Kemper’s Café

Very good food! Had Brown Stew Tilapia, mac & cheese, and cabbage. Veggie patty was tasty too. Will definitely be back.

I have to been to a couple of Caribbean spots and this one is by far the best. The spot is very homely food is superb (better than mangos!!!). The owner makes her sorrel from scratch which is extremely hard to find. It’s also very difficult to find a place that makes food that tastes like it was made with love and this place makes their food with care. They don’t skimp on their food either. Definitely my number one spot right now!

My husband and I eat here at least once or twice a week. The customer service is accomidating and the food is the best in the city, hands down. Everything is cooked with love and it makes all the difference! The sides taste like your auntie or grandma made them, total comfort food! (Mac n cheese, sweet potato casserole, plaintains, greens, cabbage) The prices are fair but dont really care what the prices are, frankly. I love supporting a local family run business that cooks fresh, authentic food, everytime. This is one small business that I hope will weather the gentrification of west Atlanta and provide culture and community well into the future.
The meatloaf and the jerk chicken are my favs.

My wife and I were excited to eat some delicious Caribbean food. Before we walked in, we noticed Unilocal had a voucher that we could purchase and use, so I bought it and we walked in.
The lady who stood behind the counter was very cold in her attitude towards us from the minute we walked in and even till we left. We ordered our food, and when we went to pay I pulled out the voucher. When I showed it to her she stared at me and shook her head saying it didn’t apply to our food. There wasn’t anything on the voucher that it didn’t cover, is simply reduced a $ 16 purchase to $ 10. I just wanted to get away, so I paid for our food and we ate it.
The reason I’m giving this two stars is because the food was amazing, but everything else was awful. I hope you have a different experience than we did! We were so sad, because as I said the food was so delicious.

This is my second trip to Atlanta. I have had so very fine meals in midtown and vicinity. However, today I was working in an area I wasn’t familiar with and decided to try here based on Unilocal reviews.
I wasn’t disappointed. The food was so much better than I had expected or reviewed.
You need to go out of your way to try it!
I had the jerk chicken that was so full of flavor and spice. My side were rice and beans and collar greens. I have never had better.
The restaurant was clean and pleasant with a great feeling of joy and pride.
I encourage everyone to go enjoy some wonderful food.
Congratulation to the entire staff!

Kempers has some of the best Jamaican food other than my own. Try the mac and cheese its really good!!!

Totally underwhelmed by the food. I’m from Brooklyn so yeah I know good Caribbean food. The oxtail was damn near inedible. And the curry chicken was meh. I don’t know that I will return.

Awful service. There is a reason why no one eats there. Do not get the deal unless you only want the chicken as its not good for goat.

Food is horrible! The young lady at the counter was rude and didn’t give me all my change. The only thing good was the music.

We needed to find some food on our way out of Atlanta when we were headed to Orlando and found this gem on Unilocal and trusted the reviews. I couldn’t be happier that we did as their Jerky Chicken, Curry Chicken, rice and cabbage were all delicious!
It’s very casual, hole in the wall type of place, which was the right atmosphere, price and we were thoroughly pleased with the quality and quantity of food that you get. Best Caribbean food I’ve had so far. Would absolutely recommend to anyone who likes trying new cuisine or Caribbean food!

The wife: So I decided to try this place out today after discovering it a while back. I got the jerk chicken lunch special, it came with rice and peas, steamed cabbage, and a drink. The jerk chicken itself was really good, the flavor was there, the only minus for me was the fact that they didn’t offer jerk gravy from the chicken, instead they have a separate sauce they put on the rice if you want but it’s not jerk. The rice and peas was very good, and the steamed cabbage was tasty as well. I asked for coconut water as my drink but they didn’t have any…(all Caribbean restaurants should have coconut water) Overall this place was good.

I bough this deal at 12:51 today and the restaurant was closed even though the signage stipulated that they were open from 12 – 5 on Sundays. I want my money back!!!

