The Sherwood Inn — Restaurant in New Salem

When you call the Sherwood Inn to thank them for handeling the situation that was absolutely pathetic on your birthday, and you proceed to be told that you’re absolutely pathetic for handeling the situation the way you did…by the manager…and told to never return again…lol…

you start the conversation by complimenting Breanna for handling the situation as “acting” manager because there wasn’t one in house…she was fabulous actually…she listened to our valid concerns and handled the matter literally in seconds…no one was looking for a free meal, nor were we stating we weren’t paying…we were simply not proceeding until we spoke to a manager… Here’s the situation you tell me:

Reservation at 6:00 for party of 10 need two high chairs for 2 toddlers Received; 2 high top tables, one high chair while cals was tied to a high back stool with my scarf because no booster seat was offered…( could look past that) they offered a Lower table not with our party which consisted of mostly children…to wait until the other table was done their meal and we could move tables…it took exactly 56 min to get appetizers let alone wait to relocate not happening…No biggie…

Food was freezing cold… completely forgot our appetizers, and they came out with our meals…the server told us the food was cold because it wasn’t her fault that From the kitchen to our table was a far distance and that’s why our food was so cold…proceeded to tell us they have a lot going on and walks away… Chels not a good look darling…you were very sweet & kind, but I’m in customer service and boyyyy you don’t ever do that ever…make an excuse for why you were serving cold food…you clearly looked at our party as mostly children and didn’t feel or have time to wait on our tables because you delivered a pitcher of sprite to the table with little children so you didn’t have to run back and fill drinks…never asking the parents if that was ok first off… crab soup cold…apps cold…hamburgers cold…my chicken for my grilled salmon house salad…no salmon we don’t serve the din menu on Mondays…🤦🏼‍♀️ like no biggie we wouldn’t have made a reservation if you didn’t have a din menu available ya know… I then ask for a manager…I’m sorry we don’t have one here…the two girls left in charge don’t feel comfortable addressing this situation…it was only a situation after Rudy girl rolls her eyes…throws her hands in the air…and storms off acting like us telling the server it was out of line to tell us to basically get over it that our food was freezing cold…(the table behind us) I did apologize to because I did say are you f’in kidding me…out of line but dang price of food these days isn’t cheap, and I pay for good food and service I want good food and good service! Not my dang toddler tied to a bar stool with a scarf because they didn’t feel like bringing me a booster seat… So note to self don’t try to deal with Lacey at the Sherwood with any complaints because she will then tell you that you aren’t welcomed back ever again at this establishment

Man…I’m really frustrated by this because we service this place all summer long, and I won’t ever give them...

Met my son with three of my granddaughters and had high expectations, because my son had been there for fathers day and was very happy with his meal. However both him and I left after a totally different experience. Only one of of us had the meal we ordered and that was chicken fingers. Two steaks were not cooked right and his was sent back because they weren't even close ( and it was prime rib). Mine was too done for medium rare, but we had waited so long for our food I didn't want to wait again. One of the girls ordered a burger and they asked how she wanted it done and then made it well done. Why ask if you're not going to cook it right. The Brussel sprouts were soggy and so was the broccoli, the mushrooms tasted like they came straight out of the can...such a disappointment. And I haven't even mentioned all the upcharges. Only found one of those charges on the menu, out of three. With the order to go, food was missing and we waited again for that. Couldn't have ever guessed this would be my first impression of the sherwood Inn, but I will guarantee it is the last time I will be there. With all of this experience, my bill was over 133 dollars ...my tip reflected the poor service and the food we were served. The management needs to step up and make sure their staff is competent and supported when needed. Multiple big parties is no excuse for your staff . We made reservations and they should have also so the other customers do not walk away with this kind...

Update(2024): This used to be one of my favorite local places to go, but it's not my first choice anymore. I gave them leeway during Covid, but there's still no improvement in quality from the kitchen over the past year.

Great local hangout spot. Only Bar in town. The majority of the food is good to great. Casual, inviting, and comfortable. The frozen cocktails are delicious! You can't go wrong with most food items and daily specials. If you order fries, ask for the beer fries.

One item I don't recommend is the NY strip. It was overcooked and bland. Char was visually nice. Ordered medium but was given nearly well done. I'm not one to waste food so I ate it anyway. For the price, I expect better attention to flavor.

(Update 2024) A new annoying thing is the kitchen makes substitutions without first communicating it to the customer. As an example, I recently ordered mexi fries, which on the menu lists " french fries, seasoned ground beef, cheddar Jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, salsa." The dish I received had cheese sauce instead of cheddar Jack cheese, no lettuce, added jalapenos, and no salsa. The first staff person I notified blew me off time. That's the way they make it, and the second person went to the kitchen and got me lettuce and salsa. Either way, it was difficult to swallow because the meat was really dry and I hate cheese sauce. I would have never ordered this if I knew that's what I was getting differed...