/24 for their Black Restaurant Week Menu and Wednesday Karaoke. Before I go any further, I must say iNine still gets 10's across the board from me. Ambiance - The decor is absolutely beautiful with so many cute photo ops, flowers and beautiful murals adoring the walls. INine is short for International-Nine so the decor reflects different cultures from around the world. It gives a classy upscale vibe with a "young" spirit. Due to this iNine is perfect for everyone from a group celebrating a 21st birthday to those trying to get their grooves back. The backyard is HUGE! Tables aren't right on top of each and hookah is allowed! I already know this summer the brunch parties back there are going to be EPIC! Don't say I didn't put you on first! The Karaoke show was amazing - it was very well organized with a signup sheet and the DJ was great at presenting the lyrics and music. The host were entertaining and made their way around to each table to engage with the crowd.The karaoke was so great my anti social significant other decided get up on stage and performed 99 problems by Jay Z! I've never seen him do karaoke in the 6 years I've known him so you know the vibes were right. Service - Our server was amazing and constantly came out to check on us. Not one plate empty plate was ever left on the table. Food came out quick and HOT. You can tell everything is made per order. Additionally, the staff are very funny and personable so you feel like you're at home. They don't seem overwhelmed and seem genuinely happy to be there. FOOD - It's been a long time since I've been able to give food perfect 10/10 scores but iNine Bistro got it. You can tell all of the food is seasoned with high quality flavors which is hard to come by these days. As a part of the Black Restaurant week menu, I got the Beef BBQ Patties as an appetizer which had the perfect balance between BBQ and spice flavors. We also got the BBQ Hennessy Wings and the Montego Jerk Lime wings which were both PERFECT. I'm not huge on spicy food the Jerk Lime Wings were an even blend of sweet and spicy. For our entrees, I got the Island Oxtail with coco-rice and cabbage. I haven't had oxtail that delicious in a minute - it was spicy, flavorful and literally falling off the bone. S/o got the iNine burger which was delicious. The red peppers mixed with the sauce on it gives it a perfect touch. The angus burger was of high quality and cooked to perfection. For dessert, I had the hibiscus berry cheesecake and it was perfect. The hibiscus sauce was amazing. He had the Gold Coast brownie and it was super moist. And all of this food (minus the drink) was only $44 per person as apart of their Black Restaurant Week by the Black Restaurant Coalition. Keep an eye out for the next restaurant week!! Drink- we had the One Love drink which is a shareable drink made with Wray & Nephew run. It is HUGE as we struggled to finish it and y'all know I never leave a cup unturned LOL. it was well mixed and strong without the liquor overpowering the flavor. It was so big and strong we didn't feel the need to order anything else to drink. And we definitely left feeling nice. I already see myself becoming part of the furniture at iNine - Let's prepare them to be sick of me LOL jk. But that's how great it is. I was WOW'd yet again by iNine and can't wait to bring my family back!!

One of my go to places for good food and vibes in the Bronx right before you get on the bridge. The food is like a mixture between different islands cuisine. My first time trying shrimp and grits and I loved the richness of it, there is fried okra, peppers, and it just reminds me of visiting Texas and the soul aspect of the food. Now, the Korean bbq steak gave me more of a different vibe not Korean but I would have loved it more with a stew. Then, the drink was strong according to my significant other so if you like rum punch with a kick this is it! Also, there is beautiful art on the wall, a dj, and a back patio that is well lit for the winter. Otherwise, our server was a nice young man, attentive and cool. The prices are not bad and there is a digital menu. The bathroom is clean with no issues. Unfortunately, I was too full for dessert. Go here like now and thank me later!

