Rick’s Cafe - Review
January 14, 2007
Info:
West End Road - Just before the Lighthouse
(876) 957-0380
Website
Food:
The food is actually better than it gets credit for, but it’s not great, and only mildly Jamaican. It is what it is, a tourist trap with a lot of history and charm.
Drinks:
It’s all about the bar. The bartenders are flashy, the beer is cold, and it has the biggest selection of frozen drinks in town. One new feature are cocktail tables on a patio right off the pool in two feet of water. Way cool!
Ambiance:
Tourist trap? Maybe, but very chic. The place, since it’s been redone is awesome. The Cliff Diving is as exhilarating as ever. Tourists line up to jump, and we all cheer when they do it. Buff Jamaican guys still jump from the trees fifty feet above the cove, and little kids jump from lower perches for tips.
The Pool/Cabana area is very cool. You can rent a Cabana a few feet from the pool, which is like a VIP room for you and your friends.
There are two floors now, and watching the sunset from the second floor with lots of booze and new friends is always a highlight of my trips.
Service:
I guess the service is okay. I always go to the bar for drinks, and usually I only eat appetizers.
Value:
Rick’s is short on value by Negril standards, but on any other scale it’s quite reasonable.
Notes:
Some magazine called Rick’s “One of the Ten Best Bars in the World,” and they quote that statement on everything they can. But Rick’s has history, it’s been there since 1974, and no one can deny it’s role in the early growth and lure of Negril. Hey, The Rolling Stones played there!
Rick’s gets a bad rap from us Negrilheads, but I secretly love the place. It’s a guilty pleasure. I go there on almost every trip, and it’s always a great time. It’s fun to immerse yourself in the bus loads of all-inclusive types for a few hours.
Either on a big catamaran like the Wild Thing, or on one of the dozens of glass bottom boats who work the bay, a great way to get to Rick’s is by sea. Riding back alone the cliff resorts just after sunset is a wonderful experience.
Vinny 
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