Restaurant Review: Mi Pana

Hope everyone had a great fourth!  It was pretty hot outside and a perfect day for a restaurant since most people in the Fayettevile Metro were grilling or having fun at the Fort Bragg celebration.  We went to the celebration last year and it was lots of fun but this year we went to Carrabas with a close neighbor of ours.  Her husband is deployed right now so we try and have dinner with her as much as possible.  She's practically family to us now.  I know she would do the same for us any day.  Anywho we're saving our grilling and fireworks show for tomorrow.  It just seemed weird to celebrate the fourth in the middle of the week lol.  I already have some baby back ribs marinating in the fridge right now.  Mouth watering...I know lol.

So today was pretty lax.  My husband had off so I took off from work as well to spend the day with him (and lengthen my weekend haha).  We decided to check out a new restaurant that opened up close to our house.  A Latin-Caribbean Cuisine restaurant called Mi Pana.  Here in the Fayetteville Metro, there aren't very many Latin cuisine places...at least not like the variety we have in my hometown Orlando.  And the ones we do have are at least 25-30 minutes from our place.  Mi Pana was much closer so we've been anxiously waiting for it to open.  About a week or two ago, they finally opened the doors to the public.

This is their mobile trailer where they started.  They now have a stationary location on
7599 Rockfish RdRaeford, NC 28376 

The place was not packed but steadily busy as we came in.  It's a very comfortable setting, lots of fans which is good to keep the place cool while the kitchen is going.  The waitresses were all very friendly...definitely reminded me of the atmosphere at our Latin restaurants in Orlando.  I was pleased with the customer service and the menu as well.  The owners are Panamanian but the menu has a great variety of Latin cuisine...emapanadas de maize (corn) which is Colombian style, empanadas frita (fried) which is how us Ricans like it, and even baked empandas which is how Cubans make them.  They also has chivo (goat) which is a popular Dominican entree and jerk chicken (a popular Jamaican entree).  They served Caribbean beverages like sugar cane juice and passion fruit juice.

So what did we order?  Well I order 3 empanadas frita de carne (beef), tostones (plantain), and passion fruit juice.  My husband ordered chivo (goat) with white rice and beans (it also comes with sweet plantains) and sugar cane juice.  The food was AMAZING.  The chivo was very tender (even better than mine!).  Now I have to warn, it's made with curry in case some of you don't like curry but I thought it was delicious and I'm not a big curry fan.  The beef empanadas were awesome too and I can tell it was made with curry too (maybe it's a Panamanian thing).  The passion fruit juice was great.  The sugar cane juice was a bit on the sweet side.  If you don't like it very sweet, I would ask for a side glass of water, that way you can dilute it a little.

Overall, the food was at a 9/10 for Latin cuisine in my book.  The service was great, we didn't wait long for the food or for our check at the end.  The prices are decent too.  Most of the entrees $10-$15, appetizers $4-7, extra sides around $3 each.

I encourage all who live in the Fayetteville Metro to try this place out!  Have a great weekend!