Salon 5 score by the 5D Sensograph of placescases.com: 4.4 out of 5.

November 2019

 

Seen             

Felt               

Heard          

Smelled       

Tasted             

Reading time: 3 min

Fast mode reading time (bold and coloured text): 1 min

Of course, I picked the restaurant carefully. I read on its website, I saw the menu, and it was approved by our entire company 4 adults and 4 children.

We gave the address to the drivers of the two taxis and headed to Zemun, where Salon 5 was located.

The taxis left us on a boulevard and imagine our astonishment when we looked around and saw nothing that resembled a restaurant. There wasn’t a plate, a sign or at least some colorful lights. Even people and cars rarely passed. The drivers assured us that this was the address and left. We were walking around with our google maps but we saw nothing looking like Salon 5. Then we called the restaurant. It turned out that there was a big surprise for us. Read further what it was about. 

See ….

…. The problem is that you don’t see anything in the beginning- it became clear that there was not the slightest sign of a restaurant around. So we were instructed on the phone to go to an entrance of the building in front of us and to get on the first floor.

…. When the door opened, to our greatest surprise we entered an apartment. I felt like I was going to a family home- living room furniture in the style of a Socialist times, a bar with drinks like in past times, retro amplifier, here and there artefacts from the Western European lifestyle and culture, protruding against the backdrop of the Soc interior.

In general, the interior was a provocative combination of furniture and decorations from the Soc, combined with the features of a fine dining restaurant.

In the toilet was a rescue yellow vest from an airplane, leaning on the wall surfboard, lined dusty old bottles of champagne. It was just like in the old days, when people were collecting bootless from Western drinks, one could obtain only with great difficulty in the Eastern European countries as memorabilia for a cherished moment. However, some of bottles were part of the assortment of the house. It was not possible to figure out what was just an artistic décor of the past and where our reality of modernity began.

The host who welcomed us was in a sort of a uniform and this already reminded me that I was in a restaurant. In one room of the apartment there were other customers, so we entered the next door. Our welcoming person, who turned out to be the waiter, told us that the idea was the establishment to be a hidden place. Besides this creates a suspense for the customers, there are other benefits for the owners, which I will not comment here.

…. Really quite a short list of dishes- this usually speaks to me about a careful approach to food, well-chosen products, masterfully prepared.

 Because of the difficult discoverability of the place and that I was almost considering visiting another restaurant in the vicinity, one heart dropped.

Feel ….

…. The impression of mystery with the location of the restaurant gives way to surprise, curiosity, nostalgic joy, amazement, massive provocation to expectations and perceptions!

…. Good service- the waiter was old-school, slightly familiar with the children, explained in detail and in Balkan cordial manner the menu, didn’t go into great depths about techniques and ideas behind the dishes and to be honest there was not much to describe about. The proposals were limited;

…. You feel like you’re not in a restaurant, but in someone’s home;

…. Very high prices for small portions, and the food was good, but not as good as expected of such highly positioned establishment. The family paid the equivalent of circa EUR 100, we drank only 1 glass of alcohol per person. The children’s portion of pasta was EUR 8, but they had to double it, since the quantity was not enough even for them.

Hear ….

…. A strange mix of music– old pop pieces, ethno, there was no particular style;

…. The speech in this apartment was mostly foreign language, not Serbian and there is reason for this. Read below.

Movie watching time: 1:25 min.

Smell ….

…. Enjoy truffle in the puree of parsnips;

…. The aroma of coffee in the dessert tiramisu;

…. Like every high end establishment in Serbia, the brandy is very good and it is worth ordering. Its scent is unique no matter of what fruit it was made of.

Taste ….

…. The menu is simplistic, few suggestions, few products, 2-3 flavors, no more. I ordered foie gras, which was delicious, but the bread underneath was soaked a lot with oil. The price- circa EUR 22.

…. The children ordered the pasta Bolognese twice, they liked it, but the main reason was that the portions were very small;

…. Tiramisu- it was really good.

Definitely Salon 5 is one of the most interesting as an experiential establishment I have ever visited. This candid provocation with the mysterious location and all the references to the typical socialist home, has left memories for long times and for telling friends and acquaintances. The place is suitable mostly for expats and Serbs who bring foreigners to a business dinner. Typical Serbian family wouldn’t come here. I have another post about a place where you can see the Belgrade families dining there and also foreigners who have learned it from the locals. Read more in my post Traditional Serbian cuisine with a modern interpretation in Mala Fabrika Ukusa, Belgrade.

Unfortunately, the lack of originality in the cuisine and the too small portions for the high prices knocked out two hearts from the category for Taste. I have nothing against high prices, if there is quality behind them, but here it was not enough.

Before you rush to visit Salon 5, I recommend that you try other restaurants reviewed in my blog

For example, if you’re visiting Zemun and you want to eat there, pull over at Sharan and have a fish soup or some fish.

You can also walk along Beton Hala and dine/party in Ambar or Toro. I recommend the endless dinner. See the publications Endless Feast in AmBar, Belgrade, Serbia and Feast and fiesta in South American style at Toro Latino Gastrobar, Belgrade, Serbia . There are many other interesting places, but I think to summarize all the information in one post. Expect it in the next couple of days.

If you are already planning a trip to Belgrade I recommend that you book your stay right here .For your convenience, I added a booking.com box, which refers directly to their site. I guarantee you’re going to use all your genius discounts and privileges they would offer to you. Just enter the dates of your trip, then hit the Search button and voila. In addition, booking.com are doing their best to make sure that your expectations as a customer are fulfilled. I’ve described an example about the latter in  my story about our stay in Shangri-La hotel in Singapore.

Booking.com

If you are curious to visit Salon 5 restaurant in Belgrade, you can find it on Google map here. Click on the red pin with which I marked its whereabouts and then choose Directions. It’s good to call them in advance to ask exactly which entrance in the building is theirs and the exact door, you can even ask them to meet you on the stairs.

 

A: Avijaticarski Trg 5, 1 floor, Belgrade 11080, Serbia

T: +381 11 2614893, +381 64 549 68 33

E: reservation@salon5.rs

There is a booking form on their website.

Open hours: From Wednesday to Sunday from 15h to 0h.

If you need a rent-a-car, you can book it here in the box of the largest booking platform.

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Do you ever wonder how some places are so very different from others in service, environment, as a general experience? This means you are also interested like me in the topic of The Experience Economy by Pine and Gilmore. I constantly add to my collection reviews about those of them, which practice its principles, no matter deliberately or accidentally. If you are curious to understand which are they, explore category The Experience Economy.