Roberts Crossing

With all the usual suspects in downtown Salem we were looking for something different with a little more punch and sophistication and we found that and more at Robert’s. The restaurant itself is tucked away making you feel far from the city, a nice quiet surprise. It’s home is an old house which makes you feel as if you’ve just arrived for dinner at a friends house. Cheery pleasant staff started the experienced off on a positive note. The menu was incredible and had something for everyone. For a started, their jalapeño poppers have changed my view on what a popper should qualify as. A whole jalapeño in the most delicate and crispy fried shell with a creamy combination of real cheeses. The creamy aioli dressing was the perfect combo and I found myself eating the whole plate. The Cesar side salad was what you hope all Cesar’s would look like, beautiful green leafy romaine already tossed and a lemon infused dressing with Parmesan. For dinner I was intrigued by the combination of cheeses for the Mac N Cheese and opted to add chicken. The chicken had a beautiful crunchy sear on it which added a nice smoky flavor against the creamy cheeses. The penne was cooked perfectly and smothered in a combination of strong and creamy cheeses that all melted together in perfect harmony. A restaurant that takes this much pride in its food and menu is hard to find but very much appreciated!

We had a delightful meal at Roberts. My wife had the Mediterranean Salmon which was fantastic. I had lamb chops which were the special for the day and they were very flavorful, tender, and not gamely. Jeff said they weren’t gamely because they had been marinated overnight in Boneyard IPA and spices. The broccoli was also very fresh and tasty without garlic. We’re new to Salem and so far this is the best restaurant in the area. We’ll definitely be back.

We decided to try this restaurant based upon Unilocal reviews. We were mildly disappointed. The service was excellent. The food… not even close.
We ordered the pulled pork fries which sounded good as described on the menu. The actual food was a mound of soggy french fries covered with pork drenched in bar-​b-​q sauce… NOT a good combo. We each ordered a separate dinner salad, each was served in a tiny bowl making the salad difficult to eat without spilling. The salads were nothing special and resembled pre-​made salads I have seen sitting on cafeteria shelves waiting for someone to grab as they move along sliding a melamine tray. Thus far into the meal the appetizer and salad did not match Unilocal reviews or the ambience presented by the staff service and interior design of the restaurant.
Then came the entrees… mine was Seafood Stew and was good… not delicious but good. My husband ordered the Marlin and couscous special. He did comment on the fennel bed for the Marlin being tasty, but overall the rest of the entrée was just okay.
I was the only one ordering dessert and I will say it was the only item I thought deserved higher than a 2 star rating. This was the Crème Brulee… yummy!

This place has 1950s charm and great food. The onion risotto was perfect, pork chop cooked to perfection, great selection of menu items. The dining room is not crowded, lots of space between the tables. It is pricy, so I wouldn’t go often, but it’s great for a special occasion. I would not recommend it for young children.

One of my favorites ! I love this place. They have delicious food and great specials. I would go dressed in nicer clothes even though you could go dressed casual. The prices are a little higher than average but it is worth it. The restaurant has a beautiful country upper class look to it!

Service was great. We sat next to a really loud table so didn’t get to enjoy the ambience.
Hot bread with butter — delicious
Pulled pork fries — delicious. Fries were fried just right.
Fisherman’s stew — it was okay. Not amazing. Not horrible.
American Kobe steak — steak wasn’t flavorful. Had better steak.
Truffle mushroom risotto — great flavor, but risotto might be under cooked. It was a bit el dente.
Wild shark steak special with mango and blackberry raspberry sauce — didn’t taste the mango. The blackberry raspberry sauce was too sweet. Got to the middle of the steak, it was raw. Literally. We cut through it and the tendons were stringy out of the steak. We were hungry but sent it back and the waitress said it was cooked medium but they threw the fish back on the grill for us. Came back cooked medium this time, at least for us. Restaurant gave us a comp dessert for the inconvenience.
Fast forward 12 hours — my boyfriend visited bathroom at least four times last night and curling in bed. He had the shark special. My stomach hurts but not running to the bathroom though. I had tried everything. This is day one of our 10 day road trip. No bueno.
One star for the pain we are feeling. Ow.

