Haitian in Miami

16614 N. Miami Ave., North Miami Beach Mid/North Beach

786-520-4639

Haitian

Apouchy seems to put a little extra into all the Haitian standbys. The pikliz is spicier, the stewed vegetable dish called legume seems richer and more full of substance, and the shrimp in coconut sauce seems to burst with fat crustaceans. But it’s the soup joumou served every Sunday that has you thinking about this place in the middle of the week. The stuff is the symbol of Haitian freedom, and is what the island-nation’s enslaved freedom fighters snacked on after ousting the French. Slaves weren’t allowed to eat soup. But with long awaited and deserved freedom, free men devoured the rich, pumpkin-infused broth sweetened with bell peppers and enriched with cuts of beef still attached to marrow-filled bones. Soup joumou is everything to Haitians, and after a one slurp, it will be for you.

1 article

Chez Le Bebe

114 NE 54th St. Midtown/Wynwood/Design District

305-751-7639

Haitian, Best Of, Menu

Short of having a Haitian grandmère up to her apron strings in pigs' feet at home, you aren't likely to find better-tasting and less-expensive Haitian comfort food than this. The griot (fried pork) is tender and the stewed goat heavenly. The menu is short and sweet, so just pick the type of meat or fish you want (you can also order grits and legumes as entrées) and place your order. Each plate comes with rice, beans, plantains, and salad. Pound for pound, the fare at this Little Haiti fave is less expensive than fast food and much better for you (add a soft drink and your dinner total still runs under $10), but arrive hungry, because the portions are huge. Soups are offered on the weekends. There's a steady stream of customers, so you might have to wait a bit either in the main restaurant or even at the pick-up window, which thankfully stays open until midnight every night but Sunday.

3 articles

Fritay Fried Pork & Chicken

12143 NW 7th Ave. North Miami

786-866-9674

Haitian, Best Of

Inside a cozy storefront on NW Seventh Avenue in North Miami, the fryers are always snapping, crackling, and popping. The family-owned Haitian restaurant serves deliciously sinful wings, drumsticks, and breasts that are fried to crisp perfection. The meat is juicy and tender every time, whether you request a $2.49 two-piece meal or a ten-piece family feast for $7.99. Every meal comes with sides of small rice, acras — fritters — and sweet plantains or fries. Fritay has been providing dine-in and take-out to North Miami's Haitian community since 2008. The restaurant is also big on community service, awarding a $6,000 scholarship to a minority student from the community every year. Fritay is conveniently located off I-95, just a few blocks from the NW 125th Street exit.

2 articles

Ivan's Cookhouse

14815 Biscayne Blvd. Aventura/North Miami Beach

305-944-4826

Asian Fusion, Haitian, Caribbean, Best Of

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3 articles

La Belle Jacmelienne Cafe

3328 S. University Dr. Miramar

954-381-3886

Haitian, Caribbean, Best Of

1 article

Le Lambi

13714 Kendall Dr., Kendall South Dade

305-387-4747

Haitian, Restaurants, Best Of

In the chain-restaurant-friendly, culinarily shy zone that is Kendall, there's a party going on near the parking lot of a Publix. Inside a nondescript, squat building, guitar music wafts, political debates sound in Kreyol, and the clink of silverware delving into platters of rich goat and fish stews fills the air. It's the area's only Haitian restaurant and a community hub, a ten-seater family joint where patrons usually know each other by name and have no qualms about entering the kitchen to greet staff or obtain extra sauce. The homemade dishes that make the rounds courtesy of owner Carine Baez, her husband, and sons: fresh lambí en sauce, conch stewed until soft and melded with spicy peppers, onions, and tomato; riz et pois, savory rice and beans cooked with diri ak djon-djon, imported Caribbean black mushrooms; and street food platters with neat arrangements of fried goat, pork chunks, and malanga fritters waiting to be dipped into searingly spicy sauces. Outside, it's strip-mall hell. But if you stay long enough in Le Lambí's warm embrace, you almost forget it.

1 article

Naomi's Garden Restaurant & Lounge

650 NW 71st St. Downtown/Overtown

305-456-4715

Caribbean, Haitian, Best Of

12 articles

Randys Restaurant & Lounge

13420 N.W. 7th Ave. North Miami

786-970-7403

Bars and Clubs, Dance Clubs, Haitian

Tap Tap

819 Fifth St., Miami Beach South Beach

305-672-2898

Caribbean, Haitian, Recommended, Menu

Entrée hits include red snapper: a whole fish crisply fried and curled on a platter like some fisherman's trophy; stewed goat in tomato-based sauce that is strangely reminiscent of pot roast; and fried pork chunks, marinated in sour orange juice and a touch of Scotch bonnet peppers. Plus main dishes come with a tostone disk and choice of white rice with a cup of soupy black beans or the two combined. Top Tap Tap sides include airy malanga fritters and mayi moulen. There are also great tropical fruit rum cocktails and joyfully vibrant paintings and murals. Read our full review.

36 articles

USA Seafood and Car Wash

6010 NE 2nd Ave. Midtown/Wynwood/Design District

305-756-6555

Haitian, Seafood, Best Of

Step out of Miami and into Port-au-Prince at USA Seafood and Car Wash, a character-driven Little Haiti joint notable for its giant parking lot. This place is popular for its take-out, so don't let the Styrofoam containers and plasticware put you off. Try the griot. The fried pork chunks are plentiful, have a nice fat-to-meat ratio, and are spiced for a kick. We recommend the side of white rice, bean sauce, and crisp, greaseless fried plantains; it all adds up to a mountain of food that serves two or three at an absurdly economical price of about $6. Other fine options include the tender-boned chicken in sauce, with goat, oxtail, or legume. Make sure to ask for some pikliz, a traditional spicy vinegar coleslaw; grab a cavity-sweet banana soda; and take your to-go order off to the far wall by the car wash. Sit at the concrete table, relax, and enjoy the sights and sounds of one of Miami's most vibrant neighborhoods.

1 article

Zila Cafeteria

5905 NW 2nd Ave. Midtown/Wynwood/Design District

786-462-6101

Caribbean, Haitian, Best Of

The definitive hole in the wall, Café Zila Cafeteria's Haitian eats are known only to those lucky enough to stumble into the spot. From griot (fried pork chunks) and mais moulu (cornmeal) to daily specials like chicken with beans and rice, it's a smorgasboard of delicious eats at dirt cheap prices.

1 article

Haitian in Miami

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