Saleya

This was a random find when I was in the neighborhood and hungry. I ordered the lamb merguez lasagna and it was absolutely fantastic. A really interesting combination of flavors. Prices were reasonable and the place is cute. The wait staff was friendly enough but not very attentive. The staff behind the bar was talking to each other rather than paying attention. Still, the food was excellent. My friend had the veggie lasagna and it was almost as good, but that Mediterranean/​Italian combo – wow.

Great deals for happy hour, drinks for six bucks? I’ll take it. The Molat was awesome, spicy with the perfect amount of sweetness and tequila.
Food was good as well. Must order: Brussel Sprout dish as well as the Carrot Cheesecake. Turned out to be cheaper than most city spots yet just as cute and tasty!

Stopped by for happy hour and love it from start to finish. Sampled 3 if the 4 signature cocktails and enjoyed them all… something for everyone, gin, rum, vodka, and tequila. I’m not a schiracha fan, which is what the glass is lined with for the tequila drink. Leave that part of and the drink is tasty! Spinach, bacon, and goat cheese pizzette… yummmmmm! Service was fast and very courteous. Have been talking with Shanan about having our company Christmas party here and have found him to be very responsive and helpful. Fantastic space upstairs if you’re looking for a private party too!

My friend and I came here for dinner. The place was crowded when we walked in but Thank God there’s a table for 2 right by the door so we were seated there. It’s a small dining place but there’s a lounge area upstairs. We headed there first but was told it’s closed. Oh well, next time. We had some happy hour drinks (molat? for $ 6 a cocktail happy-​hour) then we started reviewing the fancy menu and discovered some great mixture of a little bit of this and that. OK, I like that. We both had 2 different types of thin crust pizza Mediterranean-​Italian-​style from Pizzettes section. We shared a While Mushroom Truffle Oil pizza and a Spicy Shrimp Tomato pizza. A pizza is served on a wooden board with a small salad on the side, on the same board. The taste? What if I say I benefited from the meal, would you try it? The benefits included: a reasonable check, a smart and knowledgeable waiter (John), a delicious pizza, and a relaxed ambiance. I hardly come to Tribeca area to eat these days since I left the old job downtown. «Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in»…oh oh! *:p

The hummus was meh but everything else at this lower Manhattan Moroccan spot was excellent. The happy hour made me truly happy with $ 6 drink prices — what is this, Iowa? — for wine, beer, and cocktails. Try the Saleya cocktail for vodka, fresh ginger, pineapple, and lemon juice, very tasty and easy to drink. Or try the Molat for white tequila, blood orange, lime, agave, and sriracha, an outstanding drink. It is $ 6, you can’t go wrong. Thoughtful and friendly service, a nice bar plus spacious upstairs dining room, yummy tasting harira soup, good but a bit too salty sliders, and winning fries all were crowd pleasers.

Have been to Saleya a few times for HH (usually when I have time to kill and am in the area). Their wine and pizzas are great! And their service is always friendly and prompt.

Very cute place came for a quick lunch but yummy Mediterranean food with a friendly staff. Had the kefta sliders and their featured drink a Saleya with fresh ginger. It’s right by WTC and easily located in the middle of the block. They also offer seating outside too. Will definitely come back when I have more time to enjoy it!

Shannan was the best bartender ever. Good times and awesome drinks! You have to stop in.

I just started working in the financial district and am new to NYC (despite living across the Hudson for all of my life haha) so I’m excited to try new things. Never had Mediterranean food and this place was a great first try. I went on a Friday night around 7:30pm with a friend and was very happy with the attentive bar staff and host. We were seated after grabbing a drink at the bar fairly quickly, especially after not having a reservation.
For drinks, I had the Molat everyone raves about. It was well made but I think next time I’ll ask for no sugar around the rim. The drink is fine without it. My friend tried one of their gin cocktails and enjoyed it.
Started with the harissa wings and they literally fell off the bone. So tasty and full of flavor. My friend got the kefta sliders and fries while I opted their tomato and mozzarella pizzette and added spicy lamb sausage. The sliders were AMAZING and I was jealous I didn’t order that. My pizzette was great too, lamb was seasoned well and I love how the pizza was thin but not soggy from the tomato sauce and lamb.
I will definitely return and bring friends. Perfect way to end the work week.

Large upstairs bar/​lounge space with an awesome happy hour. Fun disco ball and other fun décor.
Had the croquettas (ended up getting a second order– delicious!), rigatoni, pizzetta, carrot cake and break pudding — all fantastic. Server was attentive, fun, and friendly.
Great girls night out or date spot that’s not pretentious!

Everything was top notch here — the cocktails ($ 6 during 4:30−7pm happy hour), ALL of the food, the brandy library-​like interior, and mix of outdoor/​indoor seating. Highlights: the Molat (blood orange margarita) and Kefta Sliders (lamb, beef, feta cheese, tomato, on a pita).
Both the Saleya (vodka, ginger, pineapple) and Molat were delicious. I’m sure the rest are equally so. The pasta, pizzette, and sliders were all so flavorful, crisp, fresh. We enjoyed the outdoor seating and the indoor is dimly lit with a brown cask/​alcohol library aesthetic. You can take anyone here and they’ll be impressed. Friends, coworkers, family, dates. Located in tribeca, it’s only open during the week, and the crowd seemed mostly a working type, though there’s always a mix. Highly highly reccomend going here for happy hour or a meal.