Nice ambiance. Quiet, intimate setting. Service was great, friendly and prompt. Good drinks, but the food was bland. I expected more flavor. We had the Berry Brie chicken and Cajun Alfredo. Food was lukewarm and definitely wouldn’t order again for the price.

Took my sweetheart here for dinner last weekend. My favorite place in Salem for a nice quiet romantic atmosphere. We literally felt like we were alone in this restaurant, just the two of us.
The service was outstanding as usual. I had the Halibut over risotto, and both were delicious. My lady had the prawns and mashed potatoes. The seasoning was perfect.
Highly recommended for a night out with that someone special

I was visiting my parents in Salem and my dad decided to take us to this spot for dinner. It was, hands down, the most incredible meal I’ve had in a LONG TIME! I ordered the parmesan crusted halibut, which was a special, but will be added to the menu. I’ve never had halibut like that before, easily the best dining experience in Salem!
The server, Tami, offered incredible service. The atmosphere was dim, calm, and comfortable — really could be a family setting or a romantic setting.
I live in Portland and this dining experience was well worth the drive — I’ll do it again!

The sea scallops are to die for! Very unique ambience with excellent service and delicious foods makes this place a must bust!
The tour of the place unveiled its rich history!

According to Unilocal,this is one of the better places in Salem. Given how dumpy Downtown Salem is, I can believe it.
We had the brie and walnut appetizer, which was nice. The burger got very high marks. The mac and cheese is a-​ok, with a unique smokey taste. The Mediterranean salad is also a solid option — I liked the capers and the basil, which are kind of unique for a Greek salad. The feta cheese isn’t very strong, unfortunately, but there are plenty of kalamata olives.
The ambiance is kind of bistro, or tries to be, but it’s definitely not fancy. Certain items are a bit pricey, but it’s probably worth the extra $ to eat somewhere away from downtown. Service was very friendly, though the wine knowledge was a little bit questionable.

It was a beautiful drive out to the restaurant from downtown Salem. Almost missed the turn because I wasn’t expecting the place in such a small area. I was debating between the the Fish N Chips and meatloaf. Went with the Fish because I’m a conniessure. I was expecting slabs of fish, but instead received fish sticks. They didn’t taste like fresh fish and seemed to be something I could take out of the freeze. Maybe I caught them on a bad day. The fries were great and staff was wonderful. I will go back to try the meatloaf.

Went to Roberts Crossing today, order meatloaf dinner, the mashed potatoes & meatloaf were both delicious, the rolls were nice and soft, the wife ordered salmon with berry sauce, she loved it. Will be back.

We just left Roberts Crossing after an absolutely fabulous Father’s Day dinner. It was a most wonderful & unexpected dining experience made fun, interesting and memorable because of our smart and lovely server Kirstie. She recommended great food choices (though I think we would have loved everything on the menu), was attentive and helpful, and even offered to sing to us! We felt appreciated and part of the family.
While the food was excellent, what impressed us most was the ambience and the friendliness of the staff. The lighting was wonderful, complete with soft-​light lamps on the tables, the dining rooms have the appropriate number of tables in them so you don’t feel cramped, and the ceilings had acoustic sound-​absorbing panels so the room was peaceful and conversation was easy.
We started with steamer clams and crusty baguettte. The Honoree Dad had the Sirloin steak dinner and Boneyard IPA. I had the sea scallops topped with crab which (and I don’t say this lightly, as I have eaten scallops at least 100 times) were the best I’ve ever had. The plates were beautiful, portions generous, and flavors blended and balanced expertly.
We will be back. I’d come here every week if I lived closer! Thank you Kirstie and all for a first-​rate dining experience.

I stopped on a whim. I pulled into the back and saw a full parking lot. I almost left but decided to stay. From the back I saw a sign that said «bar entrance». This is more my taste, being alone and just after an 8 mile hike in the forest.
Inside it was quite pleasant. I made a mistake of sitting at the end of the bar with the AC. It nearly froze me out.
I got the pulled pork on sweet potato fries. Very tasty. Not as great of pulled pork as Wild Horse brewery in Hood River, but tasty. It was on a bed of sweet potato fries, had a halved stuffed jalapeño on top, with a drizzle of BBQ sauce. I finished with a seasonal berry crisp that had a scoop of ice cream. It was all perfect to eat and I’ll likely bring a date back here in the future.
The only disappointment was the beer. I got the Salem Aleworks seasonal ale and it was horrible. I only drank half of it and relied on my water for my meal. I can drink most ales, but this one was one-​dimensional in taste and lacking in any flavor other than lousy licorice crossed with paper.

