Salt

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

Where the Atlantic Sets the Table

Salt occupies a prime perch at The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, its dining room opening onto sweeping views of the dune-lined Atlantic. The setting is elegant without being stiff — a reimagined space that pairs a sophisticated main dining room with the Salt Lounge, a more relaxed corner for pre-dinner cocktails, small plates, and after-dinner desserts. For those who want the ocean closest, the Seaview Terrace offers al fresco dining beneath a coastal pergola, reserved exclusively for private gatherings of up to twenty guests.

The Chef Behind the Kitchen

The creative force here is Chef Okan Kizilbayir, who joined Salt in May 2021. His path to Amelia Island is worth knowing: recruited at a job fair in Turkey, he began his career at Westend Bistro in Washington, D.C. under Michelin-starred Chef Eric Ripert — the start of a 14-year mentorship. He later followed Ripert to Blue at The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman, and then to Le Bernardin, the three-Michelin-star landmark in New York City. In 2025, Chef Okan unveiled a completely reimagined menu for Salt's dining room and was awarded the prestigious Académie Culinaire de France title. His reputation as a skilled saucier is central to the experience: many dishes are finished with sauces poured tableside, and a tray of flavored salts arrives at the start of every meal as a quiet statement of intent.

The Food

Salt's contemporary coastal fine dining draws on both regional and global ingredients — truffles, caviar, pristine fish and shellfish — composed with French technique and personal touches that reflect Chef Okan's Turkish roots. On the à la carte menu, butter-baked halibut arrives with braised chicory and shrimp au poivre; Wagyu is plated with Japanese eggplant, mushrooms, and a gochujang emulsion; seared octopus comes with chickpea–black sesame purée and urfa aioli. Sevruga and Classic Osetra caviar are available by the ounce, and the pasta — tagliatelle with truffle butter — has become a quiet signature.

The five-course Chef's Tasting Menu ($195 per person, wine pairing $110) moves from seared yellowfin tuna with yuzu kosho and miso emulsion through lightly seared scallop, butter-baked halibut, and Wagyu, closing with a strawberry and lychee dessert built around rose ice cream and lychee consommé. Each course is matched to a specific wine, from a Ridge Grenache Blanc to a Far Niente Cabernet Sauvignon.

Dessert is where Chef Okan's background surfaces most personally. The baklava — pistachio and goat cheese crémeux with crème fraîche ice cream — is an explicit homage to his Turkish heritage. The apricot soufflé with salted honey anglaise and the chocolate passion fruit with almond caramel crunch round out a dessert list that takes the final course as seriously as the first.

Recognition

Salt holds a Forbes Travel Guide Four-Star rating and was selected for the 2026 MICHELIN Guide Florida — part of the first-ever statewide MICHELIN selection, chosen by anonymous inspectors for quality, consistency, and culinary excellence. Restaurant Manager Christopher Tegreeny received the 2026 MICHELIN Guide Florida Service Award, a recognition that reflects the front-of-house precision guests consistently note in reviews.