How a Jamaican Chef Brought Island Flavor to the Upper 9th Ward

New Orleans has always defied easy definitions. With its Afro-Caribbean roots, bold food, and complex cultural history, it feels more like the northernmost city of the Caribbean than a typical U.S. destination. So it makes perfect sense that a Jamaican spot like Jamaican Jerk House would feel right at home—bringing spicy, smoky, soulful cooking to the Upper 9th Ward.

Richard Rose didn’t plan to be a chef. He came from Kingston, Jamaica, to help rebuild New Orleans after Katrina, then found himself working at a refinery in Reserve, LA. But it was his homemade jerk sauce that started turning heads. What began as side hustle at the plant turned into a full-on calling—one bottle at a time.

Encouraged by his wife and now business partner, Jackie Diaz, Rose finally opened Jamaican Jerk House in a canary yellow building that looks more like someone’s home than a restaurant. But step inside, and it’s full-on Caribbean: red, green, and gold decor, island music, and the rich scent of smoked meat and spice.

For the uninitiated, jerk is both a method and a flavor profile. It’s smoky. It’s spicy. And it tells a deep story of cultural exchange between Jamaica’s Indigenous people and enslaved Africans. Scotch bonnet peppers, garlic, thyme, and allspice form the base—then it’s grilled low and slow to develop that signature heat-meets-sweet profile.

Jamaican Jerk House serves up the real deal: jerk chicken cooked over an outdoor grill, curry laced with imported Scotch bonnets, and Diaz’s fusion touches like mofongo Cubano and a Cuban-style mac and cheese made with spaghetti.