Roberts crossing is a good little place but it’s out of the way. It is perfect for a romantic dinner as the lights are turned down creating a nice ambiance. They have a full service bar and pour good mixed drinks. They also serve an Arnold Palmer (½ iced tea & ½ lemonade.) which you don’t find to often. I chose the steak and my wife went with the pork chop. The steak was of average size and taste but my wife’s pork chop was huge. Both were plated with an artistic flair and rested upon a hill of mashed potatoes. The food tasted good but since we don’t live in the immediate area it’s just not good enough to go out of the way to eat there. Now if we happen to be in the area then it’s a different matter.

Stopped by from out of town. Cute and intimate setting.
For start we had a walnut & fried Brie salad. It was good, but over dressed. The husband got the soup which was supposed to be clam chowder from what the waitress told us, however it was a fisherman’s stew. He didn’t care for it too much. I had the filet mignon for my entrée. Good, tender but not too flavorful. Sides were pretty good too. The husband had the pork chop, unfortunately it was over cooked, but he still ate it.
Wait staff was very friendly and knowledgeable. I’d go back and give it another try.

Nice ambience, food okay.
We ordered risotto, clams and pear salad. A little off with the tastes. Seems more like a steak and baked potato place.
My husband liked his salad and bar plate which consisted of steak bites, shrimp and two kinds of cheeses. These were presented really well and tastes were good for him.
Fun stop off the beaten path for. Traveler on I-​5.

We’ve only been there once so far and, I’ll be honest, before being seated, I told my husband «well I’m never coming back here!» We had made a 7:00 pm reservation a week in advance and still didn’t get seated until 7:15. As we later discovered, the chef’s talent is exceptional!
We started with the sun dried tomato and artichoke dip which was served with a few crackers and plenty of toasted focaccia wedges. I thought I’d prefer the crackers but the bread was the true winner. It was light and airy, a perfect vehicle for the dip.
I asked for the Gorgonzola steak salad with the risotto of the day — which was a sherry & onion version — while my husband ordered the scallops with a Caesar salad to start.
This risotto was amazing. This is the very first restaurant risotto that I’ve found to be worthy of bringing home leftovers. Most restaurant risotto is just glorified rice. These guys make it every single day and they know what they’re doing. My husband really enjoyed the scallops.
We shared a cremé brûlée and I was impressed on two fronts. This was literally our fourth attempt to eat cremé brûlée at a restaurant in Salem in less than a year. Every other time, we were told «we’re out of cremé brûlée.» Roberts Crossing had it on the menu and actually brought it on our table! Secondly, the chef made this stuff in-​house. I have never before seen vanilla bean seeds in cremé brûlée before and this was laden with them. Absolutely delicious.
The CHEF is the reason to visit Roberts Crossing!

It was not the lovely, perfect evening I had anticipated to celebrate my son’s 50^th birthday. We encountered several issues during dinner.
No bread was served initially, which was brought to our attention mid-​meal when our server asked if we’d like a refill. My husband’s first glass of wine had «turned» and was replaced by our server. The cook had prepared the wrong entrée for my husband and thus it was brought 7 or 8 minutes after the other entrees – always awkward.
Because of these issues our server said she would «take care» of our desserts. We thought that meant they would be complimentary, but they were on the bill.
Three meals were delicious – Salmon with ginger sauce, scallops and pork chop. The scallops were reported to be the best my daughter-​in-​law had ever had. My husband’s chicken with lemon herb was good, but not wonderful.
And my last problem, was one I caused myself. At dinner my son gave me a gift – a small bottle of Mexican vanilla from his recent trip. I put it near my purse under the table. When we left I forgot the vanilla at the restaurant but remembered on the ride home. I immediately called the restaurant (15 min) but they couldn’t find it. I went to the restaurant the next day, but it was gone. As we were one of the last groups in the restaurant, I doubt a customer foraged under the table and picked it up. Rather, I expect a server or bus person is now enjoying Mexican vanilla!
So an evening with problems. Would we go back? Perhaps we would try one more time.