Great town to visit. Went to Mac and Bob's for an excellent dinner and then to the Salem coliseum to see Alison Krauss and Union Station perform. Excellent show and the venue as easy to get in and out of,
778rn
This was my first time at Mac and Bobs. I don't know his name but, we had an older gentleman as our server and he was EXCELLENT! He was very polite, prompt, and kept up with our table of six. My food could have come out burnt to a crisp and it would've been okay because he was so nice! Fortunately, my food wasn't burnt to a crisp. Our table got a variety of foods - from fish, to sandwiches, and chili. All of the dishes came out well and tasted good. This variety of dishes is one of the reasons we chose to go - something for everyone. It's clear why this restaurant has been a staple of Salem for decades - good food and excellent service!
607lydiav
This restaurant is much larger than it looks from the outside. They have added on space over time with their increased popularity. There are plenty of rooms with inside and outside seating. The menu was expansive . The service was quick and friendly. My husband and I split a delicious fried chicken sandwich for lunch, which was reasonably priced. There was a steady flow of to-go pickups. Ample parking on the side and in the back.
Dan 'n Anne D
Despite an ordinary setting, the restaurant hit above its weight for food and cocktails, especially the sesame encrusted tuna.
B. Dennis
Haven't been to Mac and Bob's in years, and it was as good as I remember. The menu is huge, and everyone at our table enjoyed their lunch of fish tacos and a quesadilla. I had the soup and quiche, and both were flavorful and tasty. The service was exceptional. I asked about the soup of the day, and our server brought everyone a sample before ordering. I ordered the soup, and it was exceptional, with a tomato base, finely minced chicken, with lots of flavorful herbs. The serving of broccoli and cheese quiche was large, and the cheese made the dish. The crowd for lunch was consistent, and the staff seated and served everyone quickly. There was no lag in service at our table. We were not asked if we wanted to order dessert, but that was not necessary. To go boxes were brought without prompting, and checks were taken at the table. Adjacent paid parking was free if the ticket was validated by the server, but there was no signage announcing this benefit. Overall, it was a very pleasant lunch with good food, excellent service, a pleasant atmosphere, and fair prices. I recommend a lunch trip to Mac and Bob's in downtown Salem. Sorry, I forgot to snap some pics until leaving! FYI: Our awesome server was Beth J.
4/6/2025 Visited Mac and Bobs with a party of 6 for a late lunch. Service was fast, but the server rarely checked for any needs during the meal. The food came in a timely manner. I ordered the Philly Cheesesteak and was very disappointed. No mushrooms or other veggies or condiments, just meat, onions, green peppers, and a generous portion of cheese, which had turned into a plastic like substance. The bread was nicely toasted, but the dish was very hard to eat, as it was dry and the cheese was not appetizing to eat. I ate a quarter of the sandwich and took the rest home, where I added some tomatoes, mayo, scraped off some of the plastic cheese, and it was much more palatable. The accompanying side salad was great, with delicious honey mustard dressing. The ice tea was bitter. Others indicated pleasure or some disappointment with their food. We sent back some pizza for additional cooking. The restaurant was very busy, and I know staff were stressed.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Salad, Quiche, Fish Tacos
John Wallace
Waiter not knowledgeable about beer on menu. Food good, service good
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Craft Beers, Sandwich
Ruby Sevcik
Came here because it had good reviews and is supposed to be a top restaurant in Virginia. Sorry but food was adequate. Waiter forgot what dressing for the salad and took 5 minutes to bring it back. Place was by no means full at what was a late lunch time. The quiche special had no pesto flavor and they melted a lot of cheese on it which became hard as it cooked.
Was surprised there was not a handicap accessible restroom, as we were directed up a short set of steps thru another room, and back down another short set of stairs.
In the handicap stall, I felt water hit my back and looked up to find the ceiling had an opening and the Pic pipe was dripping.
We won't recommend or go back.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 2
Jake
Recently went there ordered Cesar Salad with grilled chicken. What I got was a refrigerated chicken that you get from the grocery store that's been cooked at the processor and then only 10 pieces. The Ceasar dressing smothered the pale Romain salad and in my opinion wasn't even Ceasar dressing, it was sour, with what tasted like a mix of Italian and a whole lot of vinegar. This was hard to swallow.
Then to add insult to injury, the waiter took my bill and gave me a fake refund of my charges, 2 days later the entire cost of my charges was processed on my CC.
