Sherman's Food Adventures: Salt Tasting Room

Salt Tasting Room

It's really taken me a long time to finally pay Salt a visit. I keep thinking of it and I never get a chance to do it. Why? First of all, it is not exactly a place you would take your kids. Second, it's not a part of town I frequent all the time, especially the alleyways. Third, it's not exactly meant to fill you up. Aha! But today was the nearly perfect day! I was in between meals and I only had one kid with me. Better yet, I had the kid who would actually eat the stuff. Guess who that was? Yes, it was my daughter, she is game for any food. We were able to snag a spot on Cordova and made the short trek into Blood Alley in the pouring rain. With booster seat in one hand and daughter in the other, I was thinking this better be worth it! As I was attempting to take a picture of the front of the restaurant, a few individuals made some comments. As the flash went off, a voice from the shadows remarked, "was that lightning???" Another blurted out, "I hope you didn't get me in that picture!" Uh... Okay... Now why do I avoid the alleyways again?

Since it was 3:00pm in the afternoon, it was not busy at all. In fact, we were only the 2nd table there. This is good, we could eat in peace and quiet and my daughter could chuck food if she had to. But she's smarter than that, she'd eat it! Viv and I both each went for the $15.00 tasting platter. For each platter, we had a combination of 3 meats/cheeses and 3 condiments. I selected Mike's Corned Beef, Pork Cheek Headcheese, and Manchego Cheese. My 3 condiments included Guinness Mustard, Quince and Apricot Chutney. Included with our order was a nice selection of bread and crackers. The mustard was a natural fit with the melt-in-your mouth corned beef. My daughter ate quite a bit of it. My son doesn't know what he's missing! Honestly, I really couldn't tell the difference that they had used pork cheek for the headcheese other than a slight textural difference (it was less chewy). I'm not sure if I made the right decision to get quince as a condiment though, all I tasted was sweet. Surprisingly, the chutney brought sweetness to the sharp Manchego. Made from sheep's milk, Viv really didn't prefer the gaminess (but I do!).

Viv selected the Ash Camembert, Avaonlea Cheddar and Capicollo. Her condiments included Cipollini Onions, Piccalilli Relish and Piparres Peppers. Predictably, the Camembert was soft enough to spread and it was buttery smooth. The aged cheddar was quite flavourful with strong hints of nuttiness. The fatty capicollo was a bit spicy and went well with all the condiments. It brings up an interesting observation though. For Viv's condiment choices, it seemed that all of them went well with anything. Paired with some red wine, the "snack" was tasty, interactive and fun. We felt the $15.00 is a reasonable price for the tasting plate despite the fact it doesn't look like much. In this case, it is the sum of the parts that is more important that each individual item. Definitely something different in an interesting location.

The Good:
- A multitude of combinations to be had
- Interactive food which is high in quality
- It's unique

The Bad:
- Don't come here if you're hungry
- Interesting location

Salt Tasting Room on Urbanspoon

5 comments:

KimHo said...

The obligatory question: Did you have the pairing wine(s)? :)

Although I can easily go there after work, I haven't been there partially because of the reason you listed: don't go if you are hungry. Not sure if the concept would go with me or if I am suddenly too cheap to pay $15 for what is served. Would it be better for you go to get some cheese/cold cuts yourself? Nah...

trisha said...

hey, thanks for taking a great shot of the menu in all its glory. i've been waiting for someone to do that. i know the menu changes constantly but it's nice to have a general idea. saint agur is my favourite blue.... mmm!! i'll have to drag a friend down there sometime

Sherman Chan said...

Hi Kim, no we did not, we chose our own, albeit blindly. Viv likes sweeter wines and chose a sweet red, which actually went well with the spicy condiments she chose. I went for a dry red I think. Yah, it's not much food really; but then again, I wasn't hungry so it worked. I thought about getting the stuff myself and doing it at home; but it's one of those things that requires the venue.

Trisha, I took like 10 shots of the menu and the one you see is the only one that turned out. The lighting is not conducive for a clear picture. I love blue!!! Yes, drag a friend there. But don't be hungry!

Unknown said...

i absolutely loved this place when i went a year ago and have been looking for another opportunity since! sadly..that hasn't happened yet. i blame my boring friends :P

ahh....i drooled a bit over your pictures sherman..i took copious amounts at my visit too, and yeah, not the best lighting, eh?

love this place!

Sherman Chan said...

Boring friends??? Ditch them, get new eating friends... LOL...

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