Jambo Cafe

Someone from this business manages this listing.

1,633 reviews

#6 of 387 Restaurants in Santa Fe₹₹ - ₹₹₹, Caribbean, African, Fusion

+1 505-473-1269+ Add website

Hours

Mon

11:00 am - 9:00 pm

Tue

11:00 am - 9:00 pm

Wed

11:00 am - 9:00 pm

Thu

11:00 am - 9:00 pm

Fri

11:00 am - 9:00 pm

Sat

11:00 am - 9:00 pm

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What is Travellers’ Choice?

Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.

Ratings and reviews

4.5

1,633 reviews

#6 of 387 Restaurants in Santa Fe

Travellers' Choice 2024

RATINGS

Food

Service

Value

Atmosphere

Food and ambience

Caribbean, African, Healthy, Fusion, Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options

“I had combination plate of goat stew, chicken curry, and lamb stew.”

“I had the salmon salad, a first for me (I, for once, wanted something light).”

“The Kenyan style beef kabobs were my favorite!”

“I had the salmon salad, a first for me (I, for once, wanted something light).”

Location and contact

2010 Cerrillos Rd College Plaza Shopping Center, Santa Fe, NM 87505-3378

+1 505-473-1269

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Starters

Jamaican Coconut Curry Steamed Mussels

served with plantains (GF)

$12.95

Savory Stuffed Phyllo

phyllo pastries filled with spinach, Moroccan black olives, organic feta, roasted red peppers and chickpeas over organic field greens and drizzled with pomegranate sauce.

$8.95

Fried Cornmeal Plantain Crab Cakes

served over organic field greens, topped with Caribbean spice sauce (GF)

$10.95

Sweet Smoked Paprika Hummus Plate

served with Moroccan olives, veggies, and pita. (Vegan)

$8.95

Coconut Shrimp

four lightly fried Wild Shrimp served with lime cilantro mango sauce.

$9.95

Jerk Chicken Wings

served with pineapple curry sauce. (GF)

$9.95

Is this restaurant wheelchair accessible?

Yes

Unsure

Details

Manage this business?

About

African and Caribbean dishes and specialties from award-winning Chef Ahmed Obo. Jambo Cafe specializes in new combinations of traditional dishes with a decidedly spicy flair. Winner of many awards, "Best Soup" for the Souperbowl 4 years running and "Best International Cuisine" in the Santa Fe Reporter for 10 years and Best Chef for 6 years. We serve vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and seafood options alongside our chicken, beef, lamb, and goat dishes. All meats are Halal. Located in College Plaza near corner of St. Michaels Drive and Cerrillos Road. Plenty of free parking.

PRICE RANGE

₹756.00 – ₹2,521.00

CUISINES

Caribbean, African, Fusion, Healthy

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options

Meals

Lunch, Dinner

FEATURES

Takeout, Reservations, Seating, Parking Available, Free off-street parking, Highchairs Available, Wheelchair Accessible, Serves Alcohol, Wine and Beer, Accepts American Express, Accepts Mastercard, Accepts Visa, Accepts Discover, Accepts Credit Cards, Table Service, Non-smoking restaurants, Gift Cards Available

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4.5

1,633 reviews

Excellent

1,191

Very good

324

Average

Poor

Terrible

Bill M

Santa Fe29 contributions

Outstanding Unique Dishes

Jan 2020 • none

World cuisine, blending Carribean, Middle-Eastern, African, with the chef's own invention, and an occasional Southwest flair. Always delicious, lunch or dinner, I have never been disappointed with the specials. My favorite on the menu is the Lentil coconut curry, but will almost always go for a seafood special. Value-wise, the quality far exceeds much more expensive restraunts in town, with very affordable and tastey wine selection, that marries well with the food. Even without considering price, it's one of the best restraunts in town, but considering the price, easily the best value in town. Staff are attentive and genuine.

Written 16 January 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Randall Douglas R

Santa Fe55 contributions

Excellent Choice for Different Fare

Jan 2020 • none

Being from Santa Fe this place is recommended all the time. Finally for a quick dinner we decided to drop by, we were told a reservation was wise. When we arrived the host was very nice and all the staff, the server remembered our orders without writing anything down. We had the Chai coffee, and Mango tea, starter of coconut shrimp with curry sauce. The main course was 2 orders coconut chicken curry (with rice). All was very tasty. The only caveat was the starter, I felt the shrimp was deep fried a bit too long, and instead of 4 jumbo shrimp we received 3 and one piece of chicken. Our napkins came with fork and knife, but mine had just a knife. All this said, it was pleasant experience. Price was $60.00 with tip.

