Calypso St Lucian Caribbean Cuisine & Rum Bar

Try something unique, delicious, and affordable today.

I could happily live off of the appetizer menu.

So, Esther says that the food is strictly authentic and shook her head vigorously when I asked if she's had to "Americanize," the menu.

Transplanted native Caribbean neighbors frequent Calypso and they would, apparently, not tolerate any alterations to traditional dishes like Roti.

There are options for less spice-loving palates. For folks on the other end of the spectrum (like me), there's a house-made savory hot sauce that will enhance, without overpowering, your favorite dish.

My friends and fam enjoyed the bar and I can confidently recommend their "mocktails."

Um. Yes, please!
Andrew was awesome - knowledgable, professional, and a great conversation! Food was stupid good. Drink = A+.
We had the L'Orange to drink and the spicy macaroni pie with bacon as an appetizer. Would absolutely recommend to others traveling to the area.

3 stars for food, 1 for service.

I hate to leave bad feedback, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.

Rather than belabor the point, I'll just post my email of a few weeks ago to the restaurant, which along with my voicemail, went unanswered:

"Hi Esther, 

I left you a voicemail two weeks ago Sunday, but as I never heard back, I suspect it may have been intercepted by your staff.  I'm an avid Yelper but thought it better to bring this matter to your attention directly, rather than complain in a public forum.  

When friends from D.C. came into town looking for a unique, delicious experience, we recommended Calypso. They booked us a table for 4 at 8:30pm on Saturday, August 11.

Everything started off fine. We ordered an appetizer to share, a round of drinks, and a whole snapper priced for four.  Our friends, who were hosting, also ordered a bottle of white wine for the table. After the food arrived, things got weird with your staff. First issue, the side dishes were much too small for four people to share - barely a half cup of rice and beans to be split between us. So we immediately tried to order more and were told there was none left and the kitchen was closed.  Then another person returned to our table and said, as if very put out, that a little bit of plain rice could be procured. Whatever, fine.  We were eventually brought a *very* small custard cup of evidently microwaved rice and then basically ignored the rest of the meal.

We felt very unwelcome, presumably because our meal was served after the official closing time of 9:00 p.m. At about 9:45 p.m. suddenly all the servers descended on our table, brought the check without asking, and whisked away all the water glasses and plates.  It was awkward to say the least.  The tall, blonde waitress working that night actually said to my friend who had just paid and had commented that it seemed they wanted us to leave, "Our dishwasher isn't very happy with you."

We were pretty dumbfounded. All of us have worked in the hospitality industry and would never dream of being so rude to a customer. My husband and I were extremely embarrassed to have recommended your restaurant. I do not understand why the staff felt entitled to treat us so rudely throughout our meal, which was not inexpensive, by the way.

If your staff don't want to stay until 10:00 on a Saturday night, then don't make your last dinner reservation at 8:30 - a half hour before closing. Calypso (and the Caribbean generally) has a reputation for hospitality, and our experience was the total opposite.

We were disappointed and would appreciate an explanation.

Sincerely,
ChristinaM"

I had lunch at Calypso today with some coworkers and it was pleasant. If I could I would give it 3.5 stars but, as is my custom, I round up. So four stars it is.

Things I liked: The restaurant has a pleasant "island" sort of ambiance with the decorations, colors and soft reggae playing in the background. The food was good and the portions were pretty fair. I left feeling full. I had the chicken roti with the rice and dumplings. The dumplings were interesting. I've never had anything like them before. They were basically just dough. The service was good. Our waitress was helpful and the manager came around to check on us as well.

Things I didn't like: The chicken meat in the roti had a lot (four or five) of inedible pieces in it. I found that this really detracted from the experience for me. The food takes quite a while to come out.

Overall a positive experience. I'd certainly come back but would probably not go with the chicken.

As for the food, it was good. We had the hefty snapper fish that four people could eat and be full. The rice and the greens were amazing! There needs to be enough veggies for two, though. The serving wasn't quite enough. My husband loved the mac and cheese.

