(Photos by Steve Mosco)
The malaise of unremarkable meals is one of the great food tragedies of the modern world. Sterile menus of home-cooked boredom permeate the work week—and when the time comes for a night out, it’s easy to gravitate toward the familiar comfort of a routine restaurant.
With a generous helping of the sweet and savory, Dirtyburger in Plainview is working to break that routine. The year-old restaurant at 12 Manetto Hill Road, in the Fairway shopping center, offers high-end flavor in a casual setting. Chef Ian Russo introduced Long Islanders to his restaurant last November, and in the process, also introduced residents to his unique blend of spices—dubbed, “Dirty Dust.” Combined with honey during the cooking process, this spice blend elevates everything from Russo’s long list of burgers to his steak, fish and chicken, all the way to his desserts and cocktails.
To get a true sense of Russo’s inventive style of cooking, curious eaters should experience an array of menu items. Raise those endorphin levels with one of the restaurants “Dirty” drinks. Assistant manager Michelle Hyde suggests the Dirty Peach Mojito—a brisk and refreshing beverage with a hint of dirty spices, adding a depth of smokey flavor.
“This one is my favorite,” said Hyde, adding that Dirtyburger also offers mango and strawberry mojitos, as well as a Dirty Bloody Mary, Dirty Margarita, Dirty Red Sangria, draught and bottled beers and red and white wines.
After awakening the palette with a lively cocktail, a good place to start on the appetizer menu would be with the Dirty Wings. It’s safe to say that nearly every restaurant on the island serves some version of chicken wings, but Dirty Burger doesn’t serve ordinary wings—what they offer won them the crown in the 2014 Long Island Wing Fest. These are serious, championship caliber wings.
Voted the best wings on Long Island in August by those who eat wings for a living, Dirty Wings are fried to a perfect crisp and tossed in a choice of Dirty Dust, Dirty BBQ or the award-winning classic Buffalo sauce. Russo said he seasons his wings before they hit the fryer—this locks in flavor and allows the wings to yield to whichever sauce is applied.
Other starters include three-cheese spinach dip, Dirty PIB (pigs in a blanket), Dirty Rings and queso de frier, which are like a mozzarella stick’s much more interesting, south of the border cousin.
When it’s time to transition to the burger course of the meal, Dirtyburger offers no less than 12 variations of the classic meat-and-bread creation. There’s the original Dirtyburger, the Dirty Double, the classic hamburger, as well as Dirty versions of turkey, lamb, bison, chicken, salmon, ahi tuna, veggie, portabello mushroom and tofu burgers. Each burger is served with toppings perfectly paired with its main attraction.
The Dirty Lamb is grilled to order with Dirty Dust and honey and topped with an arugula cucumber mix, a “Dirtziki” sauce and served on a toasted brioche bun. The lamb is juicy and the ingredients come together to equal an authentic, yet completely original, Greek gyro bite.
Entrées at Dirtyburger include skirt steak, ribs, salmon steak, tuna fillet and their monumental sweet and salty ribs. Sides include classic fries, sweet potato fries, mac and cheese, coleslaw and onion rings. Don’t forget to order one (or multiple) sauces. These house-made sauces include Dirty White Truffle (do not miss this one), Dirty Maple, Wasabi Mayo, Creamy Horseradish and more.
That omnipresent Dirty Dust also finds its way into the desserts. Do not pass up the Dirty Salted Caramel shake, the perfect concoction for dessert lovers, as well as those who don’t normally fancy themselves sweet-obsessed.
In the spirit of helping locals experience what Dirtyburger has to offer, Russo and his crew recently announced the addition of new weeknight specials. Included is Burger & Brew Mondays, where eaters can get an original DirtyBurger or a classic burger with fries and a draft beer (may be substituted with soda) for $10. Family Night Tuesdays is another new addition, with family parties of three or more getting 10 percent off their check. And finally, there’s Dirty Steak Night on Wednesdays, where patrons can get a 10-ounce cut coated with Dirty spices, along with a side and any drink (excluding cocktails and milkshakes) for $18.
Russo, whose Dirty Dust is available for purchase at the restaurant, invites residents from across the island for good, clean fun and food so good, it’s downright dirty.
“I want to give people a taste they are not going to get anywhere else,” said Russo. “People can come here for good food and a good time. It’s a relaxed atmosphere with a team that has a real passion for what they do.”
