I didn’t count on the supply from Solex Catsmo to really feel like an invite, however that’s precisely the way it arrived—a sublime, chilled promise wrapped in insulated precision. As a meals critic who’s spent the higher a part of a decade dissecting extravagant menus and humble road snacks with equal reverence, I’ve turn out to be virtually suspicious of something that boasts “premium” and “artisanal” in the identical sentence. These phrases have been abused, rinsed, and wrung dry by advertising and marketing groups in all places.
However Solex Catsmo… they put on these phrases like they’ve earned them. And after this week, I can affirm—they’ve.
The model had despatched me two of their cornerstone choices: their famed smoked salmon and their very own Noir Caviar. I cleared my schedule. You don’t casually style merchandise from an organization whose whole id is constructed on freshness, authenticity, and a near-obsessive respect for correct method.
Picture Credit score: Bridget Mulroy
The Smoked Salmon
Let me begin right here as a result of—full disclosure—I assumed I knew smoked salmon. Seems, I knew the concept of smoked salmon: the type filtered by means of grocery chains and uniform processing traces. What I didn’t know was the style of fish that had by no means touched a freezer, smoked inside hours of arrival, and vacuum-sealed like a secret ready to be instructed.
Solex Catsmo operates with an Outdated-World-meets-Upstate-New-York ethos: sluggish, respectful, exacting. Their cold-smoked slices soften with the softness of moist silk; their hot-smoked variations flake beneath even minimal stress, each bit carrying a depth of taste you merely can’t fabricate. They don’t warehouse product. They don’t freeze it. They smoke, pack, and ship—with the form of confidence solely manufacturers with actually excessive requirements can maintain.
I gave it a 9.1/10, and actually, I stand by that with each palms. In case you’re balling on a price range, it’s an opulent splurge that really delivers. In case you’re already dwelling within the “I order oysters on Tuesdays simply because” bracket, that is the sort of smoked salmon you stockpile in multiples.
However then got here the caviar.
The Noir Caviar Expertise
Once I opened the tin of Noir Caviar, it gave off that unmistakable sheen—the shiny, charcoal pearls that catch the sunshine like they’re posing. I’ve tasted all the things from budget-friendly roes at dive bars to opulent, champagne-cooled tins that price greater than hire, so I used to be prepared for something.
Noir sits someplace particular within the spectrum: accessible with out sacrificing magnificence, indulgent with out tipping into conceitedness. It’s the caviar that wishes everybody on the desk to really feel included—connoisseurs and newcomers alike.
The flavour hits with a clear salinity at first, a brightness virtually just like the crisp snap of chilly air on a winter morning. Then, slowly, the richness builds: buttery, oceanic, with a refined nutty undertone that lingers simply lengthy sufficient to make you chase it with one other chew. The feel is the place it actually received me over—agency with out being stiff, delicate with out collapsing.
Is it the very best caviar I’ve ever had? No. But it surely’s rattling good. It’s dependable. It’s sincere. It’s the sort of caviar you’ll be able to convey to a cocktail party with out worrying somebody will decide you—or worse, fake they “perceive caviar” greater than you do.
I gave Noir an 8/10. A stable, well-earned 8—the sort of ranking which means I’d completely purchase it once more.
The Solex Catsmo Universe
Right here’s the place the model will get particularly fascinating: they’re not a one-trick salmon-and-caviar pony. Their catalog reads like a curated dream pantry—smoked seafoods, charcuterie from small New York artisans, sustainably raised Wagyu from Kentucky, worldwide cheeses chosen with monk-like devotion, plus oils, vinegars, syrups, spices, and truffle merchandise from Umbria.
It’s like stepping right into a chef’s fantasy market. Each product feels intentional. Nothing feels lazy.
And that intention is uncommon.
Remaining Ideas
Making an attempt Solex Catsmo’s smoked salmon and Noir Caviar felt much less like sampling and extra like being reminded of why I began writing about meals within the first place—to expertise craftsmanship that respects substances, to savor meals made by individuals who aren’t speeding, and to share these discoveries with everybody, whether or not your price range is small, beneficiant, or downright decadent.
So sure—Solex Catsmo impressed me. In a world filled with shortcuts, they nonetheless select the lengthy highway. And the lengthy highway tastes higher.
