Sea Salt saloon — Restaurant in Utrecht

We ventured over to the Sea Salt Saloon, in Utrecht, on a recommendation from a friend of a friend. She lives in Utrecht, and is quite the foodie, so we thought why not?! It was right around the corner from our hotel (which is only 2 minutes from the Dom Tower- great location!).

We were there on a Thursday night and it was packed. We didn’t make a reservation so we were very lucky to snag the last available table inside (if you want to go there, make a reservation to be sure you get a table).

The atmosphere was electrifying. Everyone was chatting away, laughing, and having a great time. The dim lights enhanced the vibe as the chefs behind the counter prepare dishes with great care. We started off with a bottle of wine. We got an English menu (yay!) so we sat and drooled over the many shareable options.

We ordered two Oysters to start the meal and then decided on the Squid (baked in tomato- ginger sauce with pearl couscous, spring onion & parsley), Razor Clams (with garlic, almond flakes & herbal oil), and the Wild Argentine Gambas (unpeeled, with Spanish pepper and garlic parsley dip). We ended up getting an extra dish (the Sea Bass somehow ended up on our table and we ate it before we realized we didn’t in fact order it). We brought it up to the waiter and I don’t think he quite understood what happened. It was on the bill but we didn’t mind paying because it was DELICIOUS).

The food was incredible. Everything was so fresh and had so many different flavours and aromas. The Razor Clams we’re my favourite. I don’t know if I’d order the gambas again, only because I hate having to peel them, but they were also very tasty.

I’m glad we popped in and we’re able to get a table at the Sea Salt Salon. I was able to eat there without hesitation (tons of options without dairy or gluten) and I LOVE seafood. It wasn’t overly expensive, definitely not as cost effective as a greasy fish and chips meal, but 10/10 a better option if you can spend the money and have the time to sit and enjoy the meal.

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Very high quality seafood, unfortunately some dishes are a bit heavy on the spices which covers the great seafood taste. We had the cockles with fresh herbs and I think I tasted anis...The herbs mixture was way too strong and exotic, but the cockles themselves were perfect. The filling of the egg with caviar topping included a bit too much curry. We weren't satisfied with the lobster croquettes as you couldn't really taste the lobster. The poached octopus also could have needed less spices/salt but it was a nice dish and the best potatos I have had in a long time (when you talk about the greatness of potatos for 5 minutes in a fish restaurant when you actually think potatoes are unnecessary and you could feed from pasta forever - you know they are good). The chilli Gambas were pretty regular and not really fitting the rest of the dishes. Now our absolute favourite of the evening: the tuna carpaccio. Amazing tuna, nicely fitted sauce and salad, if you like raw fish that is your thing! We didn't have the oysters but they offer various types and I regret not trying them. Service could be better, it was a busy night but there were a couple of moments were the waiters chatted instead of checking if we were okay (we actually wanted to order more and needed water), I get that it is an exhausting job, but we had time pressure and got in trouble for waiting so long. Outside sitting area is lovely on a sunny day! What I really liked is that they specifically state that there dishes are to share on the menu. It's like a seafood tapas experience. Prices are reasonable for what you get (We paid 50 € for two people but also...

Had dinner here on a date and sat at the window on stools. The restaurant tends to be popular so we could only get a table at 18:30 (with only a 90-minute slot) or at 20:00. So we went with 20:00. At that time there was no further table booking so fortunately we weren’t rushed out.

The atmosphere is casual, relaxed and lively and can be loud when busy.

The food was mostly good but uneven. Given the sharing menu, we enjoyed the mussels with lemongrass, a few oysters each with red vinegar dressing on the side. The octopus was also very tasty but the langoustines were a disappointment. There was little meat to eat and, in my view, really not worth the price at all. We ordered fries, which didn’t arrive, and had to follow up well into our meal, which I found annoying.

The service was ok. Not great. We didn’t have a single server but rather had to wave someone over when we wanted something. It was reactive at best. And the first server asked us if we wanted wine and just listed off the options quickly by grape. Next thing you know he returned opening a bottle when we hadn’t actually clarified that we wanted a bottle. It would have been nice to have been asked whether we wanted a bottle or glass at the outset.

Despite some of the positives, I’m not sure I would go back as there are other restaurants in the area that offer more consistently good food and far...