Good businesses always seem to struggle in this area for obvious reasons (lack of business and crime), but I hope this one makes it for the long term. The cafeteria style dining room is clean and well kept. The staff are friendly and attentive, and were able to keep up with a steady stream of patrons.
The food has an authentic Jamaican feel, although some dishes did seem over seasoned. I recommend trying your favorite Jamaican dish whether it’s jerk chicken, curry goat or snapper. With many shuttered restaurants in the area, it’s important to support local «mom & pops» trying to keep this area alive.
I had the jerk chicken, rice & pea, Mac ‘n cheese and of course Kola champagne.

Best Jamaican food I’ve ever had! Jerk BBQ wings are heavenly and the cabbage is amazing!!!

Great Caribbean food served up quickly from a cafeteria-​style set-​up.
Friendly staff. So friendly that one told me he was looking for his future wife. I was appreciative, but I live a little far.
I like that this place is no frills and just like coming to a relative’s house. The lack of air conditioning also reminds me of going to a relative’s house when in Taiwan and is not enjoyable on a muggy day.
I ordered the oxtails on rice, which were very tender and heavily seasoned with more cinnamon than I’ve had in Caribbean food, but it was still delicious. I had it with cabbage. The sign said I got plantains also, which I didn’t receive, but I didn’t notice until halfway through my meal.
Oxtails for a smaller order = $ 12, which I felt was a little steep. Tax and tip later, I just paid $ 14 for a plate of rice, beans, cabbage, and a few slices of oxtail. Just seems too steep.
Cabbage is good… But not really worth raving about, hehe. I’ve had better in Montgomery.
Received a coupon after ordering that offered the exact lunch I ate PLUS a drink for $ 10.99. Would have been really nice of these guys if they could have hooked me up with it ahead of time. Keep an eye out for the coupons on the register area. They have some good deals on them, and I would definitely come back to try their 6.99 lunch specials.

I love finding places like this. Authentic Caribbean food! Clean and well kept by its loving owners, and the food … THE FOOD. I wanted to try it all, but I only have one stomach.
The curried chicken was just delicious. They had run out of goat (GOAT!) from the lunch rush … but there was one tiny bit left he gave me as a sample. It was amazing. As a dessert I had a sweet potato thing with pecans on it – yep, incredible. I wish I lived closer.

I can’t express the joy I felt in not only finding this place but meeting the owner, who gave of herself as if she knew nothing else. Where I could probably run out of room talking about the humility and goodness of Ms Merlene, who I only met once, my review of the whole experience here was one that touched both my heart and stomach.
The food here was beyond delicious. Being from the Virgin Islands and living where I live in Louisiana, authentic Caribbean food is a rarity. I was thrilled and almost forgot to get dressed rushing out of my hotel to meet at Kemper’s Café. Ms Merlene just so happened to be there when I called and was preparing a meal for a future date (which tells you how long that marinade soaks into the food… MMMph!) but anywho, she whipped up some food for us so quickly and so wonderfully and when I tell you it blessed my soul? I sigh in writing this review because I drove 8 hours with some friends for an event in town for the weekend and I don’t know when I’ll get a chance to experience the goodness of this restaurant. Curry chicken, delicious. Meatloaf, delicious. Curry goat, delicious. Everything we got a chance to eat: mac and cheese, plantains, rice and peas, jerk chicken, EVERYTHING was delicious. I offered to clean the windows, do the dishes, sweep and mop… money just didn’t seem like enough for such a fantastic meal that I, even now, crave and miss days after the fact.
Ms Merlene: Thank you. Bless you. I wish you much success and if I could drive an entire Megabus of people there just to share half of the experience I did, I would.

A mom & pop stop serving some of the best Caribbean food I’ve ever tasted! I’m here for work and since coming for the first time yesterday, I was back again today wanting more. For about $ 10 a plate you can choose 1 meat w/​two sides and 2 plantains. For the meats choose ANYTHING from oxtails, jerk wings, jerk chicken, rum chicken stew… it’s all good and you can’t go wrong.
Nothing but bold flavor and freshness here. The owner even came and greeted us at the table which was an added plus.