Take a guess what my thoughts are?
Annie
nicole is super rude and bad mouthing an employee who is one of the sweetest guys i met is crazy! 1/10 bad service.
Came here on a recommendation from a colleague in the area. Ordered some wings and the sirloin steak. The wings were ok, fried a bit dry and the garlic parm was lacking a bit of parm. The salad was good, tried it with the Wasabi vinaigrette. The combo was not a great one somehow made the dressing a bit bitter. The steak was cooked to temp, with excellent sear marks, some of the best sear marks I've ever seen. Although the steak itself was quite tough. Our waitress was great and stop by our table at least 8 times to check on us.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Wings
Cynthya McCann
I would never recommend this restaurant to anyone I like. There was a terrible smell when you walked it. It was pretty pungent. I know better than to trust a restaurant with a large menu, but someone had recommend them so I thought I'd try it out. We ordered simple menu items and I found the one place that could mess up a Ceasar salad. The chicken was spicy and cold, which was not advertised on the menu. When I asked for fresh, non-spicy, chicken the waitress said "this is how it's made everywhere." She doesn't go out a lot. My dad's burger he described as "edible but wouldn't order again." Short of scrubbing the place down and getting new (trained) chefs, I wouldn't visit again.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 3
joseph guse
Had a good meal here. No complaints really. It was just a bit pricey for what it was. $75 with tax and tip for two lunches (no desserts, no appetizers). Lesson learned.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Linda Bristow
Ate there 2/4 and was really disappointed with the quality if our food. Husband got a wrap and it was very dry and I got Turkey panini and it was also very dry and flavorless. Wouldn't have mi ded paying the high $$ if it had been good. Had been excited to eat there as it been years, but not again. Also could not find waitress to pay our bill when we were ready to leave.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 2
Dave Burke
Great service. Food was poor to mediocre. Came in with a large party. Our waiter Kemper was the great. I ordered "The Craig" sandwich. The turkey was dried out and cold. There was no dressing on the sandwich. Yuck! My wife was disappointed that they changed the Wasabi dressing. In our party of 12 only one thought it was above average. The men's room was dirty and out of towels Come on Mac and Bob's. Your much better than this.
Great town to visit. Went to Mac and Bob's for an excellent dinner and then to the Salem coliseum to see Alison Krauss and Union Station perform. Excellent show and the venue as easy to get in and out of,
This was my first time at Mac and Bobs. I don't know his name but, we had an older gentleman as our server and he was EXCELLENT! He was very polite, prompt, and kept up with our table of six. My food could have come out burnt to a crisp and it would've been okay because he was so nice! Fortunately, my food wasn't burnt to a crisp. Our table got a variety of foods - from fish, to sandwiches, and chili. All of the dishes came out well and tasted good. This variety of dishes is one of the reasons we chose to go - something for everyone. It's clear why this restaurant has been a staple of Salem for decades - good food and excellent service!
This restaurant is much larger than it looks from the outside. They have added on space over time with their increased popularity. There are plenty of rooms with inside and outside seating. The menu was expansive . The service was quick and friendly. My husband and I split a delicious fried chicken sandwich for lunch, which was reasonably priced. There was a steady flow of to-go pickups. Ample parking on the side and in the back.
Despite an ordinary setting, the restaurant hit above its weight for food and cocktails, especially the sesame encrusted tuna.
Haven't been to Mac and Bob's in years, and it was as good as I remember. The menu is huge, and everyone at our table enjoyed their lunch of fish tacos and a quesadilla. I had the soup and quiche, and both were flavorful and tasty. The service was exceptional. I asked about the soup of the day, and our server brought everyone a sample before ordering. I ordered the soup, and it was exceptional, with a tomato base, finely minced chicken, with lots of flavorful herbs. The serving of broccoli and cheese quiche was large, and the cheese made the dish. The crowd for lunch was consistent, and the staff seated and served everyone quickly. There was no lag in service at our table. We were not asked if we wanted to order dessert, but that was not necessary. To go boxes were brought without prompting, and checks were taken at the table. Adjacent paid parking was free if the ticket was validated by the server, but there was no signage announcing this benefit. Overall, it was a very pleasant lunch with good food, excellent service, a pleasant atmosphere, and fair prices. I recommend a lunch trip to Mac and Bob's in downtown Salem. Sorry, I forgot to snap some pics until leaving!
