Salt Yard - Chacuterie Bar and Restaraunt

On Friday night Nick and I went out to dinner after he finished work.  

We were wandering about looking for a place to eat and we saw Salt Yard - which we've tried to get into before but there was a 45 minute wait.
Luckily we got in this time.  

We went inside and had the option of waiting fifteen minutes or sitting outside.  

It was a bit cold outside but Nick chose instant gratification.  

Salt Yard is a Spanish and Italian tapas bar.  

And everyone knows I LOVE tapas.  

They are so much fun because instead of being stuck with the one thing you ordered you can order 3 things, and you can share the things your other dining partners ordered (unless they ordered meat - I try to discourage this).  

First to come were "Courgette aka Zucchini flowers stuffed with Monte Enebro Cheese and drizzled with honey" (7.25)  

These were absolutely fantastic.  

The zucchini was battered and fried and the flower was full of a delightful soft melt in your mouth cheese.  

SO good.   

Next to come was the "Fried baby violet artichokes with pine nut puree and black olive oil" (5.50).  

These were good, but they were a little too dry and crunchy.  

Not my favorite.

We ordered a selection of four goats cheeses which were obviously great - what can go wrong with goat's cheese?  But they accidently delivered a selection of hard italian cheeses with truffle honey.  

Which we returned but not before having a few bites - truffle honey = heaven on earth.  

But I prefer soft cheeses to hard so I must say the goat cheese platter wins.

Then I got "Patatas Fritas with Romesco and Alioli" (3.50).  
Definitely not the most elegant dish we ordered, but still very good.  

The fries were big and thick.  

I have never had romesco before but seeing as it is made up of nuts, roasted garlic olive, oil, and peppers - all things I love - then I think I'll be eating it again.

Nick also ordered two meat dishes which he said were good - but I don't care about meat so we'll skip that.

Dinner was so good we couldn't skip dessert.  

Nick ordered "Lemon and Cinnamon Doughnuts with Coco Nib icecream" (4.75) and I ordered "Twice Baked Bitter Chocolate Cake with Marcona almonds and fresh mint icecream" (5.25).  

My highschool job at Busken Bakery means I have an expertly developed doughnut palate - and  these doughnuts did not disappoint.  

They were light, airy, fresh, and covered in cinnamon and sugar.  

My chocolate cake was thick and fudgey, very dark and bitter, not for the faint of heart but perfect for real chocolate lovers like myself.  

The fresh mint icecream was the most impressive though - made on site - the mint flavor was so fresh you could taste the mint leaves.  
It was as if someone had just picked some mint and mixed it up with the best vanilla icecream ever.  

It was, dare I say it.....?  

Better than Graeter's.     

And for 63 pounds that was our meal at Salt Yard.  

An exceptional restaurant in a sea of overwhelming mediocre British establishments.  

Next time I'll try to remember my camera


Salt Yard is located near Goodge Street station.  
www.saltyard.co.uk