International Nine has been on my list of places to try for some time now. Back in May, plans were made to grab dinner and catch up, @ another location. When I arrived and they were closed, I was in search for a backup and I remembered my list. Late afternoon/early evening I was lucky enough to find a non-metered spot across the street. We entered and was seated immediately, as the place was pretty empty at first. I ordered the Nephew Punch (the first of 2) to start along with a couple of apps- Vegetable Patties & Firecracker Gulf Shrimp Tempura. The punch was tasty and the patties and shrimp tempura were nice starters. In addition I ordered the Grilled Jerk Shrimp Taco & Grilled Paprika Chicken Taco to try prior to my entrée of the Kingston Caesar Salad w/ Jerk Salmon. My dinning companion ordered the Kingston Caesar Salad w/ Jerk Shrimp. Of course by the time my salad came out I was full. Both tacos were delicious and flavorful but the most memorable star was the jerk salmon, I had to try it before I packed it to-go. Light, flaky, juicy with a well balance of both sweet and spicy flavor components. The croutons also had a slight sweet coconut flavor which was a nice added touch. The dining area itself is not that big, but they made great decor decisions with international clocks and hand painted murals. Even though the dinning space is small they do have a seated bar as well as outdoor space in the back. As the night proceeded foot track increased, for the event that was held in the back space. The food was great and the staff was pleasant, however at times the services was very spotty even though it was not busy. We were the only ones dining initially. Also I was little put off because we were seated by a table occupied by someone with authority and a definite managerial position (based on his interaction with staff and the laptop) who had his shoes off and did not deem it appropriate to put them on after we were seated or when our service started. It was a bad impression to say the least. Overall I enjoyed my food and I am happy I was able to give them a try. I will return but I will make sure it's around the same time (early). With a small dinning space and slow service I can only imagine when they are busy. Just A Note: The Jerk Salmon was amazing! We ordered an extra piece to take home with our salads that we couldn't even attempt to eat because we were already too full.

Been wanting to come here for a minute, and finally had the opportunity to come. I came for brunch and it was a cute vibe. We sat outside in the garden and it was cute but just a tad bit hot with only the fans to cool the area. The drinks were really good, but the strawberry lemon drop was my favorite. For my meal, I had the Korean BBQ steak and eggs which was very tasty. No complaints here. My only critique regarding the food was that the brunch menu was a little limited. A few more items on the menu would be perfect. Despite a semi-private birthday going on and a nearly packed area, the service was a 10/10. The hookah was perfect, and not too harsh. We got Love 66, which is my go to. The DJ was great and played a mix of r&b, dancehall, and afrobeats. I would definitely return. I have to try the jollof rice for sure.

This Drink Nephew Punch was something else..., Oxtails good but portion size not a fan but the chef made it all right, our cashier Waha was fantastic, the atmosphere was a cool vibe- not to crowded, just enough people. Happy Hour was good.

I came to ININE Bistro for poetry open mic a couple of weeks ago and was absolutely stunned by how incredible of a restaurant and venu it was.. and is. I arrived a few hours early to ensure I received a performance slot as this particular event, Voices in Power, is quite popular. Since I was so early, I decided to order lunch and was pleasantly surprised by their very affordable and delicious sounding happy hour menu. I ordered the mozzarella sticks as well as the beef empanadas. Both were fried golden brown to perfection and came out piping hot.. so good! Spark notes: - Incredible and friendly service - Gorgeous art - Fabulous rear outdoor space with heat lamps and cool murals - Chill, laidback and upscale vibes - Strong drinks

I loved the vibe of this place when I came. I stopped by on my lunch break, I was looking at the menu outside when the waitress saw me and kind of coaxed me to come in (lol). The place is small but long and inviting. During the afternoon the place is slow; I was the only patron there. I ordered their salad with jerk salmon for protein and finalllyyyy, I found a restaurant that gives you portions that will FEED YOU. It was generous, and matched the price. It was beautifully plated for a salad and came with fried sweet plantains, fresh toasty crunchy croutons (sweet bread?), the lettuce was crispy and possibly romaine lettuce. The jerk salmon was a good size, possible 6-8oz. and meaty! Not too spicy maybe a little on the sweet heat side. Overall it was a pleasant experience and would love to visit them again during the later hours.