Salem Market & Grill — Restaurant in Pittsburgh

UPDATE MAY 2024 (more than 12 months original review)

A FOODIE’S GO-TO FOR KEBABS AND MILD CURRIES. 🤩 New photos uploaded separately.

This is a SELF-SERVICE CAFETERIA (takeaway or eat-in) that has been completely revamped. It is now now solely an eatery; the grocery section relocated elsewhere. There are ordering monitors for credit cards. Cash customers stay on the queue at the ordering counter.

The menu is flashed above the service counter😎. There’s a few Levantine entrees like Shawarma, Hummus, Baba Ghanouj, Baklava.

The eatery is really a cafeteria specializing in Kebabs and Punjabi Curries.

The Kebabs, specifically the Lamb Skewers and Lamb Chops has a whif of Levantine, many times the aroma and flavor of za’atar is very much evident🤩🤩🤩.

The Shawarma (or Doner Gyro) is carved off fresh from rotating pit🤩🤩🤩. It’s served with a lovely yogurt.

The curries is distinctive Punjabi: rich, flavorful and aromatic, if you’re lucky you get a stick of cinnamon. 🤩🤩🤩 I am most to the Goat and Lamb Curries, both succulent and tender. 😎 On the weekends, Braised Curried Lamb Shank is a treat.

The dining room is quite spacious, though I’ve always preferred takeaway and enjoy the food at home, usually with a bottle of claret 🍷🍷🍷

++++ Original review:

Pittsburgh’s BEST CURRY & MOST FLAVORFUL GRILL, plus an EXCELLENT GROCERY.

The eatery is superbly aromatic from the cacophony of spices and smell of grilling meats…enter with your nose and enjoy the wondrous fragrances of a wild mixture of Arabic, Indian subcontinent, Greek, and Turkish cultural influences.

The best curry meal is on offer (lamb, goat, chicken, vegetable); lovely balance of spices, little heat, seasoned well.—-I am partial to the goat.

From grill, they have best lamb skewers, lamb chops and beef skewers. Have a full order of green or Greek salador tabouleh or chickpea salad with it and you’ll have a feast.—I’m partial to grilled lamb and tabouleh.

On the weekends, splurge on beef ribs, braised lamb shanks, roasted chicken.

For meat salads, go for Shawarma salad, it’s scrumptious.

For American burger eater, go for the Double lamb burger with feta cheese and beef bacon (yes beef bacon!. It’s a whole-pounder for the big carnivore.

Then step next door for the grocery, best beef, lamb, chicken and goat—this is my go to butchers. Have your order cleaned, cut however you wish, they’re very efficient. The store is great place to also shop for spices, tea, exotic fruit, and...

We use to love this place. Stand in line, point at what you want, scoop rice,curry,side and to the register for the bread, pay and gone! Awesome. Food rocks!! 5-10 minutes max! Not anymore. Now they have some half baked kiosk ordering system. Went yesterday jonesing for their food. Kiosks did not work. Everyone ignored our request for help. We left and got something in Squirrel Hill. Went back today. 2 minutes to 11. Open at 11, people being served but we were told to wait. Tried to work kiosk again and gave up. Went outside and ordered online at their www. 30 minute wait with no line inside there. About 8 guys behind newly designed grill area doing nothing and one guy on the hot meal line moving super slow. We are so frustrated at the lack of respect and helpfulness shown by staff. Have not tried food yet, did a take away, but my wife said to expect some screw ups as she watched the line guy scoop up the sides. It is gonna be a hot minute before we return. Shame! Wish them the best of luck with the new systems. They probably spent a ton of dollars and energy on something that didn’t need fixing!

A follow up to my review: Mr Salem - your email did not work….

Abdullah, Thanks for your response. My wife (cc) and I moved to the area about 3 years ago. Being new to Pittsburgh we delight in finding and trying new restaurants and markets. We have had a ton of successful stops and of course the one and done stops. I do not waste my time reviewing places we would never go back to. Salem’s however is a favorite destination for us when that curry craving hits. We live over in Wilkens Township. Not too nearby so we do not get to your location as often as we would like. Have never had a bad meal, it is always outstanding, as was yesterday’s! If there was a way to annotate my review from yesterday I would add that as a follow up. My review intention was not to harm but rather to let folks know you are in the process of change. Internal change is usually fraught with challenges that adversely effect external and internal customers. You could see the frustration though out the grill area, both employee and customer. While we will miss the old fun, warm and person-to-person interactive ordering system that seemed so efficient, we know that change is the only constant. We will adapt, but we will give you time to get your house back in order. Thank you for your reply and concern…be back soon!

Thanks….Mike & Avra

…Do unto others as you would have done...

Extremely Disappointed – Salem’s Has Completely Fallen Off

I don’t normally leave reviews like this, but my experience today was so bad I felt compelled to say something. I used to love Salem’s Market & Grill. Years ago, when I lived nearby, it was one of my go-to spots. The food was solid, the prices were fair, and it always felt like a place I could count on, especially during Ramadan. Fast forward to today — I drove a long way out of my way because I heard they had a Ramadan buffet going on. Turns out, it ended on Sunday. No signs, no announcements, no updates — and I had even tried calling the store several times beforehand. No answer. Just nothing.

I figured, okay, I’m already here, I’ll just order like I used to. Big mistake. I got the large meal with biryani, lamb, butter chicken, chickpeas, and a drink. It came out to about $27, which is wild because I remember this exact kind of meal used to be $15 tops. Sure, prices go up — but if you’re going to charge nearly double, the food better be worth it. And this? This was straight-up awful.

The biryani was a mess — mushy, bland, and nothing like what you’d expect from a place that claims to serve authentic food. The lamb and butter chicken tasted old and reheated, like it had been sitting around for days. You could literally taste the staleness. The chickpeas were just sad. Everything had this leftover, cafeteria-tray vibe — not fresh, not flavorful, and honestly not safe. I hadn’t eaten anything else all day because I was fasting, and this was supposed to be my Iftar — instead, I ended up with stomach pain for the rest of the night. That’s not just disappointing, that’s unacceptable.

I couldn’t even finish my food. I thought I’d maybe pick at it later, but once I got home, I just threw it all out. It was that bad.

Salem’s used to be a great spot. Now? It feels like they’re coasting on their old reputation, cutting corners, and charging premium prices for subpar, leftover food. I don’t know what happened, but they’ve completely lost their touch — and...