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✔️Dinner ✔️Dine in
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Kabawa, a deeply personal restaurant from Chef Paul Carmichael and Momofuku, offers a nuanced and distinct perspective on Caribbean cuisine. Built around a set menu with plenty of choices, it’s a place to take your time, enjoy a meal, and discover something new each time you visit. Every touch point — from the custom mosaics to the ingredient sourcing to the instrumental music — is intentional and thoughtful, tapping into chef Paul’s upbringing in Barbados to reflect the vibrant, welcoming spirit of a Caribbean home.
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Order and Reservations
Reservations: opentable.com
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Kabawa – Momofuku
Kabawa, a deeply personal restaurant from Chef Paul Carmichael and Momofuku, offers a nuanced and distinct perspective on Caribbean cuisine.
Kabawa Restaurant – New York, NY | OpenTable
Kabawa offers a “luxurious Caribbean fine dining experience” with “exceptional food and service.” Guests rave about the “goat and coconut cake,” “vibrant …
kabawa (@kabawa) · New York, NY – Instagram
Reservations start at 6pm. This menu is a six-course, $195 tasting menu experience exclusive of beverage and gratuity. Seating is limited! Don’t sleep link in …
Reviews
Greta Hyatt
I really enjoyed dining here. Everything was delicious, and from our seats at the counter, it was so interesting to watch the chefs prepare each dish. It’s a 3 course prix fixe menu, but you get several side dishes which are all great. I particularly liked the Japanese sweet potato which was roasted with pineapple juice. I loved the cobia, especially as it evoked memories of when I ate kingfish in Trinidad. Best of all, the staff are all so warm and friendly, reflecting the spirit of the Caribbean.
… moreThomas Draper
I went here the other night to celebrate my wife’s new job. I stayed up until midnight two weeks before the reservations were available so I could get my pick on Open Table (this was a new experience for me). What can I say about this place that everyone isn’t already saying? The space was cool. The service was impeccable. The drinks were creative and spirit forward. The food was plated beautifully and packed with flavor. If I have one complaint, it is the price for the experience. The price is justified because of the high level of service and food quality. It just means I can’t go here once a week to eat this delicious, delicious food. Maybe Paul Carmichael will eventually open an a la carte restaurant that uses slightly less luxe ingredients, so then I can bear witness to his genius as often as I please.
… moreKabby Hong
Kabawa deserves all the flowers it has been getting from the NY Times and James Beard foundation. It’s inventive but most importantly it’s delicious. Standouts include the iconic goat curry which will be hard to remove from the menu because it’s so delicious. Everything was so good but what sets this restaurant apart is the warm, personable hospitality. We were able to talk to Chef Carmichael and what a kind, funny and incredibly warm human being. His ethos is infused into every part of the restaurant. At the bottom of the menu he puts the phrase. “Love yuh self.”
You will feel the love after dining at Kabawa.
… moreYou will feel the love after dining at Kabawa.
Kevin Roberts
I visited Kabawa on a recent trip to New York. The open kitchen at the bar makes fantastic viewing as you get to see all the prep. The atmosphere is modern, but also warm and upbeat, including the adjoining bar. The food itself was one of the best meals I have ever eaten. Great balancing of the main (goat) and accompanying sides. Could not recommend enough. I had 1 Plantain/cod/caviar, 2 Goat, 3 Sorbet. Really liked the Tamarind palate cleanser too.
… moreJames
Unique cuisine that is totally worth it. You won’t leave hungry! The coconut turnover is a must along with the goat with curry sauce. Highly attentive staff with a great wine list.
… moreErnest Owens
Tonight, the incredible NYC dining experiences continued at Kabawa — the ridiculously delicious Caribbean inspired restaurant on the lower East side.
As remarkable as I look, the hospitality was top-tier — the kind of service that feels like family. I really could eat there monthly, it was so relaxed, comforting, and delicious. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
… moreAs remarkable as I look, the hospitality was top-tier — the kind of service that feels like family. I really could eat there monthly, it was so relaxed, comforting, and delicious. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Devonta White
Dinner for two at Kabawa and hands down one of my favorite meals of the year.