FYI: Our awesome server was Beth J.
4/6/2025
Visited Mac and Bobs with a party of 6 for a late lunch. Service was fast, but the server rarely checked for any needs during the meal. The food came in a timely manner. I ordered the Philly Cheesesteak and was very disappointed. No mushrooms or other veggies or condiments, just meat, onions, green peppers, and a generous portion of cheese, which had turned into a plastic like substance. The bread was nicely toasted, but the dish was very hard to eat, as it was dry and the cheese was not appetizing to eat. I ate a quarter of the sandwich and took the rest home, where I added some tomatoes, mayo, scraped off some of the plastic cheese, and it was much more palatable. The accompanying side salad was great, with delicious honey mustard dressing. The ice tea was bitter. Others indicated pleasure or some disappointment with their food. We sent back some pizza for additional cooking. The restaurant was very busy, and I know staff were stressed.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Salad, Quiche, Fish Tacos
Waiter not knowledgeable about beer on menu. Food good, service good
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Craft Beers, Sandwich
Came here because it had good reviews and is supposed to be a top restaurant in Virginia. Sorry but food was adequate. Waiter forgot what dressing for the salad and took 5 minutes to bring it back. Place was by no means full at what was a late lunch time. The quiche special had no pesto flavor and they melted a lot of cheese on it which became hard as it cooked.
Was surprised there was not a handicap accessible restroom, as we were directed up a short set of steps thru another room, and back down another short set of stairs.
In the handicap stall, I felt water hit my back and looked up to find the ceiling had an opening and the Pic pipe was dripping.
We won't recommend or go back.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 2
Recently went there ordered Cesar Salad with grilled chicken. What I got was a refrigerated chicken that you get from the grocery store that's been cooked at the processor and then only 10 pieces. The Ceasar dressing smothered the pale Romain salad and in my opinion wasn't even Ceasar dressing, it was sour, with what tasted like a mix of Italian and a whole lot of vinegar. This was hard to swallow.
Then to add insult to injury, the waiter took my bill and gave me a fake refund of my charges, 2 days later the entire cost of my charges was processed on my CC.
Take a guess what my thoughts are?
nicole is super rude and bad mouthing an employee who is one of the sweetest guys i met is crazy! 1/10 bad service.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
High quality food, and good service!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Restaurantji Recommends
Came here on a recommendation from a colleague in the area. Ordered some wings and the sirloin steak. The wings were ok, fried a bit dry and the garlic parm was lacking a bit of parm. The salad was good, tried it with the Wasabi vinaigrette. The combo was not a great one somehow made the dressing a bit bitter. The steak was cooked to temp, with excellent sear marks, some of the best sear marks I've ever seen. Although the steak itself was quite tough. Our waitress was great and stop by our table at least 8 times to check on us.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Wings
I would never recommend this restaurant to anyone I like. There was a terrible smell when you walked it. It was pretty pungent. I know better than to trust a restaurant with a large menu, but someone had recommend them so I thought I'd try it out. We ordered simple menu items and I found the one place that could mess up a Ceasar salad. The chicken was spicy and cold, which was not advertised on the menu. When I asked for fresh, non-spicy, chicken the waitress said "this is how it's made everywhere." She doesn't go out a lot. My dad's burger he described as "edible but wouldn't order again." Short of scrubbing the place down and getting new (trained) chefs, I wouldn't visit again.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 3
Had a good meal here. No complaints really. It was just a bit pricey for what it was. $75 with tax and tip for two lunches (no desserts, no appetizers). Lesson learned.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Ate there 2/4 and was really disappointed with the quality if our food. Husband got a wrap and it was very dry and I got Turkey panini and it was also very dry and flavorless. Wouldn't have mi ded paying the high $$ if it had been good. Had been excited to eat there as it been years, but not again.
Also could not find waitress to pay our bill when we were ready to leave.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 2
Great service. Food was poor to mediocre. Came in with a large party. Our waiter Kemper was the great. I ordered "The Craig" sandwich. The turkey was dried out and cold. There was no dressing on the sandwich. Yuck!
My wife was disappointed that they changed the Wasabi dressing. In our party of 12 only one thought it was above average. The men's room was dirty and out of towels
Come on Mac and Bob's. Your much better than this.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 5
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