If you’ve wandered the snack aisle lately you’ve probably noticed a rise in food products with unusual flavors, from fried pickle potato chips to cinnamon soda. That same spirit of culinary experimentation has also made its way to the restaurant industry. Chefs are crafting dishes with unusual ingredient combinations that showcase their creativity, push the boundaries of traditional cuisine and stand out in a diverse culinary landscape. In Sarasota’s thriving restaurant scene, some exceptional dishes are making a lasting impression. —K.Wight

SHRIMP+GRITS  State Street

Always evolving, the culinary team at State Street isn’t afraid to push the envelope and get creative and playful with flavors, reinventing classic dishes in entirely novel ways. Take their interpretation of Shrimp + Grits, which elevates traditional Southern ingredients and introduces unexpected Mediterranean influences. The dish starts with authentic ingredients like stoneground Nora Mills grits from Georgia and pan-seared jumbo shrimp. Some people use bacon in their shrimp and grits, but State Street takes it up a notch by using smoky, bacon lardons. Blistered tomatoes and wild mushrooms lend earthy depth, while poblano pepper and scallion brighten the plate with gentle heat and herbal lift. Everything is bathed in a citrus fennel broth scented with saffron—delicate yet assertive, this dish ties together rustic comfort and coastal refinement in one evocative spoonful. This is Lowcountry by way of the Riviera: familiar, yet strikingly original. “Our dishes are a lot of fun and very tongue-in-cheek, because they’re not your traditional take,” says restaurant partner Jason Waganheim.

State Street Eating House + Cocktails, 1533 State St., Sarasota, 941-951-1533, statestreetsrq.com

EVERY DAY I’M BRUSSELIN’  Wink Wink Modern Lounge

“We wanted to elevate Brussels sprouts with this dish into something people would crave,” explains chef Sage Scott. Mission accomplished. The sprouts are flash fried until they’re crispy and golden, then topped with an assortment of eclectic ingredients including crisp bacon bits, chopped dried apricots and candied pecans. That’s drizzled with a honey and white balsamic vinaigrette and finished with tart goat cheese. “This dish is really full of flavor—sweet, salty, tangy, creamy and crunchy all together,” Scott says. “It’s balanced and rich. It’s definitely the kind of appetizer that disappears really fast.”

Wink Wink Modern Lounge, 1290 Blvd. of the Arts, Sarasota, 941-500-5190, winkmodernlounge.com

FLAUTITAS  Rufa

Looking for something light? Stop by Rufa, the waterfront dining and lounge concept at The Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota. This al fresco eatery has inventive cocktails and flavorful Baja California-inspired small plates including potato flautitas. The dish starts with steamed potatoes which are dressed with guajillo oil that infuses into them as they cool. “The guajillo oil isn’t going to be overly hot,” says chef Joe Bennett. “It’s just going to add some smokiness, a little bit of sweetness and a tiny bit of heat. ”The potatoes are rolled into corn tortillas and fried until they’re crispy, then topped with tangy sour cream, creamy avocado puree, salty queso fresca and fruity pomegranate salsa. Bright and colorful, this vegetarian dish has bold flavors and contrasting textures.

Rufa, 1111 Ritz Carlton Dr., Sarasota, 941-309-2000

CHARRED KANGAROO TACOS  Casa Masa

There may be no one in Sarasota more committed to
experimenting with unusual ingredients than Rob DiSilvio, owner of Casa Masa. He’s particularly fond of unique proteins, like blowfish. One popular special that pops up at the Bee Ridge location from time-to-time is the Charred Kangaroo Tacos. The star of the dish is kangaroo loin, which is the tenderest part of this very lean meat. The loin is rubbed with activated charcoal seasoning and seared to medium rare on a flat-top grill, then finished with a smoked Maldon sea salt. To construct the tacos, Casa Masa’s signature housemade blue corn tortillas are topped with Napa cabbage and grilled kangaroo and drizzled with salsa macha, a rich chili oil made with peanuts, sesame seeds, garlic and five different kinds of chilis. Finally, the tacos are topped with pickled onions to add a punch of acidity. “I think this is one of the dishes I do that is really special,” DiSilvio says. “I’ve done elk tacos, I’ve done python, but this is the one we’re constantly getting requests to keep bringing back.”

Casa Masa, 4862 South Tamiami Trl, Sarasota, 941-921-0578,
casamasa-srq.com

BANANA ICE CREAM  Adeline

At the end of a meal, you always need something sweet. Adeline is one of Sarasota’s premier restaurants and they have some creative desserts including their Banana Ice Cream. You could describe it as an elevated take on a banana split, but it really is its own unique thing. The dish only has four ingredients, but they are all made in house with meticulous attention to detail. At the base of the dish, there’s a peanut marshmallow fluff topped with banana ice cream. The ice cream itself is made in-house from the Blue Java banana cultivar which is also known as the “ice cream banana” because of its smooth, custard-like texture and flavor that is reminiscent of vanilla. That is dressed with a fig leaf oil. Finally, it’s topped with roasted nibs that are made in-house from fermented cacao beans. “One of the cool things about fig leaves is that if you blend them with oil and you cook them a little bit, it tastes kind of nutty,” says chef/owner Drew Adams. “It’s very unexpected.”

Adeline, 1920 Hillview St., Sarasota, 941-444-7692, adelinesrq.com