Written 24 January 2020

PerfectIslands

New York144 contributions

Joy at Jambo

Dec 2019 • family

Another venture to a Triple D restaurant proved very worthy of the accolades. Pleasant restaurant located in a strip mall (so there’s more than ample parking). Food was uniquely African with overtones of what I’ve eaten in the Caribbean. Three of us shared the stuffed phyllo which contained spinach, feta, olives & peppers and sat on deep, rich pomegranate sauce. Unlike anything I’ve tried previously...crispy & absolutely delicious. I ordered a combo plate to afford me the opportunity to try both the oxtail and the curried chicken...they did not disappoint. Hubby had the same but they were happy to accommodate him by switching out the chicken for lamb so we didn’t have the exact same thing. Lentil stew was another dish ordered which was a great vegetarian option. Since it was my birthday, a warm mango cobbler topped with ice cream was ordered for dessert. Nothing was disappointing.....well, except for the fact that they had run out if their roti bread, so we had to settle for pita. The owner came into this restaurant towards the end of our meal. He graciously stopped at every table. He warmly greeted us, spoke with us for a minute or two, thanked us for coming. Such a simple gesture to make customers feel valued, appreciated & welcome!

Written 24 January 2020

Randy M

11 contributions

Ate stewed Goat for the first time! Very tasty but the Lamb in a classic tagine style dish was our favorite.

Nov 2019 • none

Interesting and tasty choices featuring African, Carribean, and Middle Eastern dishes. The chef/owner came over to say hello and was very gracious. The curries here are earthy and not as "in your face" as Thai food for example. There is a lot of love placed in to the food here and the service is friendly and the staff has great enthusiasm for the dishes that they serve.

Written 6 January 2020

Jennifer G

Phoenix54 contributions

Incredible!

Sept 2020 • solo

Jambo Cafe was incredible! They are currently only open for takeout, the online ordering and pickup process was super easy. I couldn’t decide what to try so I got the sampler with coconut chicken curry, lamb stew, and goat stew. After eating all 3 I still can’t decide which is my favorite. The food is super flavorful and all delicious. None of it was spicy, just amazing. I can’t wait to go back and try something else!

Written 29 September 2020

Jeff B

Milford54 contributions

Superb!

Mar 2021 • couples

We’d sampled some of the excellent food in Santa Fe, renowned w good reason. It was Monday night, many places closed and we wanted something different anyway. Believe the reviews - Jambo excels in exciting, exotic flavors, ample quantity, value pricing and wonderful African and Carribean fusions. A real surprise to find in Santa Fe! An obviously gifted and creative chef! Use the combination plate to sample the goodness. We’re only sorry we found Jambo on our last night in town!

Written 23 March 2021

sam2300

Santa Fe73 contributions

Horrible service continues

Feb 2023 • none

This is my second review of Jambo Care and I'm sorry to say, the service here reminds horrible and will prevent me from ever going here again. I called for a takeout order. They said it would be ready in 20 minutes. I showed up 30 minutes later and my order wasn't ready. I waited for 15 minutes and then they come out to tell me one of the items of my order wasn't available! Utterly inexcusable. For about a month, I was ordering food here on a weekly basis and would have continued to do so had they been able to provide decent service. Instead, they have lost a regular lifelong customer. So very sad.

Written 16 February 2023

BHUANG69

New Providence1132 contributions

What a great feast

Aug 2021 • none

Came here with a friend since we want something different. For starters we ordered mixed fries: harrisa fries (not very hot) and cumin fries. We enjoyed both. My friend liked his hibiscus tea. For entree, we shared a mahi mahi (wonderful) wrapped in banana leaf and a combination plate consisting of tofu curry, peanut chicken and goat curry. They are all wonderful but my personal favorite is goat curry. The waitress was very attentive, professional and friendly. At the end of the meal, the chef came to greet us and asked us how everything was. This is a great sign of him wanting to do a great business and wanting to make his guests happy. I highly recommend this place.

