Salzi is a bistro that serves healthy comfort food. I really dislike when the health benefit makes up half the story of a restaurant. Food should taste good and the health aspect is up to the customer. I want to be the one to decide what I will eat. Nonetheless, I find the health option a nice addition, but there is no need to advertise it. People nowadays are well aware of what is good for them or not.
Salzi @Vienna
A reservation does not seem necessary, at least when you arrive early. Salzi was pleasantly empty when we came in, although by 10am a couple of tables were already occupied. Even though the restaurant had only two other guests at the time, the music seemed rather loud. Maybe this was due to the speakers directly above our table, in any case it was not the best way to start the day.
dining room @Salzi
My friend was not happy with the available selection but kept his opinion about the concept mostly to himself. He ordered a pan con tomate, which can be a very tasty breakfast option. At least in Valencia, if not at Salzi. On toasted sourdough bread a confit of cherry tomatoes was spread over a garlic confit (confit much?), roasted capia pepper cream, and fresh coriander. The bread itself was fantastic, at least the crust. Well toasted with a nice crunch and a delicious flavor.
pan con tomate @Salzi
The rest of the bread, however, was soaked by the different confits and turned rather wet. I was allowed to taste it and cannot vouch for the roasted capia pepper cream. But it must have been there, since the whole dish had a sweet flavor. I am not sure why one takes a really good thing and turns it into something mediocre? Pan con tomate only needs tomatoes, salt, and a hint of garlic if you are up for it in the morning. The concoction served at Salzi had little to do with the original dish, which was not for the better.
I was in the mood for some eggs and since there were none on the menu except pickled eggs, this is what I got. The pickled egg had only a slightly pickled taste, came with a runny yolk, and directly from the fridge. Not really something you want for breakfast. While I do understand that it cannot be warm, room temperature would be nice. At least the color was top notch. The pickled egg can also be ordered with aioli, but I just wasn’t in the mood for an overload of garlic in the morning.
Celeriac Pastrami Sandwich and pickled egg @Salzi
I had ordered the egg together with a Celeriac Pastrami Sandwich, which turned out to be a grilled sourdough sandwich with baked celeriac, beetroot, caramelized onion, sauerkraut, and mustard. No pastrami anywhere in sight, but I knew about the no-meat format. The sandwich was massive, with the two halves stacked on top of each other. Not sure why it needed to be served on such a small plate though. It had the same problem as the pan con tomate: too much bread, and most of it was wet and squishy. The taste was sweet, with too much caramelization going on. I did not detect much sauerkraut and the pickles did not help either. The whole thing was just too soggy and sweet, and overall a disappointment.
Salzi turned out to be over-hyped and underperforming. Coffee was good and service was friendly, but this is not a restaurant I would frequent for the food. Yours, Pollybert
Salzi
1020 Wien, Hollandstrasse 10
Email: hello@salzibistro.at
Mon-Fri: 07:30-20:00, Sat: 09:00-20:00
https://www.salzibistro.at/
