Candle 79, NYC

Here I was on vacation in NYC, so of course, I have to eat at one of the top vegan restaurants in the world--Candle 79. I hadn't been to Candle 79 in at least 7 years so I really didn't remember much about it other than that the food is top notch. When we arrive, we are placed at one of the small tables near the front window next to another table for two. I must say we were a bit too close for comfort, but we tried to ignore the fact that we could hear everything they were saying and vice versa, after all, we wanted to enjoy ourselves.

For the appetizer, we ordered the spinach manicotti stuffed with seitan ragu, herbed tofu cheese, and cashew cheese, topped with truffled tomato sauce and basil pine nut pesto. It was delicious.








For entrees, I ordered the special, which was a walnut and pecan crusted seitan dish. Every time I've visited a Candle restaurant, I've had something similar and this did not disappoint. It was perfectly encrusted with the nut mixture and placed over sauteed morel mushrooms - meaty mushrooms that are very hard to find. The fiddlehead ferns and fava beans complimented this dish as it was tossed in a light cauliflower garlic puree. The sauce was light enough to allow for the flavors of the seitan and mushrooms to be the true centerpiece. The food was presented beautifully - like artwork.

For dessert, we shared the Mexican chocolate brownie with carmelized bananas and ice cream. It was like a party in my mouth.  The chocolate sauce and ice cream were absolutely heavenly.

The wine we chose was the Heller Estate Cabernet Sauvignon -- a full-bodied Cab that worked well with our selections. It has an oaky finish with the taste of tart berries.

All in all, I was very pleased with the taste and presentation of the cuisine. The chef at Candle 79 is a genius.

Candle 79
154 East 79th Street
New York, NY 10075
(212) 537-7179