The Salt Bar

The Salt Bar is on one of Macclesfield’s cute cobbled streets and is one of the nicest places in Macclesfield to eat. It opened just over a year ago and my boyfriend and I have visited a couple of times. Once for coffee and a daime bar cake (I wanted a cinnamon bun, and they sadly did not have any) — it was yummy and once for dinner.
I have no idea whether the food is traditionally Scandinavian or just influenced by Scandinavia, nevertheless it was delicious. For dinner there were three of us and we had a meat balls, veggies balls and something fishy. As a vegetarian the offerings for me as sometimes a little dull or predictable (usually chips and a starter) but the Salt Bar provided me with a variety of yummy choices, the veggie balls were chick pea balls with a nice tomatoe sauce and chips! The meat eaters reported that the meat balls were great and the fish delicious. The portions were also huge, which always makes me happy.
In terms of décor, the restaurant is delightful and feels rather scandi and has nice pictures on the wall and maybe a hint of Ikea (which I don’t see as a bad thing). The service is lovely and the staff are really friendly. Also, it is now getting busier and busier which is great for a local business, but not so good for me last week when I wanted to book a table for my visitors from the South.

After an evening that included several beers and a thorough exploration of Macclesfield, we’d definitely worked up a hunger. I was a bit worried that it’d be pushing our luck trying to find a decent place to eat at 7.30pm on a Saturday night with no reservation, and when we were both utterly clueless about what was available.
Turns out I was wrong, and The Salt Bar was exactly what we were looking for. An independent bistro offering Scandinavian cuisine, with a fairly meat and fish orientated menu. It was small enough to feel intimate and cosy, yet large enough to feel relaxed and have two spare seats available at the last minute. The waitress was super friendly when we inquired about not having a booking and gave us a seat in the window.
I ordered Kåldomar, which is a beefy-​porky-​cabbage wrapped dish and my OH ordered what can only be described as a sort of meatball bruschetta e.g. on toast. Now, my other half is a fan of what is officially termed «A square meal» whereas I’m all for picky bits — this meal satisfied both of us by serving two hearty main dishes with a few additional swedish pickled veg and garnishes on the side of our plates, nothing excessive, (think Wagamama style, when the menu states you get a few pickles) but these were a welcome and tasty surprise! Both dishes were very tasty and the meatballs were so heavenly, that I felt that my meat in the Kåldomar was slightly dry in comparison, it didn’t ruin my meal but I did get major meatball lust.
We stuck to beer and other than Swedish Åbro lager and Rekordelig, drinks-​wise they’ve interestingly chosen to support local breweries instead of opting for Scandiavian. Stocking a wide selection of pales, ales, bitters and stouts from both Wincle and RedWillow.
If I were to make any recommendations, it’d be about the music, The Salt Bar had a fantastic atmosphere and the ONLY thing that didn’t feel right was the music — generic mellow poppy chart tosh, pretty sure I heard Taylor Swift at one point *shudder*. Now I’m not suggesting that they have to be overly themed, but if they’re promoting Scandinavian cuisine then why not slap on some Scandi artists? Bit of Lykke Li, Neneh Cherry, The Cardigans, Peter Bjorn and John… etc. Would have been much more in keeping with the vibe in my opinion.