Black Salt Restaurant — Restaurant in Sharjah

Black Salt, 2 mains, 2 iced teas, bottled water, double macchiato: Dhs265

Going to Sharjah to check out popular new casual lunch spots is advancing from novel excursion to regular weekend outing. Is Sharjah becoming a new food haven hot spot? Steady on. Let’s not get overexcited but the University area is now pencilled in my ‘watch this space’ log.

Black Salt is placed in a modest environ that does not conjure the impression or reassurance that there is a standout restaurant.

Yet the inside is profoundly different: masculine, modern, semi-industrial, exposed concrete, open kitchen, moody, metallic and leathery - yet refined. You would easily be forgiven for assuming you were in a Dubai or Abu Dhabi hotel cafe or, perhaps, one of those niche barber-meets-coffee shop type places. There’s been some serious investment in outfitting this place into a world apart from the immediate outside. Almost all the places in this parade of shops has done the same.

At the outset, the menu said one thing: junk food. There’s enough fried, cheese layered, burger slider options to send a child’s birthday party into a frenzy. It’s an odd juxtaposition to what is a decidedly smarter curated decor. It is at this point I am confused as I find myself sitting in a comparatively more sophisticated restaurant looking at a fast food menu. I am looking at the menu for a diner in a show room.

We settled on the balsamic tandoori lamb chops with spicy fries, wagyu slider duo with fries, a peach iced tea, camomile iced tea and large bottle of local water.

And this is where the show begins: the peach iced tea arrives in an empty layered vessel much like a sand-dial of bulbous glass in a wooden frame. The iced tea is poured from a glass tea pot at a height into the top of the ‘sand-dial’ at which point dry ice is activated and smoke begins to billow out. The tea is then evacuated via a hatch beneath the bubbling top layer tea pot into a smaller tea pot below. The creamy white smoke is dramatic but also has the effect of scenting the surrounding area with light peach like a scented stick. This is probably the hardest working iced tea I have ever seen performing a highly-engineered programme of twists, back flips and splits all to music but, alas, it is quite sweet and; therefore, the judges dock points from this gymnast for not sticking the landing. The camomile iced tea is comparatively more modest in comparison to its gregarious sister arriving in but a mere small barrel.

After the show, the mains arrive. Five ample towering spears of lamb chops arrive glistening; intimidating a bowl of spiral fries like a movie scene where the natives dance wildly around a cauldron boiling captives shipwrecked onto the island. Balsamic lamb chops is an Italian classic: the aged complex acidity and reduced sweetness of the balsamic tempers pungent lamb fat resulting in a sticky, balanced dish.

This was not quite achieved here; in fact, there is no distinctive balsamic flavour, colour or glaze anywhere. Instead, a slow, rolling spice develops. I assumed the ‘tandoori’ was the method of cooking but it perhaps it was actually the marinade preparation. Still, the lamb chops are a beastly portion with a large eye of medium tender lamb meat with a long chop bone coated in roasted, thick caramelised lamb fat. It is not, however, the well-understood and described, balsamic lamb dish and is, therefore, misdescribed. the spiral fries amuse my inner id but reduce the dish to, again, fast food when the menu alludes to more especially as this dish is one of the most expensive items on the menu at an eye-catching Dhs 120.

Sliders and burgers are ubiquitous in the UAE (UAE-biquitous? I digress). Wagyu is a premium beef. This slider deserves better than a generic white bun with American cheese and a pickle. A toasted brioche bun, a mature cheddar or blue cheese, caramelised onions, a herbed dip: something to dress this Japanese beef portion in a deserving final act.

Would I return to Black Salt? Unlikely, but if I lived in the area, I...

There are very few places that you just can't fault them for anything - From the welcome to the genuinely warm and attentive service to the amazing food and drinks - everything is just right in this wonderfully setup restaurant.

It was our anniversary and did not want to drive to Dubai for dinner and having read some great reviews, decided to come here for a dinner - and we are so glad we decided to come here.

We had the following for drinks -

😍💥Pina ~colada lovely presentation and show with dry ice - refreshing to the core,

👍Jalapeno Watermelon - fresh and tingling with the spice from the jalapenos,

Food -

😍💥The stuffed bread rolls on offer before the meal arrives, warm, soft and delicious - were gone even before the waiter came to take the order.

💥Quinoa Tabouleh - a great twist to the traditional tabouleh - tastier, healthier version of the original

💥Vegetable fritters - Neatly spiced, crisp and enjoyable appetiser - pakoras can never go out of fashion if done the right way like here.

💥Citrus corn on the cob - this was so nice, moist and perfectly seasoned - with a nice twist of having finely crumbled cheetos on top.

💥Requested the waiter to get us half portions of the mac n cheese nachos and the chilli cheese toast, which he graciously did - both were very nicely done - especially the chilli cheese toast that has been a traditional favorite of mine - and here it is done on a nice brioche bread with a lovely layer of melted cheese and chilli.

💥Green Thai curry - great preparation with the curry and coconut milk perfectly balanced -

👍💥Although, I have been vegetarian for 6 months, had to try the Butter chicken sliders - and this was a really neat preparation - small bite-sized chicken cubes wrapped around a makhani gravy filled in a small bun on a base of kachumber salad - awesome!!!

The service was on another level - the waiters are so in sync with the menu and great at recommending as well as explaining the menu being served - attentive yet unobtrusive

The ambience and general decor are quite minimalistic yet chic. Location is good, some roadworks are being completed near the restaurant.

Enough parking available

Will be back soon to try more - and of course, have to go and try the breakfast offering that looks...

University city of Sharjah is emerging as a new eating hub, The Black Salt is one of the best restaurant among all. It has a fancy yet simple interiors, done mostly in black, which gives it a very vintage & classy look. They serve awesome food & drinks with really fantastic presentation, which makes this place special. They also do a great fusions of authentic flavors with gastronomy. The staff is very nice & helpful.

Coming back on the food. We were invited there for the tasting session, so we tried a number of varieties there.

For Starters, we were served- Quinoa Tabouleh- a nice fusion of Arabic tabouleh salad with healthy quinoa. Fiery Bites- these were dynamite chicken bites. The sauce was very nice & not very spicy. Salmon tikka with ruffles- Nice combo of fish with chips. Mac n Cheese Nachos- It was crispy on the outside & nice & soft on the inside. Crispy chicken sliders. Wagyu sliders

For the Main Course- Shish Tawook on Paratha- It was a nice fusion of shish Tawook & Paratha . Butter Chicken Chow- Butter Chicken served in a bun bowl. Pepper Chicken Pasta- this pasta was very nice and had a great pepper twist. Slow cooked Pulled beef served with garlic bread. Now the most important part of any meal....Dessert- Red Velvet Cake- Red velvet cake served in the form of a tower with 4 layers. Milk cake with white chocolate Dome- very artistic presentation & delicious in taste. Date cake served inside the caramel dome.

The Pretty drinks we had were- Peach iced Tea- The tea can not be more attractive than this one. Pinacolada- Yet another interestingly presented drink. Lemon & mint Mojito- As res fresh ingredients as it looks.

Overall a great place with great food with awesome presentation. Would love to go...