Side note: I was so excited and looked forward to meeting the chef/owner. I'd just read about her locating in the area in a local magazine. Her reception was just cordial. Just that. The restaurant wasn't busy, so I'd thought she would be exited to chat a little. I was a little disappointed with that. But, it's a FOOD review! ‍

Having lived in the Caribbean for 15 years, I was thrilled to see this restaurant open. Even more thrilled to experience the chefs skills with flavors and freshness.

We've ordered the whole striped bass which is big enough for 4. They say for 2 which is almost impossible to finish. It's a fast crispy fry with a slathering of fresh veggies on top - all in a coconut sauce that's just heaven.
The sides were just as good- fresh greens with the right level of heat, a Mac and cheese that would make a believer out of a non Mac and cheese eater.
This is really authentic Caribbean food, not an Americanized version of what Caribbean food should be.
We've been back many times and found it always to be delicious with an emphasis on freshness and authentic seasonings.
The owner, Esther Joseph is always there to warmly greet you and see to your dining happiness. Come on Asheville, how many tacos can you eat!!? Try Calypso and give your taste buds a reminder of why they are there. You will be very glad you did.

What's not to like about this place?

This is the best Caribbean food I have had outside of the islands. It was so good, I ate here twice during a 5 day stay in Ashville.

The chicken roti is awesome. My only complaint is that it was too small. The Saltfish appetizer was mouthwatering. The ground provision was executed to perfection. The rice and peas was spot on. The house-made ginger beer (don't get the one in the can) , and while on the small side was excellent. It had flavors new to my tastebuds.

As for the place, I love the ambience. Even the bathroom is beautiful. There is ample seating. Finding parking was difficult on one of my visits, but after waiting I found a spot behind the restaurant.

The service was excellent. I am not sure if it's the norm, but the owner came out on both occasions to see how we were enjoying the meal.

I wish that the Caribbean restaurants in the DMV area could visit Asheville to see the level they should try to attain.

My husband and I went downtown to eat but the original restaurant we wanted to dine in wasn't open yet. We decided on this instead. We went in not really knowing what to expect but were surprised at the delicious food. We had the calypso patties to start and we liked the mango and chicken ones best. My husband had the St Lucian Chicken Breast while I had the Petite Piton Stew. My husband liked his chicken and he doesn't care too much for chicken. I LOVED the stew. It was so flavorful and after each bite you get a POW- pop of spice! I'm not sure my husband and I could find anything close to this back home. Stop on by... you won't be disappointed.
(I'm taking off a star because either the manager or owner, not sure which, was sitting in the dining area and was so rude. Her waiter and waitress were awesome though!)

Came on a Wednesday for lunch with 2 other work friends. We were greated right away and we're sat at a high top next to the window. Server came promptly to give us waters then later returned for our order. The server seemed knowledgeable except when asked what kind of beef was in the Roti. She had to ask. She answered all our other questions since this was our first time in which we had a few. We all ordered the chicken roti with different sides.

I had Mac and cheese and the rice and beans. The Mac and cheese was good and even had bacon in it. The rice and beans could have been a little warmer but tasted fine. The roti was mixed meat chicken flavored with curry and wrapped in a thin tortilla. It was quite tasty. However between the tortilla layers was a lot of dryed curry powered. I am not sure if it was meant to be that way but it had a very salty taste because of that. I also had 1 small piece of bone in my chicken. Another person found at least 3 non editable parts.

The food was good and filled me up with the 2 sides. I would return but think it would be a while before I try it again.

Awesome food and people. Went to Calypso late at night about a week after their grand opening.

It was a very cozy, family type vibe. I sat at the bar and chatted with the owner, and two workers. Everyone was nice, hanging around to talk about cool things to see & do during my Asheville visit.

I ate the Calypso Patties starter which was tasty and similar to empanadas. My photo shows the Coco St. Lucia drink which I had too.