My spouse and I attempted to dine at Dirty French for brunch
on a Saturday in mid-February 2017. We say “attempted” because we left the
restaurant without actually having dined there. Initially, we arrived 15
minutes early for our reservation, which we booked online using the Open Table
application. Despite the website seeming to indicate that the restaurant was
open continuously from early until late, and despite no break in the
reservation slots available online, when we arrived, the manager informed us
that the restaurant did not open until 11:30, despite both staff and customers
being present from breakfast. So we waited in the pleasant bar/atrium area of
the Ludlow Hotel until the appointed time. We sat at one of the small booths
adjacent to the bar area, which is somewhat separated from the main dining area
by a low wall. We sat at our bar booth for at least 20 minutes, but no one ever
came to our table to wait on us, despite the restaurant seeming to be fully
staffed, with many servers, a bartender, a hostess, and a manager present. The
staff seemed more concerned with resetting tables after the breakfast service
for future customers, rather than in waiting on patrons who were currently
present. After 20 minutes, we rose, put on our coats, and told the hostess we
were leaving because we did not receive any service. She quickly summoned the
manager, who offered to serve us immediately, but by then, our impression of
Dirty French was already ruined, and we were not in the best mood. (We walked
across the street to Katz’s Deli, where we received immediate attention at one
of the waiter-service tables.)
Dirty French is open for weekday breakfast and lunch,
weekend brunch, and dinner daily. The
Major Food Group (Mario Carbone, Rich Torrisi, and Jeff Zalaznick) operates
Dirty French; they also own Carbone, Parm, ZZ’s Clam Bar, Santina (we dined
there in July 2016), and Sadelle’s. (They previously owned Torrisi Italian
Specialties, where we dined on their amazing chef’s tasting menu in 2012.) You
can make a reservation for Dirty French one month in advance using the Open
Table reservation system. Dinner reservations require a credit card; if you do
not cancel by 12:00 noon on the day you are to dine, the restaurant will donate
a $50 per person cancellation fee to local charity the Robin Hood Foundation, which helps fight poverty in NYC. Lunch
reservations do not require a credit card to guarantee, nor is there a cancellation
fee for lunch reservations.
Dirty French opened in the Ludlow Hotel on the Lower East
Side in September 2014. One side of the dining room features a huge antique
mirror bordered with light bulbs, while other walls contain shelves that
display Greek busts and bright pink-painted ceramic roosters. Tiled floors,
wood ceilings, wood tables and
chairs, and contemporary art complete the look. The dining room is
handicap-accessible, and although restrooms are located in the basement, they
are reachable by elevator.
Dirty French serves French and European fare with a twist
(hence the “Dirty” part of the restaurant name). We looked forward to trying
the food, but never got the chance!
We had a hugely
disappointing experience at Dirty French! Such a shock and shame, because we
have had good luck with the Major Food Group restaurants in the past.
