I wanted to eat somewhere special to celebrate my marriage anniversary. My wife and I had decided to take a trip to NYC without the kids, but that highlight meal was something I struggled to decide on. One problem is that we had theatre tickets (or plans to get theatre tickets) most nights and wanted to keep some flexibility in the schedule in case we needed to shift locations. That made reservations tough. By the time I had decided that our very first night would be the ideal time, most of the best restaurants I wanted to visit had already been booked solid. I didn’t give up, and a same-day reservation opened up at Dirt Candy for a 9:15pm seating. We were still on Seattle time so the late start wasn’t a problem. In hindsight, this reservation probably needed 3-4 weeks to get a preferred time.
So, why Dirt Candy? I was looking for a unique tasting menu. Dirt Candy kept popping up in various articles and lists, and the reviews were top notch. They serve a seasonal 5 course vegetarian tasting menu with a few surprises between the named plates. While I’m not vegetarian, I do appreciate the creativity required to design vegetable focused dishes at this level of a service. $95 per person isn’t something that I can swing everyday (or week, or month), it did include gratuity and looked to be a good value for the money.
Mocktails
Earning a spot on the blog, Dirt Candy put a lot of thought into its zero alcohol drink offering. We ordered the Desert Sunrise (yellow pepper, aloe vera, lime, guajillo chile rim) and La Barbabietola (beet juice, ghia bitter aperitif, yuzu, soda). The Desert Sunrise approximated a margarita, and La Barbabietola was its own thing, but maybe a Negroni is relatively familiar? I really enjoyed them both but was surprised by how much I liked the Desert Sunrise. I’ve had aloe vera drinks in the past and they were too bitter and weird. This was smooth and layered with the yellow pepper providing some brightness and the lime/chile sparking a bite. Easy to sip, and it paired well with everything. La Barbabietola was such a pretty color and the little bit of carbonation gave the beet juice life. I love yuzu, and it complimented the other earthy/bitter flavors perfectly. These were both solid choices and I don’t think I have a favorite.
The Meal
Keep in mind that the menu changes frequently, but I’ll give a quick run through of the courses served to us during our visit in August 2023. The staff treated us extremely well, and we loved all of the food. Note that it was very dark in the restaurant, so the phone camera did struggle a bit to produce great images.
Amuse Bouche – Not a named course, and I don’t remember everything about it, but it was essentially a blini with vegetarian caviar. It was light, and fun, but more of a taste than a significant flavor burst.
Course 1 | Tomato – The meal started very strong with tomatoes served three ways, and none of them were generic. There was a tomato cake topped with smoked feta and a tomato crown. It was a bold bite and unique enough that it sparked the question “why haven’t I had something like this before?” The fried green tomatoes were delicious and light, but not nearly as memorable. Maybe they could have used a sauce? I’m nit-picking. The gazpacho was amazing. The tomato and olive oil flavors were so vibrant and refreshing. As modest as it is, the little cup provided was likely the best serving size for this soup. Any more and it could have been overwhelming.
Bonus Course | Bell Pepper Crudo – Another fun small plate. I can’t say that I love green bell peppers, but the knife work was exceptional on this. The peppers were sliced so thin you could see the individual cells. The slices were laid out with a serrano chile brine that added some needed heat. This is something that people will point to as a comically small amount of food on a plate but I appreciate the role this plays in between courses.
Course 2 | Zucchini – I’m a zucchini fan, but I’ve never had zucchini like this. It reminded me of a savory cannoli over pasta. The crispy roll was stuff with an herby garlic cheese, and the “pasta” was thin strips of zucchini. The squash blossoms and mint (?) added a lot of freshness to the dish. One of the best plates we had all night.
Bonus Course | Chopped Cheese Sandwich – This actually was my favorite dish of the night. My jaw dropped when they started describing it because it was so damn creative. A chopped cheese sandwich is a Harlem bodega icon where they dice up hamburger patties with American cheese and stack it on a hoagie roll with lettuce, tomato, onions, and ketchup. There are variations, but Dirt Candy’s interpretation was inspired. I hope I’m remembering everything, but the filling was grilled kimchi (I think) and cheese. They add that mixture to a tiny roll, wrap it in foil, place it in a tiny paper bag, and serve it with kimchi ketchup in a baby squeeze bottle. It was adorable, but it was also insanely delicious. Maybe they were mushrooms inside, but regardless, this was amazing.
Course 3 | Eggplant – This dish also resembled a pasta. The team achieved a lot of different textures with a variety of eggplant preparations. Pickled fairytale eggplants, eggplant caramelle (a pasta filling?), and then some other creamy/smokey notes. Another great dish, but eggplant can be a difficult thing for me to enjoy. I liked it, but not as much as the other courses.
Course 4 | Corn – Do you like corn? How about corn in your corn on your corn? This was a lot of corn! One of the best presentations of the night, but also some of the best flavors as well. They formed a tamale in a corn mold and stuffed it with grilled baby corn. It was so literal. The aji amarillo mole provided a beautiful covering for the plate and added moisture and flavor complexity to the corn profile of the dish. I was starting to get full at this point but finished the whole plate.
Course 5 | Tomatillo – This was almost a savory dessert, but stayed juuuuuust in the sweet territory. It was fantastic. They made a tomatillo cake and layered it with a watermelon jam, black sesame, and another creamy layer that I don’t remember. It was served alongside a salted dulce de leche quenelle of ice cream. The cake had a crispy cookie crust that I really enjoyed, and it complimented all of the other interesting flavors as well. Pastry chefs have such a tough job creating desserts that can still spark your palate after so many other outstanding dishes. This dessert did that for me and I left on a very high note.
Summary
Dirt Candy doesn’t need my endorsement. Michelin, New York Times, and everyone else has already confirmed that they’re doing exceptional work. I’ll just recognize that my experience matched those accolades and I would love to visit again someday. Thank you to Chef Amanda Cohen and the Dirt Candy team for a wonderful meal.
Sodafry 