Secret Menus Work Differently At Fine-Dining Restaurants

Fast food establishments like Starbucks and Taco Bell are notorious for their secret menu items — food and drink not advertised on the menu that customers can specially request. Oftentimes, these items are just food mash-ups or genius ordering hacks, and can usually be requested on a whim. However, if you're looking to have a secret and unique epicurean experience at a fine-dining restaurant, you may need to provide a bit of notice.

Many haute cuisine and Michelin-starred restaurants offer secret menu items (commonly referred to as off-menu dishes in the culinary world) as a way to generate intrigue and act as a creative outlet for chefs. Oftentimes, these hidden dishes are left off the menu because they're complicated or require seasonal foods. They may even require advance notice – from a couple of days to several weeks for recipes with intensive preparations or super limited or hard-to-source ingredients. 

On the other hand, if you want an off-menu dish that is comprised of regularly used ingredients, you might be able to order it on a whim. For instance, regulars, friends, and family often have insider knowledge of secret recipes that can be prepared immediately. That's not to say that you have to know the chef personally to order these items at a fine dining restaurant — if you've heard of a hidden dish that you're dying to try, simply ask your server if it's available.

Having a secret menu can be a marketing tactic that restaurants employ to foster exclusivity and make customers feel special. Of course, people love sharing good food secrets on social media or in restaurant guides, so these off-menu dishes don't stay secret for very long. But rather than leaving things to chance, you may want to inquire about any sought-after items when making your reservation.

For instance, Chef Zheng Bing Ren at Mr. Chow in Beverly Hills has served an off-menu item, pasta with duck liver mousse and sea urchin, that must be requested weeks in advance due to a complicated curing process of the duck liver. Another decadent off-menu dish, the baby chicken served at Forum in Hong Kong (a three Michelin Star restaurant), consists of a whole boneless chicken that's braised for an hour until tender and includes an abalone (sea snail) sauce. This sought-after dish must be ordered 24 hours in advance.

However, not all off-menu dishes require this degree of complexity and can be ordered on the spot. At Manhattan's family-run Emilio's Ballato, regulars and others who are in the know frequently order off-menu items that the chef specially prepares. Anthony Vitolo, executive chef of the Italian hotspot, told Michelin of his secret menu, "It's made up of recipes that I've experimented with over the years and love making for people who enjoy eating them, but they're not written down anywhere or listed as specials."

If you've discovered an off-menu dish on social media, in a restaurant guide like the Michelin Guide, or through a family member/friend who's sparked your interest, it doesn't hurt to ask your server if it's available. They'll be able to tell you whether it can be prepared at that time, or whether there is something similar the chef can prepare. If it's a truly elaborate dish, you may have to make preparations well in advance. Of course, be prepared to pay a hefty price tag for this type of luxurious order-in-advance dish. 

You'll also need to be flexible when ordering off-menu items since the dishes might change depending on what ingredients are available on the day of your request. Take SoHo's Principe for example, which has featured an off-menu multigrain bread course served with Calabrian chili oil, goat butter, and other dips that change depending on what's available that night.

Some restaurants might post hints for secret, off-menu food on social media as a way to drum up interest. However, if you haven't come across any secret dishes online or by word of mouth, try asking more generally whether the restaurant offers any off-menu items you could try. If you like the idea of ordering delicious food from a secret menu, you should also know how to find the best hidden gem restaurants wherever you go.