March 26, 2008...10:26 pm
Smoke and heat: Richie’s Place, Buffalo
No question which patty is the curry chicken.
I don’t know much about Jamaican food. But if it’s all as good as the jerk at Richie’s Place, I have a trip south penciled in on my agenda.
This little place at 1595 Elmwood Ave. (447-1340), by the corner of Amherst Street, was filled with smoke when we walked in. Flavorful smoke, not burning insulation, so I didn’t mind much.
The jerk chicken breast held its own, but the bone-in pieces seemed to bear deeper flavor.
We’d heard about the jerk chicken here, but when we asked for it, we were informed that it wasn’t available. Later, we saw a guy hoisting perhaps eight takeout containers, monopolizing who knows how much of the local jerk chicken supply.
The server said they still had jerk beef and a jerk pork chop sandwich, so we ordered those. Got a chicken patty and a pastelito too.
The patty was filled with fine-grained ground chicken with tame curry spice. The pastelito (right), similar to the Puerto Rican pastelillos at places like the Niagara Cafe, were splendid specimens of the breed, sporting chunks of potato in addition to the usual spiced ground beef and cheese.
The pork chop sandwich (above) was good, though the promised pineapple slaw was not much in evidence, and the jerk flavors didn’t penetrate much into the chop.
The jerk beef (above) was thin and chewy, but every bite was permeated with the spicy mash of peppers, thyme and allspice that makes robust jerk flavor.
The owner noticed we were taking pictures of our lunch. As we talked, it became clear that there was jerk chicken in the house after all. Richie had the cook grill up a breast and a thigh for us. He also brought out a small saucer of his homemade scotch bonnet hot sauce.
We were glad he did. The sauce was incendiary but flavorful, a delicious pas de deux of pleasure and pain. The chicken was moist, spicy, smoky and tasty. I don’t even feel right calling it jerk, because it was my new best friend.
Believe me when I tell you that the crust on the chicken was sublime.
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