The Half Penny Public House

We just tried to have dinner at The Half Penny for the first time. We walked in no greeter so we went to the bar. We're told to find a table someone would be with us. We sat at a table watching people who came in after us getting service and we were ignored for over 30 minutes. We finally had enough and left and will not come back.

Excellent French dip, salad was a nice spring green mixed, and creme brulee was very tasty. Comfortable, relaxed atmosphere. Will return.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

Great place to casually catch up with friends. Grab a beer, a bite, or a cocktails. This place delivers.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Amazing place for lunch! Great staff and good vibes. I always get the club sandwich and it is delicious.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Cam is phenomenal as always.

Super awesome place, great food and service. The people that work there are the coolest around

We went to ‘Half Penny’ Tavern in Salem on St Patricks Day 2025, from a referral in FB group ‘SalemEats’. It was a festive day, they had live music at lunch time. The layout was easy to socialize and the decor inside was fun and comfortable. Cold beer, good appetizers and friendly wait staff. Highly recommend! Lots of free parking.

Upon entering the establishment after placing an order through the phone, I approached the server at the bar who was respectful during service however I noticed in the kitchen there was ruckus & people yelling, possibly singing? While the bartender was approachable & set a friendly tone/atmosphere in the kitchen however did not. A 5$ tip was left on the table for the mannerisms of the bartender, upon leaving with our food & quite literally driving away someone comes running after screaming that “they” (the bar/kitchen) forgot our mash potatoes. I make it home & unbox my food, I ordered “The Half Penny” burger I immediately threw the bacon away as it looked cooked on the outside & nearly uncooked in the center(This is a pass fine as i didnt exclaim my preference) as I mentioned before I placed an order online with special instructions to not include tomato’s which they did correctly, but I also noticed there were pickles on my burger which is not included in the menu. While im appreciative that they made correction of the missing food items although given the atmosphere of the bar & the obvious unprofessionalism in the kitchen I will not be purchasing food here again.

The food was very fresh. Stayed hot you can tell its not microwaved. Gordon Ramsey would most likely approve.

Food was tolerable.
Chicken Fried Steak.
Frozen out of the box. Canned and bland gravy. Deep fried potato chunks.
I expected better.
Lots of staff engaged in deep cleaning.
The type of deep cleaning that is normally done during closed hours.
Chemical smells were abundant.
After reading some reviews, I get it.
Live and learn.

Thursdays Rib special is great! Traeger grilled ribs excellent.

Great breakfast, great staff and a lot of fun.

Miss Murray in her post is totally wrong as I being there the people she talked about was at a table for three and there was two of them there. As they had dinner desert and had been buying drinks waiting for the music. New owner asked them to leave because she wanted their table and kept harassing them to leave and at one point threatened to call the police
And all they were doing was waiting for the music to start and still buying drinks. Thank god new owner will be gone in one month and new owners take over. Present owner will be going to take over restaurant at santiam golf course in Stayton oregon and I would warn anyone to think twice before going there.

Food was great!

Good spot to stop and enjoy a meal and drink. Bloody Mary had a nice smooth kick