RAP’S
1541 Eglinton Ave W, York, ON M6E 2G7
Little Jamaica, located at Eglinton West in Toronto, was once home to many Caribbean-owned businesses. Unfortunately, due to the decrease in customers in that area during COVID-19 and the construction to build the Eglinton Crosstown light-rail transit, many of those businesses have closed. Only a handful of Jamaican restaurants appear to remain in Little Jamaica, and one of those restaurants is RAP’S.
According to a CTV article in 2021, RAP’S was what started Little Jamaica. Horace Rose was a record producer and couldn’t find anywhere to eat in the evenings after him and the rest of the crew were done with their shows so he opened RAP’S in 1982 in the same area as his record shop. They used to be open until 5 am, but are now open until 3 am (they are closed on Mondays), to serve customers who might be hungry after hours. RAP’S was the first Jamaican restaurant in Eglinton West, and over the years, other Jamaican businesses opened up as well, forming Little Jamaica.
The first time my husband and I went to RAP’S, I got the medium Jerk Chicken Meal and my husband got the large. I should have gotten the large since it was only $3 more ($20 vs. $17) and there was a big difference in the amount of food you get (large vs. small container). For our sides, I got the coleslaw, and my husband got steamed vegetables. The other options were Rasta pasta and macaroni pie.
The jerk chicken at RAP’S was the best jerk chicken I have ever had. It had a smoky flavour from the steel drum barbecue grill that was outside their restaurant, which is signature to Little Jamaica. The chicken was extremely moist, fell off the bone, and was covered with a sweet BBQ sauce. The coleslaw was sweet and vinegary, and the rice and peas were doused with oxtail gravy. The food at RAP’S was delicious.
Despite there being a line-up for the jerk pork at another Jamaican restaurant a couple of doors down in the late evening recently, I still prefer the food at RAP’S, and after my sister-in-law tried the jerk chicken at RAP’S for the first time, she said she could see why. It would be wonderful to see charcoal barbecue grills with smoke wafting from them lined up along the streets of Little Jamaica again one day. In the meantime, RAP’S is still there more than 44 years later and open for your business, so you should give them a try.