Kabawa delivers Caribbean food in a refined, thoughtful way without losing soul. Every recommendation from our waiter was a hit, and we did the prix fixe menu and actually left full (which I truly appreciate).
What we ordered and highly recommend:
Starters
• Breadfruit Toston
• Cassava Dumplings
Mains
• Goat
• Black Bass
Dessert
• Coconut Turnover or Coconut Gelato
(Pro tip: getting both is delicious but adds up.)
I would absolutely eat here again.
… moreKabawa delivers Caribbean food in a refined, thoughtful way without losing soul. Every recommendation from our waiter was a hit, and we did the prix fixe menu and actually left full (which I truly appreciate).
What we ordered and highly recommend:
Starters
• Breadfruit Toston
• Cassava Dumplings
Mains
• Goat
• Black Bass
Dessert
• Coconut Turnover or Coconut Gelato
(Pro tip: getting both is delicious but adds up.)
I would absolutely eat here again.
ching lok Leung
Kabawa is undeniably delicious, but at this price point, it’s hard to justify the experience.
The $145 three-course tasting menu delivers solid, well-executed food, yet nothing truly memorable. The flavors are good, sometimes very good, but not special enough to linger in your mind after the meal. For a restaurant positioning itself at this level, I expected at least one standout moment — a dish, a technique, or an emotional hit — and that never came.
The pricing structure also feels aggressive and frankly frustrating. Dining as a party of two, ordering the chuletas requires omitting one person’s entrée and adding an extra $75. That effectively turns the chuletas into a ~$250 dish, which is absurd given what’s delivered on the plate. While tasty, it’s nowhere near worthy of that cost, especially when compared to other NYC restaurants offering more thoughtful luxury experiences at similar or lower prices.
In short: good food, but wildly overpriced. If Kabawa were priced 30–40% lower, I’d happily recommend it. At its current pricing, the value just isn’t there, and I left feeling more disappointed than impressed.
… moreThe $145 three-course tasting menu delivers solid, well-executed food, yet nothing truly memorable. The flavors are good, sometimes very good, but not special enough to linger in your mind after the meal. For a restaurant positioning itself at this level, I expected at least one standout moment — a dish, a technique, or an emotional hit — and that never came.
The pricing structure also feels aggressive and frankly frustrating. Dining as a party of two, ordering the chuletas requires omitting one person’s entrée and adding an extra $75. That effectively turns the chuletas into a ~$250 dish, which is absurd given what’s delivered on the plate. While tasty, it’s nowhere near worthy of that cost, especially when compared to other NYC restaurants offering more thoughtful luxury experiences at similar or lower prices.
In short: good food, but wildly overpriced. If Kabawa were priced 30–40% lower, I’d happily recommend it. At its current pricing, the value just isn’t there, and I left feeling more disappointed than impressed.
Annie Robertson
10/10 food, service, vibes – we had an amazing time here and would love to get back again to try different items – Some notable standouts for us: the Roti and guava jam (10/10 – crispy, buttery), The shrimp (10/10 – like Ebi with incredible spices), The Plantain with caviar (10/10 – WOW so creamy and perfect). The mains were delicious too and the sour fish was so special I had never had anything like that before, the goat curry was also delicious but those were not new flavors so I would personally put it below the fish. Dessert was divine and warmed up nicely for the next day as well. I think all in all it was $500+ (tip, 2 drinks and caviar add on included) for two of us but it’s worth it for the experience.
… moreJavier Kohen
The food was very good, with some dishes such as the cobia (fish) and shrimps standing out for me because of the fresh and complex flavors, and others like the starter, sides and dumplings giving me the impression of filler. I though the value of the food per dollar was relatively low.
The service was ever present, friendly, and super efficient. The ambiance is nice, I really valued being able to look directly into the kitchen, but it was also too loud to have a comfortable conversation.
… moreThe service was ever present, friendly, and super efficient. The ambiance is nice, I really valued being able to look directly into the kitchen, but it was also too loud to have a comfortable conversation.