There is no such thing as a dearth of pizza spots in Mumbai, leaving the curious pizza lover spoilt for alternative. From inexpensive and fashionable staples to healthful artisanal variations, the town has locations catering to varied pizza preferences. So how does one stand out and entice foodies to return? The reply doesn’t must be overly sophisticated. Cross The Salt, a brand new pizza vacation spot in Fort, exhibits that it is all about thoughtfulness and method. Our current dinner on the cafe allowed us to style a few of its signature dishes and we skilled a pleasant convergence of flavour and texture.
Photograph Credit score: Cross The Salt
Co-founders Kruti Sanghvi and Vishal Shah first established Cross The Salt as a pizza supply kitchen throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Kruti grew to become a self-taught chef after quitting her job as a biomedical engineer. Working out of Vile Parle, the cloud kitchen specialised in indulgent Chicago-style deep-dish pizzas and Vienna-style thin-crust pizzas. The previous was one thing Kruti was particularly excited to ship to Mumbaikars. After forming a loyal buyer base everywhere in the metropolis, the couple determined to take their enterprise to the following stage and arrange a dine-in institution providing its bestsellers and different progressive dishes.
Ultimately, Cross The Salt opened the doorways of its cafe in June 2024 in a heritage constructing in South Mumbai’s Fort space – located in a bylane reverse St. Thomas Cathedral. It’s possible you’ll miss it whereas strolling down the extra fashionable streets of this historic neighbourhood. However that is the joys of discovering a hidden gem which is seemingly tucked away in plain sight. Contained in the institution, the decor exudes simplicity and luxury by its checkerboard flooring and seating with B&W stripes. The well-lit house has an informal and heat vibe, creating an environment for rest by meals. These eager to seize a fast chew and drink may sit on the espresso bar reverse the entryway.
Photograph Credit score: Cross The Salt
The totally vegetarian menu options sharing plates, calzones, tartines, burrata plates, grilled cheese sandwiches and non-alcoholic drinks, aside from the 2 signature sorts of pizzas. The drinks embody specialty coffees, artisanal sizzling brews and chilly coffees by the homegrown model Koinonia Espresso Roasters. We started our meal with a beneficiant portion of the Avocado & Grapefruit Salad, whose wholesomeness contrasted with the indulgence of the Spaghetti Cheese Croquettes. Whereas the cafe does not serve pasta, its different use as a filling is enjoyable and gratifying (there’s additionally a pizza full of Mac & Cheese on the menu). Lots of the appetisers function bread bases, however the croquettes are among the many few exceptions.
Photograph Credit score: Cross The Salt
As we took our time deciding our pizza orders, we sipped on the Chamomile Blue Pea Iced Tea – which turned out to be a fairly polarising drink at our desk. It is a distinctive mixture that will win you over or could appear too weird to style. A much less dangerous alternative is the refreshing Black Currant Iced Tea with a inexperienced tea base. Our favorite beverage discovery of the night was the Oko-Caribe Iced Latte, made with the eponymous cacao from the Dominican Republic. The chilly mocha superbly balanced the efficiency of the chocolate and low. It additionally had a refined trace of bitterness that we beloved.
Photograph Credit score: Cross The Salt
Among the many choices for the Chicago-style Double Crust Deep Dish Pizza, we chosen the San Gennaro (stuffed with onions, roasted pink peppers, banana peppers, marinated black olives and jalapenos). All of the deep-dish pizzas listed below are made with a wealthy San Marzano sauce and entire milk mozzarella. Our server lifted a slice from the pan to the plate and the sight of the stringy ‘cheese pull’ appeared like one thing out of a foodie dream. As we bit into the crust and thru the layers, we closed our eyes in pure enjoyment. The crust was stable sufficient to hold the load with out contributing a lot heaviness to the pizza. Regardless of the obvious decadence of the dish, the freshness and stability of the substances ensured we did not really feel unpleasantly full after consuming a lot.
Photograph Credit score: Cross The Salt
The pizza that adopted was additionally a testomony to the mastery of method at Cross The Salt. Among the many signature Skinny Crust Pizzas, we selected the Hawaiian Barbeque. It is the one one on this class that does not function a San Marzano sauce. Detractors of “pineapple on pizza” might disagree, however when executed nicely, this fruit can lend an exquisite complexity to this beloved deal with. And the model right here is proof. The sweetness of the juicy marinated pineapple (complemented with grilled onion rings and clean barbeque sauce) clashed deliciously with the warmth of inexperienced chillies and pink paprika. The opposite side that wowed us was the buttery and flaky base, which was paying homage to a crispy croissant. It was a notch above a daily skinny crust, because it added one other dimension to the pizza with out stealing the highlight from the toppings.
Photograph Credit score: Cross The Salt
For dessert, we tried the Burnt Basque Cheesecake, which was good however wanted a creamier texture. We didn’t get to attempt the savoury dessert named after the model because it was over by the tip of our dinner. However we relished a heavenly bowl of Salted Caramel Gelato instead.
Cross The Salt is nicely definitely worth the hike to Kala Ghoda and is luckily positioned just some hundred metres behind the Flora Fountain. These already frequenting the world ought to reap the benefits of having such a spot of their proximity. And people who can not make it to the cafe can savour the delights at house (inside the prolonged supply radius). The pizzas are recognized to journey fairly nicely, and it is a level of delight for the model, we’re informed.
The place: 10, Calcot Home, behind Bombay Home, Kala Ghoda, Fort, Mumbai.
