Jeff McInnis's Yardbird Southern Table & Bar is due to open this fall with a menu bursting with Southern comforts such as fried chicken and chicken with waffles. What's with Miami's new-found obsession with fried chicken? We won't argue that crisp, salty, and tender chicken is anything but mouthwatering. But like burger places, are we seeing an oversaturation of fried chicken?
We've taken on the arduous task of checking out some local fried chicken options. While the main ingredient -- chicken -- is the same, our appreciation of the nuances that each chef adds to make it stand a cut above the rest grew as fast as our waistline.
The first chicken into the ring is Michy's annual summer offering of "fried chicken d'light."
Every Wednesday through September, this $38, three-course menu features an
all-you-can-eat main course of Southern-style crispy fried chicken. Michelle Bernstein gets your palate ready with a watermelon Greek salad that's tangy, sweet, and spicy. Then her love for fried chicken and all that comes with it shines through as she piles your plate high with chicken, coleslaw, biscuits, and gravy.
The chicken is served warm with a crisp skin that melts in your mouth. The interior meat, although very tender and juicy, lacks
some seasoning, but nothing that the Tabasco on the
table can't fix. Bernstein's fluffy and buttery biscuits are served
alongside creamy mashed potatoes topped with a robust gravy. For us,
the big winner is the coleslaw, and because it's all you can eat, we just kept it coming. As Bernstein puts it: "I love
this coleslaw because it's tart, salty, sweet, creamy, and ends with a
great crunch."
After you've gobbled up several plates of chicken, a dessert of peach-strawberry-rhubarb cobbler magically appears. The moist yet crumbly topping gives way to perfectly ripe slices of red, pink, and orange fruit brimming with sweetness -- the perfect ending to a comforting rainy summer evening meal.
Next week, tag along to Magnum Lounge. Voted Best Fried Chicken in 2010 by New Times, this bird is hopefully still up to par.
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