I’m not gonna’ lie. When I walked in, my immediate emotion was fear. If it’s any consolation, I think it was theirs as well. Simply put, I don’t think I fit the ‘typical demographic’ of a Le Palmist patron. I immediately feared I’d interrupted a drug deal or a meeting of the Haitian mob. And they probably thought I was a health inspector. Still, it only took a little genuine curiosity and an order of chicken with sauce to put the whole place at ease. In the end, I’m glad I did — and couldn’t have asked for anything more for my foray into Little Haiti. Le poule with sauce was absolutely fantastic, and came with salad, rice, black beans and a drink, all for $ 5. But seriously, it was the sauce itself that made it stand out. Like most dishes, no description does it justice: it had garlic and parsley, maybe a little pepper and just the right seasoning. The final product was something like Jerk Chicken. But whatever it was, it went down just right. Miami is a beautiful city. And if you open your eyes to it, Little Haiti is even a beautiful neighborhood. It certainly has more to offer than most non-Haitians ever experience. This is the kind of place that makes me love America.
