(Mamajuana 615 has closed; Brasas Grill now operates at 2830 Middle Tennessee Blvd.)

Some inspiration from the Dominican Republic, a New York City-themed decor and a location near the middle of Tennessee converge to make Mamajuana 615 an eclectic and unique eatery within sight of the MTSU campus.

Latino music hits the ears upon entering the establishment—named for a Caribbean beverage made by steeping rum, red wine and honey in a combination of bark, herbs and spices—nestled within a Murfreesboro shopping center alongside Cup Pop and University Package Liquor behind the Middle Tennessee Market and Smoothie King on Middle Tennessee Boulevard.

In a unique mishmash of Middle Tennessee, Dominican Republic and New York City cultures, the Mamajuana 615 menu contains popular Caribbean dishes such as oxtails, jerk chicken, mofongo, roast pork, empanadas and tostones alongside burgers, Philly cheesesteaks, macaroni salad, some pasta selections and wings amongst the Dominican dishes found on the menu.

“We’ve made this our Friday night spot,” said local diner Erin Alvarado. “I recommend the picadera, oxtail, pernil [pork], mofongo, mondongo and the jerk chicken. All the sides are works of art, so you can’t go wrong with anything you choose. They also have yummy drinks that you can’t find anywhere else, so order one of the Dominican sodas or their lemonade or the morir soñando [a beverage made with milk, sugar and orange juice].”

Another diner, after trying the mofongo con camarones (mashed plantain topped with garlic and shrimp), said “the flavor was out of this world!”

Mamajuana coats its jerk chicken with a jerk sauce (from NYC, according to the owner) containing a great combination of flavors. It’s a little spicy, a little sweet . . . with maybe a little cinnamon and various other herbs and spices in there. It’s pretty good, though Mamajuana 615 oven bakes the dish; it’s not a wood-smoked jerk chicken.

The roasted pork, while very juicy, didn’t have a great deal of flavor to it in itself. It may have diners reaching for a sauce of some type, which, depending at which table they happen to be seated, could be honey mustard, “mayochup,” chipotle taco sauce, ketchup, a very hot sauce, or a mild bourbon hot sauce.

The Mamajuana 615 Brussels sprouts were very good, just salty enough and cooked tender with still a bit of crispness.

The crab cakes were a little bready and gummy—it’s a little hard to tell what type of meat is actually in there; they could very well contain salmon. There’s not a huge amount of meat in the mixture. They are not horrible, but kind of steep for $16 for two small crab cakes.

The rice and beans may have been the highlight of the whole Mamajuana 615 experience, very flavorful.

For those who enjoy different takes on arroz y frijoles, try this one. At first, the pile of plain white rice may seem unexciting. The beans come on a cup on the side, and here is where the magic lies. Pour these beans and sauce over the rice and you have a delicious and satisfying dish.

On certain days Mamajuana serves this white rice and beans combo; other days they offer yellow rice with peas. I would like to try that also!

While different Tennesseans may react differently to a room packed with New York City sports team logos and subway signs, “the vibe of the dining room was exactly what you want for this food experience,” according to Mamajuana 615 patron Matt Manix, adding that “the pork shoulder and roasted chicken were phenomenal.”

And the golden forks, spoons and knives were an elegant touch.

The delicious tropical fruity drinks are a nice touch also. Have a can of coconut water, with large bits of coconut pulp (I like coconuts . . . they smell like ladies lying in the sun, as Widespread Panic would say), a pineapple juice or Country Club sodas.

The tostones (fried green plantains) have a nice texture, but taste a little plain.

Some point out that Dominican cooking is usually somewhat spicy and packed with flavor, and many of the Mamajuana 615 dishes could use a little more “pow” to be considered authentic.

“The pork chop and chicken were fried to death, very dry, hard to swallow. The meat had absolutely no flavor. Ever heard of adobo, lime, cilantro, garlic, mojo?” one diner, Arthur, asked following a meal. “The mofongo was not bad, but was served very dry with no sauce, no fried onions.”

Though he did point out that “the rice and beans and sweet plantains were great.”

Joe LaFerriere said he enjoyed the picaderas at the restaurant.

“Picaderas basically means snacks or finger foods. Their offering consisted of Dominican sausage, Dominican salami, marinated ribeye steak, fried Dominican cheese, plantains, and I added a side of the macaroni salad,” the diner reported. “I really loved the salami and sausage . . . different flavors from what I am used to . . . Would be interesting to see what kind of Dominican sauces could be paired up with this dish.”

He said he also sampled a Dominican-style spaghetti.

“It has a big green pepper flavor, rich tomato sauce, the salami actually complements the dish, and somehow it all works together,” LaFerriere said.

Plenty of others had positive things to say about the chicken, rice and beans, mofongo and other dishes.

So for some flavors of the Dominican Republic, a wonderful variation of rice and beans, plenty of tropical beverages and more, give Mamajuana a try.

Mamajuana 615 appears to still be experimenting with ideal hours of operation; there can be some inconsistencies between hours posted online and when the door is open, but the place seems to be open most days for lunch and at least in the early evening.

(And the funniest note about researching Mamajuana 615: the websites that censor “j*** chicken” in customer reviews . . . ha!)

Mamajuana 615
2830 Middle Tennessee Blvd., Murfreesboro
Tues. and Wed.: 11 a.m.–8 p.m.; Thurs.: 11 a.m.–9 p.m.; Fri.: 11 a.m.–11:30 p.m.; Sat.: 12 p.m.–12 a.m.; Sunday: 12:30–9 p.m.
Jerk chicken with two sides: $15; Beef or chicken empanada: $2.50; Oxtails with two sides: $19; Chicken marsala or penne alla vodka: $19; Rice and beans or rice and peas: $5
615-624-7198
dominicanrestaurantmurfreesboro.com