Remember the old adage from your school days if you dropped your sandwich on the floor? "Dirt don't hurt!" Or how about the three-second rule?
Well, there's at least one chef in the world who believes in that.
And not only does he think a little dirt on a dinner plate doesn't hurt, he thinks it actually tastes good and promotes health - so he makes it the very basis of his dishes.
The chef is Japan's Toshio Tanabe, whose Tokyo restaurant Ne Quittez Pas offers a whole array of dirt-based food. He thinks dirt - or pardon us, soil - adds a desirable flavour to many different types of dishes. And judging by the popularity of his restaurant, where tables book up more than three months out, customers agree.
Tanabe describes his philosophy to Modern Farmer, calling soil "natural and nutritious." According to the Huffington Post, he also says his soil aids in digestion and is packed with healthy minerals.
And he says it's plenty safe to eat. "The soil is taken from 10 miles underground and checked in a lab for impurities - pollution, contamination, lead. So it is already very safe when I buy it. Soil is a pure living thing, a collection of microorganisms. Anything bad about it, pollution or radiation contamination, is generally caused by humans," he tells Modern Farmer.
Huffington Post describes a six-course dinner available at the restaurant, which begins with an amuse bouche of soil soup served with dirt-engrained truffle and ends with soil sorbet and a sweet dirt gratin. By the way, a meal will run you about the equivalent of $110.
So either you're rolling your eyes right now or you're totally intrigued. Let us know in the comments: Would you pay to eat dirt?
Think this is a weird thing for a restaurant to serve? You ain't seen nothin' yet. Click here to check out some seriously bizarre themed establishments...
