Chefs around New York City are going crazy for an unlikely, low-brow appetizer: French onion dip. Upscale restaurants like TAK Room and hip ones like Hunky Dory are taking the the dump-and-stir Lipton’s version many Americans know and love and making the dish in-house with care.
Nostalgia and a boom of throw-back restaurants are fueling the trend that chefs such as Greg Baxtrom of Olmsted have declared their love for in the past few years. The favorite childhood snack rode a wave of press, and in two short years, it advanced from passé Super Bowl side to New York’s darling appetizer.
Now, citrus, crème fraîche, and even caviar are supplying nuance and character to versions from mega chefs likeTom Colicchio, and diners can dunk housemade chips into fancified onion dip in restaurants across Manhattan and Brooklyn.
Temple Court
At Tom Colicchio’s Temple Court in FiDi, chef Carlos Benedicto fortifies crème fraîche with caramelized onions, Tabasco, and confit garlic oil, along with Worcestershire sauce and tamari for an umami punch. His team serves 50 orders of the $15 dip a day, and their superior, airy, and labor-intensive gaufrette potatoes require their own prep cook. 5 Beekman St., at Theatre Alley, Financial District
TAK Room
Chef de cuisine Jarrod Huth nestles French onion dip in the center of a generous cut-glass bowl filled with translucent, twice-fried chips at Keller’s Continental-style TAK Room in Hudson Yards. Crème fraîche and house mayonnaise form a loose, creamy base spiked with dehydrated and toasted onion and a touch of veal stock and sherry ($10). It’s simply garnished with chives, though diners can upgrade with caviar upon request. 20 Hudson Yards, The Shops at Hudson Yards, Fifth Floor, Hudson Yards
Bernie’s
Bernie’s in Greenpoint, decked with faux Tiffany lamps and red-checked tablecloths, is pure Americana, and chef Ashley Berman’s menu is a compilation of greatest hits — mozzarella sticks, Buffalo wings, wedge salad, and chicken paillard. Bernie’s French onion dip ($8.95) employes a triple-threat cream element with mayonnaise, cream cheese, and sour cream. In addition to caramelized onions, Berman adds fried garlic, soy sauce, and Worcestershire sauce to the dip. 332 Driggs Ave., at Lorimer Street, Greenpoint
MTHR Vegan
Low-brow, addictive French onion dip ($5) with housemade chips are on the menu at MTHR Vegan, a new burger concept in Midtown from Blockheads. The kitchen dresses up a commercial vegan onion soup mix with hot sauce, cilantro, onion powder, and chives. It could easily pass for dairy. 329 West 49th St., between Eighth and Ninth avenues, Hell’s Kitchen
Hunky Dory
Hunky Dory owner Claire Sprouse grew up as an ’80s latchkey kid who ate more than her fair share of ready-to-eat and fast foods. She wanted a fun, no-forks-required dish for her Crown Heights bar, and chef Kirstyn Brewer obliged with a dip of blended sautéed onions, dried onions, dehydrated herbs, cream, and sour cream ($7). Each bowl is topped with mixed seeds, blended passion fruit seeds, citrus segments, caramelized cipollinis, and chives. Diners dig in with potato chips and fried sweet potato skins.
The most dynamic and texture-packed of New York’s onion dips, it also epitomizes Hunky Dory’s waste-not ethos: Herbs, fennel seeds, and sweet potato skins are all re-used or upcycled from other dishes and drinks.
“This is a complex dish with a million ingredients, but we didn’t want it to come off as serious,” Sprouse says. 747 Franklin Ave., between St. John’s and Sterling Places, Crown Heights
Rose’s
Rose’s in Prospect Heights declares its menu “seasonal and healthy, but sleazy.” Chef Buzz Frazier’s onion dip ($9) rings true to the classic Lipton’s packet with added sweetness from “a mess load” of slowly caramelized Vidalia onions. Frazier grew up in Georgia and is partial to his home state’s prized alliums. That onion jam — laced with thyme, black pepper, and a splash of Madeira — is folded into a whipped labneh base. 295 Flatbush Ave., between St. Mark’s Avenue and Prospect Place, Prospect Heights