SALSWEE — Restaurant in New York

We visited SALSWEE shortly after they opened back in May. They offer French style desserts and Viennoiseries, as well as some savory items like sandwiches.

They had all the offerings in show window cases to the right, and some seating to the left. You can walk down while making your selection, all the way down to where the registers are at the end. The selection of their sweet and savory items all looked so amazing! It was as if we were at a gallery, looking at some beautiful artworks.

They had a handful of artistic “illusion desserts” that looked like fruits. We got Orange, Yuzu, and Mushroom cakes. We also ordered Caramel Latte and Sesame Latte.

Yuzu had a cute flower on top. The mousse and filling had a lovely yuzu flavor, without overpowering the other flavors. I loved the tropical flavors with the yuzu, it was so delicious! It was not too sweet, but elegantly sweet.

The Mushroom was so cute, and they did great job making it look semi-realistic. It has mousse cream shaped mushroom head and the stem is made out of white chocolate. Inside of the stem, it is filled with strawberry puree. It is definitely sweeter than the others I tried but it’s a very creative and eye-catching cake.

Last but not least, Orange that looks so realistic! If you saw this on a counter somewhere, you will not think that this is a dessert at all! When we opened it up, it was impressive to look at as well. It had orange filling with bits of pulps in it, which I loved. The combination of the sweet and the acidic and tart orange filling was perfect! What an amazing dessert!

We brought home one of their cakes, Matcha Cake. It is a perfect size for the two of us, or even for three people. It had airy and fluffy chiffon cake, with loads of matcha cream. I was happily surprised to see slices of strawberries in the layers. The matcha cream had the real matcha flavor with that distinctive bitterness, which balanced out the sweet flavor of the cream.

The desserts are made fresh every day, and once they sold out, that’s it. So if you are wanting a specific item that is very popular, then you might need to head there earlier to ensure you get it before...

Beautiful shop with helpful staff and delicious dessert. Would come here for the appeal and trying their flavor/texture combinations, but not a place for common everyday dessert visits. Photo worthy!

If you want to go - go in the morning or mid-morning! There's so many options. Unless you're looking for a specific taste... The orange was so fun to eat; the layers inside plus the crunch of the bottom half was delicious! Another two that was fun to eat was the mushroom and the flower yuzu one. I would eat these 3 again! The banana and mango has a more straight forward taste - I wouldn't revisit those unless I'm looking for simpler taste. If you're looking for aesthetic, you can't go wrong with any of them! Came here in mid-summer 2025, mid-morning - the seats were all taken up. There's gaps where the line would shorten to 3-4 people and the closer it got to lunch the more consistent the lines got to the door. I don't recommend this space for larger size groups of 7+. Don't expect to sit together unless you camp for seats. The seats are typically situated around a pair or 2 pairs. Also, each of these are packaged individually which makes it less likely to collide against each other and more fun to eat one by one. These do melt/deteriorate fast so I recommend getting them into cooler packaging ASAP.

Bathroom: No

Atmosphere: 6-7/10 loudness. Those with softer voices may need to speak up a bit.

Service: 5/5; helpful staff and quick to serve

Wheel-chair friendly: Not really. The door is big enough but need help having the door open. There isn't a lot of space to move up and down to the aisle to get the food and have a good...

Oh, boy! This one might sound a bit controversial. A quick note: I’m only speaking about the desserts here. I haven’t tasted Salswee’s pastries, though I admit, they make a charming first impression behind the glass.

Stepping into Salswee is an experience in itself. The place is bright and airy, greeting you with a beautiful display case of vibrant desserts practically begging for their Instagram close-up. Influencers, this is your moment!

Now for the unpopular opinion: despite the wonderful presentation, the flavors fall surprisingly flat. And for me, that’s a dealbreaker. These desserts may win in appearance and look like an artificial dream: glossy, whimsical, and almost too pretty to eat, but when it comes to taste, they simply don’t deliver. I’m not entirely sure what all the buzz is about, especially on the New York scene, a city with some serious pastry talent. If we’re using Cedric Grolet’s fruit desserts as a standard, and they’re a solid 10, Salswee’s land somewhere around a 3. Ahh, I know we're not in Europe, folks, so let's not get carried away! But even by local standards, the gap is hard to ignore. Just to add, If you’re planning to take these to-go, know the visual appeal starts to melt away faster than you might expect, right the moment you step outside. Best to enjoy them in-house, while they’re still holding it together.

That said, the staff is absolutely great! Warm, welcoming, and attentive, they handle orders with care and genuine smiles. Packaging is thoughtfully done, too. Credit...