"Vegetables were always fun. But it wasn’t until Dirt Candy came along that a lot of American chefs thought to treat them that way. Opened in 2008 by Amanda Cohen, this vegetarian spot challenged widely held expectations that your meatless meal be bland, dour, or even especially healthy. Why couldn’t it be colorful, wacky, and quite possibly deep fried? These days, for a maximally delicious vegetarian experience, we’d sooner send you to Superiority Burger or abcV—two restaurants that have no doubt benefited from Dirt Candy's influence. But after nearly two decades, this restaurant hasn’t lost the inventive, playful spark that made it famous in the first place. And the $110 five-course tasting menu served here is still a good value for an upscale, meat-free special occasion—especially considering the house no-tipping policy. photo credit: Noah Devereaux photo credit: Noah Devereaux photo credit: Noah Devereaux Dirt Candy relocated in 2015 from its original 18-seat location in the East Village to larger, more glamorous digs—complete with a giant sequined sign—on the Lower East Side. The open kitchen is bordered by a long counter, and black silhouettes of plants line the dining room’s white-painted brick walls. Birdsong plays over the bathroom speakers, a few octaves higher than the lull of quiet conversations between couples celebrating something lowkey that otherwise permeates the restaurant. You might be greeted with a tin of briny seaweed caviar, then sent on your way with a piece of literal dirt candy: a savory-sweet jimmy nardello pepper pâte de fruit, glittering with basil sugar. Dirt Candy's tasting menu changes with the seasons, and your meal will likely include a few surprises beyond the five courses listed. Food Rundown photo credit: Noah Devereaux Tasting Menu Dirt Candy’s $110 tasting—five courses, plus additional small “gifts” interspersed throughout your meal—changes seasonally. A vegan version of the menu is available on request, and the optional wine pairing is $55. photo credit: Molly Fitzpatrick Mushroom This duxelles-filled mushroom croissant is accompanied by a mushroom cappuccino, as well as colorful dots of bright stone fruit gels, painstakingly applied by a dedicated chef on the squeeze-bottle pointillism station of the line. It’s good, but a little anticlimactic: The pastry tastes like it’s a few hours past peak flakiness. The mushroom cappuccino, however, is lovely. It’s earthy and deep, like something a hobbit would drink. photo credit: Molly Fitzpatrick Cauliflower We wouldn’t have guessed that pickled yellow cauliflower could stand in so well for pasta, but here—thinly sliced, tossed in a creamy, cheesy pecorino romano sauce with lime zest and tingly red chilis—it’s very satisfying. photo credit: Molly Fitzpatrick Beet This candy cane beet soup dumpling is sloppily pleated, with a mushy pink wrapper that isn’t particularly pleasant to eat. It’s a bit of a bummer, especially considering Dirt Candy’s proximity to some of the very finest soup dumplings the city has to offer in Chinatown. photo credit: Molly Fitzpatrick Squash This hickory-smoked barbecue butternut squash rib stand-in packs a lot of textures into one pretty package. The glazed exterior is crunchy and crispy, while the inside is as creamy as the delicata squash puree it’s served over. photo credit: Molly Fitzpatrick Carrot Pizza “So you don’t have to get a slice of pizza after this,” your server might joke as they present this palm-sized pizza, another small bite served between courses. It’s wonderful. With carrot-enriched dough (and a crisp, crunchy crust), a lightly sweet carrot marinara, and purple carrot “pepperoni,” the marquee vegetable makes its presence known without being overpowering. If they sold this a la carte, we’d pop into Dirt Candy for a snack just about any time we passed by. photo credit: Molly Fitzpatrick Potato This sundae—a play on the classic combination of french fries dipped into a Wendy’s Frosty—is adorable, with crunchy meringue sticks standing in for the fries, rainbow potato sprinkles, and a lightly sweet, earthy potato peel cake as its base." - Molly Fitzpatrick
