MIAReview
photo credit: Merritt Smail
Pack Supermarket
There’s really no need to look at the menu when you walk into the super casual Pack Supermarket, you’re here for the fried chicken. The juicy drumsticks are fried just enough to produce a crispy skin, but aren’t so heavily breaded that you get full before you even reach the meat. This chicken is juicy, well-seasoned, and an exceptional deal, because you can get three drumsticks—plus a side of rice and beans and pikliz—for just over $5.
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Food Rundown
photo credit: Merritt Smail
Fried Chicken
The fried chicken here is easily one of Miami’s best, although it definitely stands apart from the versions found throughout town. Instead of a thick flour coating, the drumsticks (the only part of the bird they serve) get a light dusting of cornstarch before getting fried to order. This gives the chicken a thin, shatteringly crispy crust that doesn’t soak up as much grease. The chicken is also marinated in a flavorful combination of Haitian herbs and spices, including sour orange juice, thyme, cloves, garlic, scotch bonnet chiles, and all-natural purified seaweed crystals (AKA MSG) for extra umami.
Bannann Peze
Don’t get these twice fried plantains confused with tostones—they’re actually their own thing. These are a little more beefed up than the Latino versions since they’re made from thicker pieces of green plantain cut diagonally. They are so expertly fried at Pack that they never come out greasy and are seasoned with some magical spice blend that gives them just a tiny bit of kick, umami, and saltiness.
