Dirt Candy Revisited

I went to Dirt Candy back in 2012 when they were a tiny, dark, bustling space. Sadly, the tiny, dark, bustling space was all I could remember years later. But now–Dirt Candy is in a much, much larger space. It was quiet and relaxed on our Tuesday evening visit. There were no obstacles for letting the food and great service shine. And oh, it did! Here: $60 tasting menu, Chef’s choice in what seemed like a zillion vegan dishes, small to large.

RADISHES: radishes with radish greens pesto, along with WHATEVER’S PICKLED: Red Cabbage. A great starter snack to wake up the mouth. I wished the pesto had more punch. 

JALAPEÑO HUSH PUPPIES, served with maple butter. These were dee-vine. Light cornmeal with bursts of pepper deep-fried and glorious. Even more, the whipped and airy maple butter was out of this world. House churned? A girl can dream…

FENNEL: raw and pickled fennel on a carta di musica. So vibrant! Fennel was treated with care. But we finished this off in a few seconds flat.

MUSHROOM: portobello mousse with sauteed asian pears, cherries and truffle toast. So whimsical. At waiter’s adice, I layered truffle toast with portobello mousse, roasted mushroom and a sweet bite of pear. Earthy flavors delivered with great imagination and flare. Dirt Candy truly celebrates the Earth’s plant-based gems!

A close up on the mousse…

RUTABAGA: This was my favorite. Though it presents like a cake, it is a layered savory concoction highlighting the awkward rutabaga. I can’t recall the waiter’s exact description, partially because presentation skewed the immediate connections. Let’s just say this texturous delight is worth a large portion of the tasting menu price tag. I hope they decide to put on the menu.

A closer look…

CAULIFLOWER: cauliflower and curry with green pea saag, papaya chutney and pappadam. I’ll admit: by this point I was f-u-l-l. I only ate a small portion of the next dishes… Can you believe it? 

RADISH: black radish spaghetti with radish ravioli, radish greens pesto, and horseradish. “It is what it is.” And sometimes that is a wonderful thing.

BRUSSELS SPROUT TACOS: brussels sprouts on a sizzling stone with lettuce wrappers and accompaniments. We saw this noisy, sizzling stone spread delivered to many of the patrons around us. I was jealous at that point. But now I was surprised! We were still receiving courses! Did they lose count? I sure did. These were fun, but not as inventive as their other dishes. I wasn’t blown away by these Brussels sprouts. The Electrician‘s sprouts are hard to beat. 

CORN CAKE with popcorn ice cream. Dessert–end punctuation for the meal. I opted for the Corn, a delicious layered cake with all sorts of corn garnishes… and popcorn ice cream. I was so full I barely ate this. CP ate some after her chocolate onion tart likely because she did not partake in a huge chocolate chip scone from Whole Foods as she killed time before our reservation!