Northern Lights Theatre Pub — Attraction in Salem

Super friendly, wonderful hardworking staff. Stoked they reopened. Please be kind to staff and respectful other movie goers by showing up 30-45 mins prior to show start time to order food and drinks that way everyone will be in their seats and be able to see the movie and the staff can work on the food delivery. Late comers are a nuisance 👎. A few changes to note since we were last here pre 2020 : The bar is now behind the counter where you order food. The replaced the alcohol bar with a cute little sitting area and fireplace, which we appreciated, it was a nice spot to wait for our Uber after the show. All matinee shows are $7 and Evening shows are $9 after 5pm. Tuesdays all shows are $5 all day. All ages are now welcome at all shows but of course Movie Ratings still apply. Have some common sense and please don't bring small children to R rated movies. Call a sitter and have a fun date night.

Bathrooms were clean and well stocked. We liked being able to pick our seats ahead of time and get an idea of how crowded the show would be. I do always forget about the red lights above us so people can see what they are eating at the tables but I was glad I wore a baseball hat and it didn't affect me that much. Some seats are more affected than others and it can be distracting. Seats have been upgraded,at least in the Auditorium 1, and are much more comfortable, with higher backs and they also lean back a little with cupholders in both sides that do lift up. The staff was really working hard to make sure everyone got their correct food in the order they ordered it with napkins etc. Great place to go for a fun night out or Birthday movie without breaking the bank. Please support local business like these. Thank you! We will be back.

Update: Back for Christmas Movies Food Bank Drive. It was so awesome to see how much food Northern Lights raised for the Food Bank. We went to see Elf on the big screen and it was great. Most everyone at the show had well behaved kids who sat and enjoyed the movie. 😅 When we noticed no garlic cheese bread on the menu and asked they said they could still make it,l... a secret menu if you will...my daughter was thrilled, it's been her go to menu item for years. She did mention that they could go harder on the garlic and it was missing the green stuff, (basil perhaps?) But she was still happy. The cheese quesadilla was HUGE! I don't know if you make your salsa in house or not but it's super good. Keurig hot chocolate was a bit disappointing. Overall a fantastic affordable day out for our family we appreciate y'all and are so glad you are still...

Well-run & reasonably priced 2nd run theater. I have been here a good 50 times and only had one problem not in the staff's control. The only other 2 negatives I can think of is the place is just old(don't really care though), and sometimes the staff is tired(they do tend to work long days). I lived right down the street on Pioneer by Mader & used to go to this theater as a kid when it was SOUTHGATE CINEMAS, and happy it's still around as a 2nd run. 😃

The food is always good, it's very consistent, you get good portions for the price, the service is always good, not outstanding, but consistently good. I do really like the pita burger, the popcorn, and their burritos in general.

This is a very reasonable date spot, because it's a second run theater, I've been to several second run theatres throughout the northwest & BY FAR Northern Lights is the best of I've ever been to in terms of service, cleanliness, movie picks, and food, in fact no second run theater I've been to comes close in the variety of movies & quality&value of food offer. The only one that had more movies was the $1.50 theatre that use to be at the Springfield, Or Mall, it is surely missed. 😭😭😭

Yes, the show times are tricky because they tend to have 6-10 movies at any given time & only 3 theaters to show, which means the movies & times rotate & vary every single day. I don't think that's a negative, it's a quirk. 😃 They had been $3 a movie since they opened in 2002 until last year when they eventually raised it to $4, that's still really reasonable and if it took 15yrs to raise the price, that's pretty awesome. 😍

Also, DO NOT go based on the times on ANY third party website, go the Northern Lights Theatre Pub Website or to the Theater itself, only, for showtimes.

While nothing is perfect, and I'm sure there are other negatives people will say, for what it is, it's the best of any 2nd run I've been too, in fact, it's probably better than it should be. I think anyone being picky & not liking this place, in all honesty, is asking too...

Love this local option! We found out about NLTP just after moving to Salem. We tried it for the first time today. A few things to know before going. These movies are movies that have already been to bigger theaters. If this isn't your thing then don't go and later complain about it. They clearly display on their site and in their business that minors aren't allowed after a certain time. They serve snack food and never claim to be fine dining. No need to complain about the food if you know this going in.

With that being said we had a great time and an affordable one. The staff was super sweet and service was timely. Cost is $4 a person, total steal! Maybe you missed the movie you'd hoped to see in theaters, well they will probably get it and it'll be cheaper. They have tables set in front of you at your seat so that you can eat your food an not have to manage everything from your lap. We forgot to bring anything for my daughter's ears today and I went out to ask if by chance they had those disposable ear plugs. They didn't, but they did have some headphones they loaned us to help soften the noise for her. (She does have a sensory issue.) We found that to be very accommodating. We certainly did not expect anything and weren't being divas, just thought we'd ask and they did deliver. On top of that they then pointed out the fact that they offer a Sensory Sensitive showing twice per month. So for folks with young kiddos or kiddos with sensory issues this is really excellent! We will be seeking this out! Now the food. It's your basic snack food, fast food type of food. It's inexpensive and perfect for snacking while you watch your show. They did offer a hummus and veggie dip for those who may be vegan or vegetarian. They also have your typical movie snacks, ie...candy, popcorn, soda. In addition they serve actual desserts such as ice cream sundae and crisps. Overall, excellent experience! Excellent customer service. All employees were helpful, courteous and knowledgeable. We will be...