Merchant Roots

Merchant Roots is the best restaurant you’ve never heard of. We’ve been to two of their tasting menus (Color Theory, and The Great Trees) and both were incredible. The team puts an incredible amount of creativity into their entirely new menu every quarter, and weaving unique stories and themes in to each of the typically ~10 courses. Each dish is its own mini masterpiece. For example - with Color Theory, each dish centered around both the visual color but also the emotion the color evokes - for the yellow course, think a crispy yellow potato topping that feels and sounds like crackling Fall leaves. The restaurant only has 2 seatings a night, and up to 8 people per seating. This also means you get to interact directly with Chef Ryan and the rest of the team while they take you throughout the story. The wine pairings were solid both times - since they’re a smaller restaurant, they can get wines from smaller producers who don’t produce enough to be able to service larger restaurants. They also have a beautiful full-wall piece of art from local artist Meghan Shimek and her wool roving. We’ve been to many tasting menus, but this one is by far our favorite and the one we always recommend to others. And the price point is well below what you’d expect for the level of the experience. My only regret in writing this review is more people may discover it and it’ll make it harder to get a table for future menus! Note - given how much work goes into each dish, they can't do substitutions unless they state it's possible, which varies by menu. For example, one of their menu themes was seafood focused, so they offered a pescatarian option. And their current The Great Trees and upcoming Vanity Fair menus are offering a few nights where they can do a gluten free or vegetarian option. Make sure you check their website and/or reservations page to see what options they're offering.

Fantastic iced latte, delicious pasteries with gluten free options, incredibly friendly staff! Definitely will revisit.