We explore the ultraviolet continuum regime of causal dynamical triangulations, as probed by the flow of the spectral dimension. We set up a framework in which one can find continuum theories that can in principle fully reproduce the behavior of the latter in this regime. In particular, we show that, in 2 + 1 dimensions, Hořava-Lifshitz gravity can mimic the flow of the spectral dimension in causal dynamical triangulations to high accuracy and over a wide range of scales. This seems to provide evidence for an important connection between the two theories.