Candle 79 154 east 79th St (between Lexington & 3rd Ave) 212-537-7179
I love this place! I have been here several times before and it is always a wonderful experience. The atmosphere and service are great and the food and presentation are divine! We were even commenting that all seats (whether booth side or chairs) were extremely plush and comfortable! The entire place has a very elegant and romantic look from the seating to the lighting. Our waiter was so great and very knowledgeable. He really gave us straight answers and was so awesome about making sure everything I had was raw. It was so nice and refreshing! But that is just the way this place is; they even have a full gluten-free menu available on request!
Their other original location Candle Café is also amazing and this is the upscale version. We went here last night with two open-minded meat eaters and they simply loved it. There is always that question of whether or not people will be full and satisfied with their dinners at a vegetarian place, but so far in my experience they almost always are! (If you go to the right places) I love that this place creates such beautiful food “right from the farm to the table” and that they stress the importance or local and organic fresh ingredients. Everything I have ever ordered from there has always been delightful!
The food there is primarily cooked vegan food (with a seasonally rotating menu) but they do offer 1 raw appetizer (Live Avocado-Cucumber Tartare served with quinoa-flax crisps – which were possibly the best live crackers I have ever had!!) and 1 raw entrée (Live Zucchini Enchiladas) as well as delicious salads. I was also super happy with my decadent raw dessert (Live Cherry-Orange Parfait) there as well! MMM! Everyone else loved what they had too. There were some specials as well as the Wild Mushroom-Saffron Ravioli which looked amazing! My husband really liked it. This almost never happens, but all 3 people besides me ordered the Caribbean Jerk Grilled Seitan for their entrée. It is a new dish on the menu and by the looks of my party, they loved it! Sometimes people are also shocked by how fabulous vegan desserts can be. My dessert was super delicious but the others looked amazing as well! Chocolate-Almond Joy, Almond Shortbread Napoleon and a chocolate shake! They also offer delicious fresh juices and tonics and have a full all-organic wine and sake menu. I had my favorite young Thai coconut water! So good for me! I love the way it feels even as I am drinking it!
I know we over did it a little on the ordering but everything looked and tasted so great we just went for it! I left feeling really full but really happy!
Live Avocado-Cucumber Tartare - picture from Ginger is the New Pink
Live Zucchini Enchiladas - picture from Ginger is the New Pink
Live Cherry-Orange Parfait - picture from Ginger is the New Pink
Marisa's Healthy Kitchen 
Jul 28, 2009 @ 00:39:29
i’ve actually never heard of this place up until now!
anyway, there’s this new site- http://www.donteatthatyet.com (which i’m helping promote)- where you can upload and submit pictures of food from restaurants, cafes, bakeries, etc… it’s like tastespotting, but the goal is to create a visual restaurant review site. if you get a chance, you should submit a photo because your reviews are really good!
cheers!
Jul 28, 2009 @ 10:00:28
Awesome Jessie! thanks for letting me know about your site. It looks super cool! I always beleive we eat with our eyes first so pictures are super important.
thanks!