I was visiting my family with my boyfriend over Christmas and New Years. We wanted a nice place to grab dinner before heading to First Night downtown on New Years Eve. Salt of the Earth has topped every Best of Dining in Pittsburgh list that I had seen. I called for a reservation and 5:30 PM and 10:30 PM were the only times available. We chose 5:30 PM but over the course of our dinner, we noticed several tables open. I would have much rather come at 7 or 8 so that was slightly irritating.
The food and ingredients are selected with care, one can see that from Salt's unique menu. The staff politely explained each ingredient I had questions about. For an appetizer, I had the celery soup and my boyfriend had the steak tartare. We could have easily split the steak tartare. Main courses - I had the duck breast while my boyfriend had the lamb shank. The dishes were really big but this is Pittsburgh so I get it. However, I had hoped from their selection of herbs, meats and preparation methods that the dishes flavor would have been more condensed within each bite. For dessert, we had the deconstructed s'mores which was nice and reminded me of backyard bonfires.
For the price, staff politeness, creativity of the menu and taste of each plate, I would say it was okay to good. 3.5 out of 5 stars.