Review: Dirt Belly

[Mitsu3000gt]

I decided to try out that new "Dirt Belly" place, which is in the +15 between the CORE mall and Bankers Hall. They seem to promote themselves as a healthy/natural "garden fresh" type place.

They have two main offerings for food:

1) "Baco's" which are bread tacos ($8). It is simply very standard pita bread as far as I could tell, with your choice of Tuna, Chicken, or something else, I forget (I think all veggie).

2) Salads ($3.50/tiny scoop - not self serve) and then $4 to add chicken breast, $5 to add ahi tuna. To get a decent lunch portion you're looking at $15-20 for a similar size to a $8-10 salad from Sunterra/Marcellos. The Marcello's Power Bowl is still my favorite for good value healthy food at under $8.

They also had some interesting looking juices, but I didn't try them.

I got the Ahi Tuna "Baco" ($8), which is the "Baco" bread taco (aka standard pita bread). I wasn't a big fan. I got a tiny amount of Ahi Tuna which occupied the bottom 1/8th or so of the Baco. On top was a ton of sloppy cabbage, sauce, mint, and whatever else they put on there. It was extremely salty as well, and I am not sure if that is something they added, or if they put it in the sauce or on the fish. It was 90% lettuce/cabbage/bread, nearly impossible to eat, and messier than even the sloppiest donair or schwarma I have ever had. Taking one bite from one end dumped half the ingredients out of the other end. Get a TON of napkins. The few bites that I had with a decent distribution of ingredients tasted good minus the crazy amount of salt. It had ginger, mint, etc. which are all flavors I really like otherwise.

I might go back once more to try their grossly overpriced salads, just in case they are somehow amazing, but I would give their "Baco" a 1/5. Awesome sounding ingredient list, very poor execution. It needed a lot more Ahi Tuna, (which is the the reason I wanted to try it in the first place), far less salt, and a better distribution of ingredients so it's both easier to eat and you can get a bit of everything in each bite.

Probably won't bother going back unless I get curious and want to try the salads one day, but don't waste your time on the Ahi Tuna Baco unless you want a bunch of super salty cabbage/lettuce, sauce, and pita bread.

[JRSC00LUDE]

It sounds like the execution is as poorly planned out as that unfortunate name.....

[cancer man]

That sounds worst than a Mclobster.

[jwslam]

Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt
2) Salads ($3.50/tiny scoop - not self serve) and then $4 to add chicken breast, $5 to add ahi tuna. To get a decent lunch portion you're looking at $15-20 for a similar size to a $8-10 salad from Sunterra/Marcellos. The Marcello's Power Bowl is still my favorite for good value healthy food at under $8.

I had the brocolli salad. It was a fairly large scoop for $3.50, probably the size of a wendy's side salad but heavier since brocolli is more dense.
Added the $5 for Ahi Tuna. Got one full slice! (They halve the slab, and give you two).

Also had the Tuna baco. Wasn't bad I thought, but also would've been in the $5 range for value, not $8.

[taemo]

Originally posted by JRSC00LUDE
It sounds like the execution is as poorly planned out as that unfortunate name.....

When I first walked by this place I though it would be a carnivore eatery with lots of pork and bacon to try out.
Walked in and noticed that it was all vegan/healthy crap, I quickly turned around and walked away

[Manhattan]

It's like a hipster/pretentious version of a salad bar. And regardless of how their overpriced food tastes, this place smells like TRASH. There is a disgusting stench coming out of this place everytime I walk past and it even stinks up the Club Monaco beside it.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by jwslam

I had the brocolli salad. It was a fairly large scoop for $3.50, probably the size of a wendy's side salad but heavier since brocolli is more dense.
Added the $5 for Ahi Tuna. Got one full slice! (They halve the slab, and give you two).

Also had the Tuna baco. Wasn't bad I thought, but also would've been in the $5 range for value, not $8.

Sounds like you had a better server than I did. The lady I saw dishing out the salads would have needed 4 scoops + a meat option to make a decent portion and fill the to-go container. One scoop + meat would have been equivalent to like a $3 salad at Sunterra. I would much rather that place let me serve my own, and charge me by weight.

Originally posted by Manhattan
It's like a hipster/pretentious version of a salad bar. And regardless of how their overpriced food tastes, this place smells like TRASH. There is a disgusting stench coming out of this place everytime I walk past and it even stinks up the Club Monaco beside it.

I didn't notice any unusual smell the day I was there but they definitely have that hipster/pretentious vibe to go along with their overpriced food.

[jwslam]

Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt
Sounds like you had a better server than I did. The lady I saw dishing out the salads would have needed 4 scoops + a meat option to make a decent portion and fill the to-go container. One scoop + meat would have been equivalent to like a $3 salad at Sunterra. I would much rather that place let me serve my own, and charge me by weight.

I didn't notice any unusual smell the day I was there but they definitely have that hipster/pretentious vibe to go along with their overpriced food.

also didn't notice the smell
The girl I had probably gave me enough of "one scoop" to fill the bottom of one of the clear sunterra containers (small ones of course)

[bleu]

Originally posted by Manhattan
It's like a hipster/pretentious version of a salad bar. And regardless of how their overpriced food tastes, this place smells like TRASH. There is a disgusting stench coming out of this place everytime I walk past and it even stinks up the Club Monaco beside it.

So that's where the smell in the Club Monaco is coming from. It really is disgusting.

I will stick with Sunterra for the salad bar.

[FixedGear]

What a horrible name.

[l/l/rX]

Freshii is better.