Salt and Wood BBQ — Restaurant in North Island

I unfortunately have to change my review of this place....it has absolutely gone to the dogs. One of the last times we came here our food took over 45 minutes to come out, my plate was also cold under uke warm. The eggs were also hard poached, not soft, and I've asked here before to have soft poached eggs and the waitress sneered at me and said they're all supposed to come soft poached, and my reply was you'd be surprised, I have had cold hard poached eggs before... and what do you know, the next time I came here, they were cold and hard poached, unreal. The price of the plates also went up $5 and the portions got 40+% smaller. I was shook this time, in a very bad way. The hollandaise sauce was also so cold that it had gone all coagulated like. The toast was sooooo hard, it could have broken a tooth and caused a huge dentist bill. The table shook when I tried to cut it. It hurt my mouth. Unreal, the health department needs to look into this place cause it's literally dangerous to eat their toast. Totally unbelievable. It wasn't even a busy time when we last went, it was about 1.30pm not on a mother's day or long weekend. There is not half the amount of bacon on the plate for a higher price, and the toast became half the size. Maybe cause it was so hard and shrivelled up.

I'll leave my original review so you can see the downfall that has occurred. It was 5 stars. I don't appreciate the rude staff and the dangerous food though. Really upsetting for this to have happened, as this was a really nice good hearty tucker place to come to, but it's so so horrible now.

Went here for some eggs bene, as we had been disappointed by a couple of cafes recently....Salt and Wood do the best eggs bene I have had in years, and dare I say it, it looks like they actually make their own hollandaise sauce, I was shooketh in a good way. I ordered it sans pickled onion cause I don't like them and next time I would order it sans fennel cause there was a good handful of that on top. A+++ 5 stars, would recommend to anyone wanting a nice tasty filling breakfast. My partner got the pancakes and he said they were noice and moooist lol they looked so good! Coffees were yum as too! Thanks so much Salt and Wood, we will be back every time we need brunch. This whole collective is amazing and we also love Salty's Diner out...

So, American BBQ is a pretty broad term that can mean anything. You can have Texas, Kansas City, Memphis, North Carolina east and North Carolina west, and lastly South Carolina mustard based, which is an abomination of everything that is holy. The restaurant claims its BBQ is Texas based, which already puts it down several notches in my book. The meat was actually pretty good. We had the pulled pork, though it would have been better without any of the hints of the sauce. Speaking of which, the BBQ sauce was really bad. It was cumin with a tomato base.😳 I know Kiwis like their chutney, but BBQ isn't chutney and shouldn't try and taste like it. BBQ sauce should be vinegar and peppers (capsicum here) and nothing else. There are several other sauce options, which get more and more puzzling. I don't even want to know what you're putting mayonnaise on...

The sides were head scratchers too. The coleslaw looked like there was something on it, but tasted plain. Are you allergic to vinegar? We also got shoestring fries, which were not shoestring, but just regular fries. They also sell Dirty Fries, which are just Poutine, which is fine if I'm in Canada, but I have no idea why that's on a BBQ menu. I personally think Poutine is gross and you have somehow made it worse with Cheese Whiz instead of Cottage Cheese. And where are the hushpuppies? How can you serve BBQ without hushpuppies on the side? If it's Texas based, I suppose you should have corn bread on the side.

The restaurant itself was very nice and the staff was friendly, helpful, and welcoming. The BBQ though, needs to be reworked. If Texas is your lode star for BBQ, then you need to rethink things. Eastern North Carolina is where true BBQ is made in America. Everything else just makes me wish I was...

I recently visited Salt n Wood and had a truly exceptional experience. The restaurant has a unique and cozy atmosphere, with a warm and inviting interior that makes you feel right at home.

But what really blew me away was the food. Every dish we ordered was expertly prepared and absolutely delicious. The focus on wood-fired cooking really shines through in the flavors, with dishes like the wood-roasted cauliflower and the smoked brisket being particular standouts.

The service was also fantastic. Despite the restaurant being walk-in only and not taking bookings, we were greeted warmly and made to feel right at home. Our server was friendly and knowledgeable about the menu, and made great recommendations for both food and drinks.

The only downside to our experience was the wait time. As Salt n Wood is walk-in only, there can be a bit of a wait for a table. However, the staff were upfront about the wait time and made sure we were comfortable while we waited. And in my opinion, the wait was well worth it for the amazing food and atmosphere.

Overall, I would highly recommend Salt n Wood to anyone looking for a delicious meal in a cozy and unique setting. While there may be a bit of a wait, it's all part of the experience and I would give this restaurant a 5 out of 5 stars...