These Secret Ingredients May Be Why Your Restaurant Bill Is So High

Modest-seeming pantry staples are amping up menus—and prices—at buzzy restaurants.

Source: Estiatorio Milos

If you want to add instant luxury to a dish, you can grab a truffle and start shaving. Or add a dollop of glistening black caviar. That’s also a guaranteed way to validate a high-priced dish on a menu.

Beans in a generous pool of olive oil don’t scream “indulgence” in quite the same way. Yet, high-end versions of such pantry staples as sugar and vinegar have become highly coveted ingredients among forward-thinking chefs in New York and Chicago. They’re also raising the cost of your meals.