Written 14 August 2021

sacgwm

Camas37 contributions

Just a great meal

Oct 2021 • none

My wife and I were visiting Santa Fe with some friends recently and Jambo was recommended to us. We were delighted with the food and would readily go back. As many places these days the service staff is stressed and of insufficient number. This presented some issues early on, but they were rectified. What really stood out to us was that the chef/owner, Ahmed Obo, took time out out of his busy schedule to come to our table to explain and rectify things. We were very impressed and satisfied with this on his part. We will readily come back any time we are in the Santa Fe area. Highly recommended.

Written 1 November 2021

njtraveller13

166 contributions

Southwest Journey

Dec 2019 • none

We came here around the eight o’clock hour on a Saturday, having heard about this restaurant from Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. This definitely is a Triple D winner. I decided on the combination platter as it gave me a variety of three different dishes. I also asked if I could switch the chicken to peanut chicken. My wishes were accommodated. The dish was flavorful and delicious. She stuffed phyllo was also superb. The only downside to the visit was that they were out of roti. When we come back to the area this restaurant is a definite return to.

Written 1 January 2020

Lizzy B

Denver43 contributions

Flavorful, fast service for vegetarians and meat lovers

Sept 2020 • couples

We ordered take out on a visit to Santa Fe and ordered two combination plates to try everything. I am vegetarian and they had multiple options for veggie and meat lovers. Each dish was very flavorful with a little spice but not too overwhelming especially for someone who doesn’t like spicy food! Service was quick and the lobby smelled delicious while we were waiting. Definitely a must eat if you are in town and wanting something different than Mexican food.

Written 22 September 2020

tonytD9568SZ

Seattle233 contributions

We had takeout from this tasty

Sept 2021 • couples

We had takeout from this tasty restaurant. Food was on time & warm in re-heatable containers. The dishes we had included Kenyan Beef kabobs as well as a combination plate consisting of peanut chicken curry, lamb stew & chickpea Bernese stew which includes rice & a roti. Wonderful flavors.

Written 28 September 2021

McBain

Santa Fe3 contributions

Bludgeons the mouth with flavor.

Jul 2020 • none

The food at Jambo Cafe is boldly flavored yet complex, with many subtle nuances to appreciate. It hammers at the tastebuds with a variety of tastes and textures. Pummels them. Then gives them a tender masssage just to loosen them up. Easily in my top five restaurants in Santa Fe and totally unlike anything else I've ever had. Some days I think Jambo is my favorite. I recommend the jerk chicken, which I especially enjoyed on a Sammie from one of the Jambo food trucks. The fried plantains are also quite delicious.

Written 12 July 2020

Sally Thoe Downs

Albuquerque5393 contributions

Still good but pricey!

Aug 2023 • couples

This is a very nice restaurant with great wait staff. All of that was great. But hubby and I were confounded to find that all of the dishes we ordered were lacking the kind of taste and spice we had come to know from how these dishes were actually prepared. If there was an option to increase the spice level, we would have liked to know. I got the feeling that maybe the taste of food was toned down severely enough to suit local tastes, or to suit the masses. But if you grew up on any one of these dishes, you wouldn't really recognize their taste here. Hubby had Kenya's Style Beef Kebabs and I ordered the Grilled Jerk Chicken and both portions were smallish for the price we paid. I liked their Chia Tea which was not too sweet and it had deep flavors and the bottled Cactus juice was real good. Iguess I'd say this place serves as a pretty good introduction to certain types of African and Caribbean cuisine, but don't expect amazement and complete satisfaction if you're natively well-acquainted with these styles of cooking.

Written 7 August 2023

Ahmed Obo

Thank you for your thoughts. Jambo Cafe is styled to be accessible to a variety of palates. We appreciate you stopping in.

Written 13 October 2023

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Audrey E

Discovery Bay33 contributions

Great place to dine

Jul 2021 • solo

Great Food! Great service! The menu is a celebration of African, Caribbean, Indian flavors. It is a comfortable dining experience with both locals and tourists. I need to shout out to Kayla, my server, who made great efforts to be sure I received my food at a good pace and in the order I needed. If you come for the first time try the combination plate that allows you to taste several interesting dishes. All the meats are Halal . You can also get a wonderful goat curry and a vegetarian Ethiopian chickpea Berbere. The roti is excellent.

Written 15 July 2021

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