Salmontini Le Bistro has a delightful, quirky menu and delivers at a very high level of excellence in terms of culinary arts – in fact, each dish is the result of a lifetime of dedication to learning, refining, exploring, and ultimately perfecting a passion for superlative cuisine!
But first of all, you should know that Salmontini is located in an airy and very intelligently open/AC area of DIFC – so that there is a great feeling of open air and expansive shade, but at the same time, when needed, glass walls can be lowered to shield out Dubai’s heat.
A very trendy downtown location, which I feel is the model of lifestyle Dubai is aiming for in the future – a sort of all-inclusive community area to live/work/dine/shop in.
Salmontini Le Bistro is prominent in this community, with an enviable outdoor terrace as well as indoor climatized dining hall.
But it is when the dishes arrive at your table that you start to realize the enormity of the occasion, and the superlative deliciousness of what you’re about to experience!
Specializing in salmon, and taking an eclectic approach that includes the foundations in French cuisine, but also brings in a vibrant sushi selection, as well as also non-salmon dishes – something for everyone.
For instance, the Niçoise Salad – a favorite of southern France, in fact a French Riviera classic, the good folk in the Salmontini kitchens have perfected an exciting combination of just-right eggs, tuna fish in two forms, one flash-seared as tataki (a Japanese cooking method, but not unknown in other world cuisines), and the other in generous chunks, as is traditional in a Niçoise – crispy fresh green beans, potatoes, and a joy of fresh greens, slathered with a sexy French dressing.
When even a simple salad makes your eyes close in epicurean ecstasy at each bite, you know something magical is happening in the kitchen!
Salmontini further proposes their signature dishes, marked conveniently on the menu (the Niçoise is one of them) – and I’d highly recommend you start your relationship with Salmontini with them… and later on, in subsequent visits, you can expand to explore further the Salmontini world of flavors.
The Spicy Crispy Salmon appetizer arrives, and it is a masterful, almost playful, combination of the smoothest salmon tartare, but lightly spicy, and a smothering of crunchy topping!
The sushi also reflects a similar innovative approach in combining yet also contrasting flavors and textures…
It is genius – perhaps a mad man is behind these recipes, laughing out loud in delight in his Chef’s hat, as he plays with the effects of manipulating ingredients, in a way creating a unique gourmet journey.
And while you are considering the impact of the appetizers and sushi marvels you just ate, the main course is served and you see for real the expertise and the years of training that are behind the playfulness…
The Salmon en Croute – aka Salmon Wellington for the anglophones – is a dish fit for royalty, and indeed sees its history date back to the tables of European aristocracy – but the version produced by Salmontini Le Bistro elevates the dish to a level of sophisticated taste that is exceptional even for a dish of this pedigree.
Frankly, Salmontini’s Salmon en Croute could be presented as is to a panel of judges at a culinary competition, and win awards.
Perhaps it has.
The crust, outstandingly light yet crisp, and tasty, adding a neutrality on the palate that balances off the excitement of the luscious lemon butter sauce (Beurre Blanc, one of the pillars of traditional French sauces in professional cuisine) – and then the salmon, generous and succulent, topped with spinach and herbs, and who knows what other secret marvels!
Truly a masterpiece, and I would even say a must-try at Salmontini for any foodie in Dubai.
And if you are active with an oven at home, perhaps aspiring to bake something similar on special occasions, then a spy trip to Salmontini would serve you very well!
Dessert followed the now-expected refinement,
and overall, just like that, Salmontini Le Bistro is one of Dubai’s top delicious restaurants, without the fanfare and flashy lights, just by applying a lifetime of study and passion in preparing the very most flavorsome dishes, with salmon and beyond – and that is an approach that results in a supremely delicious meal.
Chapeau, Salmontini Le Bistro! That was an exceptional lunch indeed!