Sal'Mare — Restaurant in Faro

Our experience was not great. The service was patchy, all the male servers were pushy and unfriendly, whereas our female server (whom we recognised from having drinks earlier at the next door Wax Resto bar - owned by the same people) was an absolute joy.

There was a strong over reliance on up-selling ever item on the menu, such as forcing us to buy a bottle of mineral water, when we asked for tap water, claiming it was too difficult to carry the glasses over and fill them at the tap (and saying they didn't have jugs for water, when blatantly they sold sangria in jugs). A (male) server brought bread and olives to the table, when we hadn't ordered them (many of my family don't like olives), assuming we would not refuse and only quietly stating they were not complementary and that there would be a (hefty) €4.50 charge for each paltry offering. We kindly refused, though we saw many other tables accepting them and only afterwards realising they were actually quite expensive.

Our server was also slow with our orders, leaving us without food menus and only with the expensive drinks menu, another nefarious tactic to try eek more money from the less discerning diner.

We ordered the speciality of four different steaks for us, asking for them cooked medium rare. Two of the cuts were beautifully cooked, but the others were seriously over cooked. Our server was not accepting of our dissatisfaction at how our steaks were cooked but my children were hungry, and it was getting even later, so we ate the food that was presented.

All in all, the food and service was sub-par, the only saving grace was the very pleasant female servers who brought our drinks and chatted with us (hence the three stars for service, otherwise would be a single star). The location is great, with good views, but there are much better places to spend your money and...

Overrated. Disappointing dining experience. When I arrived on deck from beach side, staff seemed uninterested to welcome you. I stepped further onto the patio. Waited, was ignored. Walked closer, waited - still ignored. Until I eventually, stepped inside the restaurant to be seen to. I ordered what was described as 'vegetarian curry' and was sorely disappointed. It was 95% chickpeas with a few thin carrot stripes. The curry was bland and watery. Better to rename the dish 'Chickpea water' for a more honest and accurate description.

Servers were only interested in up-selling you dishes, or automatically bring you a large bottle of water and show you the bottle as if it were fine wine. And once you declined they weren't interested in you.

By the time my main waiter asked how my meal was I was already 80% through it. I offered feedback knowing that it was too late to swap out the dish for something else, but nonetheless thought it was beneficial for the chef to know diners experience.

If the establishment really wanted to show itself to be an upper class joint, you'd think they would at least try to compensate the diners experience with offering a complimentary dessert or a glass of wine for example after stating the food wasn't up to scratch.

Try other places for a less pricey menu without the pretense.

Nice view of sea...

I came there to order a beer and a lemonade for TAKEAWAY, nothing special or fancy. I paid 8,50€ and waited at the entrance. After 10 minutes I checked with them whether my order is being dealt with. I was told that the two drinks are coming and that I should keep waiting. After another 15 minutes with constant eye contact to the waitress, I approached them again to ask whether I communicated my order clearly (two drinks, a beer and a lemonade) or whether there is a misunderstanding. They told me they would check again and then realized that they forgot my order (despite me standing at the entrance in plain sight all the time). Noticing my rising frustration, they rushed to eventually prepare the beer and the lemoande after about 30 minutes (they gave me a different lemoande though, not the one I ordered). At that point I didnt care anymore about the correctness of the order and left....