Exceptional salad starter in the restaurant can be different every day (8)

I believe the answer is:

specials

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'the restaurant can be different every day' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this definition defines the answer.

'exceptional salad starter' is the wordplay.
'exceptional' becomes 'special' ('special' can be a synonym of 'exceptional').
'starter' indicates taking the first letters.
The initial letter of 'salad' is 's'.
'special'+'s'='SPECIALS'

'in' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

I've seen this clue in the Irish Times (Crosaire) and the Irish Times.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.