cindy b.

After a recent episode of "Chronicle", which included a segment on the
magnificent, family-owned "Salem Cross Inn" out in West Brookfield
(Rte. 9, up past Sturbridge), a friend and I made reservations and
drove out there yesterday to have an early dinner. It's good we went
early because they ended up closing early for the Pat's playoff game.

The drive was problem-free despite the rain, the location is
absolutely magnificent, the history is real and impressive, the people
were great, the atmosphere was wonderful... and most of the food, as
we had expected, was just fine. We had decided to go for their
all-in, soup-to-dessert, Sunday dinner special. The main course meat
offered that day was roast pork... one of my favorites... which we
imagined would be a real roast pork cooked to perfection. But
instead... even though *all* of the other food was fine... the roast
port was literally a few thin, tasteless, deli-style slices (clearly
right off a slicing machine) with a little thin canned or mix gravy
(to which a hint of apple had been added)... apparently warmed in a
microwave oven. It was both slimy and tasteless. It was the single
biggest shock we'd had in a respected, television program-featured,
destination restaurant in a long, long time. We were literally
speechless.

This trip out to West Brookfield had been intended as a dry run prior
to planning for a large family get-together in March. We were so
disappointed in the main course meat... after everything else was so
utterly perfect... that we almost cried with disappointment.

Has anyone had a similar experience with the Salem Cross Inn? All the
reviews on-line seem to focus on their spectacular, all-you-can-eat,
prime rib dinner extravaganzas and other special events. None ever
talk about the Sunday dinner specials... and I'm wondering if that's
where we went so incredibly wrong. Still, I cannot take a chance on a
large family outing and then find out again that we are getting
cafeteria-grade lunch meat when we expected and paid good money for
the real deal. Help!

Cindy

smokey

I've never been there, but I forwarded your message to them because they
seem like nice people with an otherwise charming place and I felt badly that
this problem might cause them and you both to miss a great experience.
Here's the response -- maybe you would like to contact her directly:

"I can't thank you enough for bringing this to my attention. I only wish
that people would speak up at the time of the problem so that we could have
addressed and fixed it at that point. Could you please give me the address
of that website I tried nefood.com and newenglandfood.com and didn't get
anything.

Thank you,
Heather Salem"

Smokey

cindy b.

You are right: They are nice people, everything else was great and it
is definitely a very charming place. That's why this one surprise
seemed so very strange... and why I asked the group for its collective
experience. I was ready to accept that it was my own fault for not
doing enough homework and ordering the wrong thing.

Coming from a restaurant family background myself, I tend not to be an
"in your face" complainer... and especially not when experimenting
with a restaurant in preparation for a family event. I want to know
what to expect *without" having to question or complain.

That being said, my experience appears to have been quite unique as
coworkers, friends and even other family members I've spoken with
since have had nothing but good things to say about this restaurant.
Leave it to me to order their first bad entree in 300 years. Such is
my luck these days.

Cindy

pete from boston

I'm glad you're bringing this place up at all. I used to pass by there
periodically and it sure is beautiful from the outside, and I'd always
wondered how it was inside. I'd kind of forgotten about it.