Salazón @ Seminyak, Bali

A traveler’s dilemma especially for foodies is always the concern of choosing a restaurant/cafe at unfamiliar territory. There is no wonder review sites such as Tripadvisor, Google, Facebook are a must-visits for a lot of travelers before committing our tummy space. That was exactly what we did when we scoured the endless choices presented to us at Seminyak, Bali.

One place that caught our attention for our dinner spot was Salazon Bali with 109 excellent ratings out of 159 reviews at Tripadvisor and 4.6 ratings out of 5 at Facebook (at the time of writing). Boy, we were not disappointed at all from the moment we stepped into the famed restaurant.

 

It is stunning space with sleek, luxurious interior and I love how atmospheric the entire place is, from teak antler chandeliers that emitting pleasant soft lighting, artsy arch windows, flooring with mixture of wood panels and beehive tiles as well as the chic modern furniture. The expertly stylish setting exudes a class on its own and creating an air of luxury and fine dining ambiance. Imagine our awkward moment when we stepped into the restaurant with our casual T-shirt + shorts + slippers. ~>_<~ 

 

The glowing bar, with wide variety of wines and liquors filled the shelves and the attention grabber of Bali inspired art piece.

 

Steal the limelight of the interior is long open kitchen which allows diners to get some kitchen actions if you are seated at the counter. Being the only restaurant in Bali that offers kitchen counter dining experience, Salazón is a modern woodfire grill helmed by Scottish executive chef Paul Lewis. The custom-made 5.2 tonne Scotch wood-fired oven, remains burning 24-hours a day at differing temperatures to produce everything from bread to roasted meat and fish. Everything served in the restaurant is made on-site by Lewis and his team, including the dry-aged meats, charcuterie, sauces, pickles, ice cream, sourdough bread and even the butter served with it. 

 

Salazón means salted in Spanish, as its name implies, salt curing and dry-aged meats take center stage in Salazón’s menu. The dry-aging room nestled at the back of the restaurant showcases assorted of dry-aged meat, fish and poultry. 

 

Get a seat at The Terrace,  the al-fresco area so you can take in the view of the happening Kayu Aya Street. 

 

The exquisite steak knife.

 

Equil Mineral Water (IDR 80k++)

No complimentary water was provided here and we had no choice but ordered this “branded” mineral water with exorbitant price. >_<

 

The menu is kept rather neat and tight, featuring on what they do best at Salazón. (You may refer to their menu HERE if you interested) Thank you to the waitress who looked after us and explained the menu concept and gave her recommendations. She also brought us to the lounge located on the second floor and showed us around.

Beetroot Salad (IDR 80k++)

It was a lively and textural concoction of beetroot, baby Romaine Lettuce, zucchini, almonds, caramelized walnuts, quinoa and feta cheese tossed with tangy burnt orange yogurt dressing. The combination of textures and flavours were astonishing from its hearty ingredients.

32 Day Dry Aged Stockyard T-bone (IRD 790k++)

Served with bone marrow & mushrooms, salsa verde and sweet potato chips, our dry aged T-bone steak was cooked to a gorgeous pink doneness. The meat with nice chargrilled sear was well marbled, amazingly tender, juicy and bursting with lots of moreish beefy flavours. Bathed in its own jus, the beef was divinely luscious and moist. I also enjoyed the steak with the salsa verde as it enhanced the flavours of the aged steak to another dimension of flavours. 

The aging process forms a dry crust outside the cut of the meat and the juices are sealed inside to intensify the flavours and also tenderize the meat. The process certainly makes the flavours more pronounced.

I tell you what, this meal has converted Sam to a beef lover as we once dined in at pork specialty restaurant and she requested for meat that we had here. LOL

 

Generous serving of sweet potato fries, they were well seasoned and had a nice crunch. An addictive treat that we enjoyed happily. 

 

Complimentary dessert. 

 

Don’t leave the restaurant without “visiting” the washroom. It is one of the prettiest washrooms I’ve been which really deserves a special mention. 

 

But….do you mind something staring at you when you “doing business”?

 

Verdict: Price could be slightly steep and I must admit that it would not a regular casual eating place but it’s worth to splurge a little more for the premium quality food (especially when traveling :P). I really love the unique setting of the restaurant which exudes a sense of sophistication, further complimented with the top notch service. 

 

Salazón

Jalan Kayu Aya Oberoi, Seminyak, Kuta, Kabupaten Badung, Bali 80361

Tel:  +62 817 17 11 17 33

Website: http://www.salazonbali.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/salazon33/