Restaurant Review: Dirty French

Only after diligently signing in to OpenTable exactly 1 month out from my birthday was I able to score a prime time (read: normal dinner time) table to celebrate with my husband at Dirty French in the Ludlow Hotel. The restaurant opened over a year ago, but it was added to my never ending hit list and I decided now would be a good time to try this place out. Knowing it is part of Major Food Group (Torrisi/Carbone), I had high expectations for an overall top notch experience. I would say that mostly happened, but not completely. Here is why…

We arrived early on purpose so we could get a drink at the bar. We both really enjoyed our cocktails from a high-end cocktail menu with all fresh ingredients.

Left: Pigalle - bourbon, ancho chile, bitter aperitif, fresh orange and lemon juices
Right: Belmondo - blanco tequila pear eau de vie, ginger, gentian, fresh lemon juice

The entire atmosphere is really cool with unique/interesting décor and dim lighting to really set that trendy mood. [DISCLAIMER – this is why my pictures are so awful! Sorry!] The bar is no exception and would recommend it even if you are in the area and just wanted a fancy drink. All of the staff was super nice, accommodating, and not stuffy in the slightest. My only complaint, and I would say it is a pretty big deal, is that the music was SO incredibly loud. I could barely hear my husband across the tiny 2 top or the waitress standing directly next to the table answering our questions on the menu. The music was all 80s – on theme with their Dirty Dancing-inspired logo – so that was cool and even a refreshing change in playlist choice... I just didn’t need Bruce screaming in my ear while I enjoyed my (mostly) delicious meal.

We tried to structure a well-rounded meal with some help from the waitress. We started with 2 items from the “hors d’oeuvres” section – and only realized once they arrived that we actually ordered 2 different types of thinly sliced, cured meats. Both were light to start, yet offered significant portions.

The first one, Carpaccio, was thinly sliced lamb covering the plate and topped with shishito peppers and dollops of labneh. The lamb was so tender and flavorful and the toppings added extra flavor and some creaminess.

Carpaccio

The second one was the Salmon Maison – thinly sliced cured lox spread out across a layer of creamy pommes chemel and then topped with crisp and fresh chives and fermented radish. The dish had great textural balance and the salmon was unreal.

Salmon Maison

The second course was the endive salad which had 5 Cajun shrimp on top. The Dijon vinaigrette that topped the endive salad was good and balanced the usual bitterness, but those shrimp were just terrible. I’m sorry, but there was something just off-putting about the flavor from the shrimp. They looked appetizing with a blackened exterior, but the seasoning was just way off and the shrimp itself had a weird metallic taste. We did not get very far on this dish and I would NOT recommend it.

Endive salad

Next came the main course and a side dish we threw in last minute. For our entrée, we split the Duck a l’Orange (I believe it is their signature dish). A decent piece of breast came on top of a flavorful sauce and seasoned with a ras el hanout spice blend and then garnished with preserved oranges. The duck itself was very decadent and really showcased the French inspiration of the restaurant. I often find that duck is fatty, but this piece featured a beautifully cooked section of meat that was super tender and extremely enjoyable.

Duck a l'Orange

Our side dish was the pommes frites, of course, because I am obsessed with French fries. However, these were not French fries, rather very large, thick, and deep fried slices of potato. There was so much salt on it, which was amazing at first and then you realized you had to drink 3 glasses of water to counter it. There was also a creamy dipping sauce that paired nicely with the extremely crispy potatoes.

Pommes Frites

We couldn’t end a birthday meal without dessert, so we decided to cap off dinner with their most popular dish - beignets. Now, I was recently in New Orleans enjoying the famous and official Café Du Monde beignets, so I was worried these might not hold up. However, they were pretty damn good and served with chicory caramel sauce (which was the biggest selling point for me). A basket of 3 airy, fluffy, crispy-not-greasy fritters showed up, and we devoured them while dodging falling powdered sugar left and right.

Beignets

Overall, I was happy to have celebrated my special evening at Dirty French. Aside from the sound issues and the endive/shrimp salad, we had a really nice experience. I would recommend it to anyone that can withstand conversation for 2 hours with a raised voice, or that wants a great meal in a sceney spot.