Address: 500A Brixton Road, SW9 7AW
(It’s actually round the corner in Brighton Terrace)

Phone: 020 7274 5559

Website: http://refillfood.co.uk/

Open: 24 hours, 7 days a week

We reviewed Refill some time ago, when we carried out our survey of Jerk Chicken takeaways (see here) – our panel rated it the highest. So having decided we were too hungry to wait 30 minutes at one of Brixton’s new eateries, we decided on our way home to get a takeaway from this long-standing source of genuine Caribbean food. This is a 24 hour takeaway and it seems always full. On a Tuesday evening at 8.45pm it was full. That allowed us to spend a little time working out the long menu with help from other customers.

The menu consists of Afro-Caribbean staples and includes jerk chicken, ackee and saltfish, sweet chilli wings, various fish dishes vegetarian offers, dumplings and cakes. The list really is too long to write down and, anyway, we know it changes daily. Also, some run out by the end of the day and are replaced with others, so it is always a surprise. The staples come as meals (small or large), or even as a sandwich, and consist of vegetables, meat or fish and potentially gravy. In addition there are side orders of wings, etc. So, as you will see these are hearty offerings, and I challenge anyone to eat the large size of any meal which looked enough for a family of four.

We chose small meals of mixed rice (chicken and vegetables); one with salt fish and butter beans, and the other with chilli wings. We had a side order of jerk wings and a round dumpling. The latter come in three sizes – round, flat and twisted – and I still don’t know how you eat one but I am going to ask around.

This is seriously good food. The jerk wings and the vegetables and rice had enough chilli to make them interesting but not so hot that you can’t see to eat because your eyes are streaming. The vegetables were still crispy and  little strips of chicken were not dry. I would certainly order this again (if the chef decides to include it in his dishes on that day). The salt fish and beans had red pepper and perfectly fine and filling. The dumpling was a little overwhelming I finished it off with a bit of honey, as it is more like a doughnut.

We added a soursop juice and the bill came to £18.80. We could have eaten for much less, as we had enough left over for another meal. We’ve been occasional users over the years but this convinced us to use it more often. For a first time user it can be overwhelming but, given our experience, other customers are happy to provide guidance. You can take the food home or, as they heat it up for you, eat it on the street . One idea we’ve had, with the aim of sampling more of what’s on offer, is to invite friends to come round for a meal, making their choice from the menu.