We’ve eaten at Saleya a couple of times and each time we love our meals. Tonight I had there Lasagna made with Lamb and my girlfriend had one of their Pizzettes made with goat cheese and basil leaves. They were both delicious and both came with a fabulous side salad. The wait staff there are extremely inviting and always right there if you need something. My only warning is that the place is small and as a result gets very loud when its filled to capacity. We could barely hear each other talk. Our first visit to this fine restaurant was
later in the evening and fairly deserted, so we enjoyed our meals in bliss then.

Though this was a super cute ambiance with a really nice bar, we left here disappointed. Kefta sliders were so salty and seemed raw on the inside. Waiter was nice enough to make them again stating that they are usually served medium (looked medium rare to me) and again they came out the same. The babaganoush was overly salty as well. With such great reviews I expected a better experience.
Wound up heading to Nish Nush after which was delicious and also reasonably priced.

Really good service and fast paced!
The people who work here are very friendly and nice so that really adds to your experience. The food was amazing!
Pizzette really good value and delicious!
Lasagna, a little small but still really good
Cocktails are amazing too!
Definitely try it out for happy hour

Great welcoming ambience with outdoor seating in the spring and summer and large windows that bring in a lot of light. Their décor is great as well. They have a large section upstairs for private parties (I’ve been here for after work happy hours).
So all pleasantries aside, this place gets 2 stars for lunch (or even for happy hour). Why? Because it is a small establishment with very little space or room to sit down properly and grab lunch. Even that aside, the wait is here is ridiculously long. If the restaurant only have about 10 tables, then why does it take 35 – 40 minutes to get food once the customer has already ordered.
I like the place for its décor, location and food (truffle pizza is on point). But for serving the FiDi /​Tribeca work crowd, this place does a terrible job. Its always crazy packed and your food takes forever to come out. If you can afford to take a longer lunch, then by all means check out Saleya, but if 1 hour is all you got, I suggest going somewhere else.

2.5 to 3 stars.
I recently visited Saleya for a lunch meeting.
I usually do not write at length about a restaurant’s décor nor do I go on about atmosphere but this is probably the first time I really liked the atmosphere in a restaurant. What I enjoyed about the atmosphere is it did not feel tight because of the super tall ceilings. It was spacious inside with a huge all glass front to let the natural light in. I quite enjoyed how bright the natural light was without being too sunny. Because of the light, I can see my food. YAY. I hate eating in the dark where I can’t even see my food. Thank God for some light!
I personally do not like when I have to read a 1,000-word essay about a restaurant’s décor or atmosphere so sorry about my rant about the atmosphere.
Anyways, moving on to the food. I ordered the fusilli pasta special from the chalkboard. It said it had spicy wild boar, broccoli rabe proscuitto. It was not spicy nor was there any proscuitto. I am not sure if the protein was wild boar either but I’ll assume it is. The dish was tasty but not worth the price they charged, $ 19. I read a couple of reviews where reviewers said it is «normal portioned» or «sensible portioned». I do not have a problem with «normal portions» but it should be priced accordingly. The little bit of pasta they served me is not worth $ 19. It was maybe at most a $ 10-​$ 12 dish. There was very little on the plate.
Why do some Unilocalers complain about huge portions? That is ridiculous to complain about huge portions! If a restaurant charges a lot, I expect the portions to be larger, IMHO. Not tiny little portions. My coworker’s pizzette is tiny for the price he paid. I know pizzette is a small pizza but for $ 14, it should have been bigger. If you can’t finish it, take it home.

Great bar, tons of wines and unique cocktails. Happy hour starts at 4. Saleya isn’t the largest space, so don’t come with a big crowd or for happy hour with too many of your coworkers.
best in small groups, and you’ll enjoy your night!

Went for dinner.
The service was fine. I know this is dramatic because it shouldn’t be a big deal but as soon as we sat down the waiter started pouring sparkling water, which wasn’t a big deal, but to just throw $ 7 water into the mix without asking me is weird.
The actual server was nice and quick. The falafel encrusted salmon was delicious. Cool place, nice vibe. I’ve never been during happy hour but I hear it’s a different crowd and is less quiet.

I went here for happy hour with a friend after work — amazing happy hour specials. We chose to go upstairs and sit in the lounge area where there is bar service only.
Nice happy hour selection of wines — 3 whites and 3 reds. I’m partial to red and tried all 3, at $ 6 per glass. There were also cocktails and beers on the happy hour menu that we didn’t try. The pizzettes were awesome. We tried 2. A regular one — tomato, basil, mozzarella — it was good. And one with goat cheese, spinach, and bacon — it was great. I’m not usually a big fan of goat cheese but this combination worked well. During happy hour, these are $ 5 each and a decent size to share (4 pieces).
I will definitely be returning here. This place has a great atmosphere for drinks after work or meeting a date.

Go for the happy hour! $ 5 drink deals, and cheap flatbread as well. Went to meet two friends there on a Thursday. When I got there, the downstairs was full (sad), so the host/​hostess directed me to the lounge upstairs.
«It’s like an Applebee’s with a discoball,» they said.
I walked up the stairs, wondering whether this wasn’t something I should flee. Sounds like a nightmare to me.
The upstairs was empty, save a group of coworkers taking up the corner. But then we ordered drinks and didn’t care anymore. I ordered something with tequila and sriracha. Very interesting. By the time the happy hour ended at 7, the place was pretty crowded. Also, the waitstaff was pretty funny.
I’m giving 4-​stars because the downstairs seemed pretty cute, and because the food and happy-​hour drinks were on point. Just make sure you can get a seat downstairs.