Yeah this place is pretty much top notch taste wise. Unlike some other reviewers, I didn’t receive bad service. Maybe because I caught them on a good day. I got the curry chicken with rice and peas, macaroni and cheese, plantains, and coco bread. This food is so good and I wish I lived a little closer. Decent prices as well and goes in line with what Caribbean restaurants charge. Would definitely come back again!

Sigh. This is a hard review to write. I’m conflicted. The food itself is top notch, but the service left something to be desired. We had to ask what sides were available since they weren’t listed on the menu and they were all covered by lids. With her attitude you’d think we just asked her for her home address. As usual, entrees come with two sides, but here, rice counts as a side. That’s unusual. Also a sign alerts us that plantains are only available by request. Okaaaaay. Can we have some plantains please? «We’re out.» At 5pm? It’s not even dinner yet. The whole experience had us saying ‘this food better be good!’ Well guess what? It was. It’s down right delicious. The jerk chicken is the best I’ve had and the goat is executed perfectly. Mac & cheese, collard greens and the sweet potato soufflé …man. Speechless. Now I’m conflicted cause my pride says you deserve better but my heart says «Shut up pride, don’t ruin this for us.» I’ll definitely be back. Soon. Very soon.

The service could be a little better and I would LOVE if there was A/​C, but the food cancels out any negative. I ordered the jerk wings (8 piece and only ate 5) and BOY are they SPICY but oh so delicious. I am not a huge fan of spicy food when it’s hot for no reason but this is spicy for a purpose! They were sooooo good, flavorful with the right amount of heat. I also ordered the sweet potato soufflé and Mac and cheese. All of which were well made, fresh and so good. Delicious!

Just had the Jerk Chicken as well as the Curry Chicken, top 5 in Atlanta the jerk sauce is different but very good with a nice bbq flavor. I also had the Mac & cheese, cabbage and rice & peas which were all top notch.

Stumbled across this gem on the way to drop someone off at Atlanta Metro. So glad I went in, as soon as you walk in you know it’s going to be a good meal just by the smell. I got the Jerk chicken, rice and peas with gravy, n Mac n cheese. Boyfriend got the curry chicken, rice, n cabbage. Not a single fault. Like another review mentions, oddly enough the cabbage is really amazing and wish I got more of it. Definitely adding this to my frequent food spots. Too many other restaurant’s in Atlanta with subpar food, this one should get the recognition it deserves.
They also mentioned a Friday special with free (limited) beer with purchase. Awesome.

Delicious brown stew and super pleasant owners!!! If you are unsure about something… just ask they will give you a sample.

A friend told me about this spot so I decided to swing by while I was in the city. Here to report… yes indeed this is the real deal. Jerk chicken was seasoned down to bone marrow or at least it seemed that way!!! It wasn’t even put on the smoke pit the day of my visit and it was still very good. I’m told they normally do the jerk on the pit. Escovitch red snapper was really good and fresh. Upset that we didn’t order more. I also love the way they do their cabbage. yeah I know who really reviews cabbage. I do and it was delicious. Kemper’s will definitely be in my city visit rotation. I expect them to do very well so I’m spreading the word so you can get in on the vittles.

What an awesome place!!! I stumbled on this place a few months ago, and BOY am I glad I did. This is my spot now, I make it my business to stop by every time I stop in Atlanta. Sophia you guys keep up the good work!!!

The food was so good! Very authentic. Seasoned with actual herbs and love– I can taste the love in their food! Seriously, it can sometimes be hard to find authentic– cafeteria style– Jamaican food. But this place is it. It’s fast. Extremely delicious and the owner is so friendly. They recently opened (about 6 months ago) and I’m so thankful I stopped in to give them a try. I had a vegetarian plate with curry chicken gravy (I’m not a strict vegetarian) and let’s just say that was the best curry gravy I’ve ever had. I also had the Mac and cheese (which was homemade, creamy and cheesy). Last, I had the collards. My boyfriend had the same thing but with cabbage which was also really good.
Overall, this place is amazing, authentic and perfectly seasoned.