Gamberetti's — Restaurant in Salem

The Death of Gamberetti’s — A Heartbreaking Fall from Greatness

I’ve been a loyal Gamberetti’s customer for over a decade. Their original Salem location was our go-to for family dinners, date nights, and special occasions. The food was consistently excellent — warm, rich, full of soul. But after our most recent visit on 6/18/25 to their new location inside the Holman Riverfront Park Hotel, I can say with a heavy heart: Gamberetti’s is dead.

The new location is visually beautiful — sterile, polished, soulless. Like eating dinner in a luxury showroom. Whatever spark made Gamberetti’s food unforgettable is completely gone. I ordered my longtime favorite, the Molte Carne Creste di Galli, a dish I’ve raved about for seven years. My wife got the Pollo Gorgonzola, since they 86’d her usual go-to (and yes, we understand that if a dish doesn’t sell, it gets cut — no hard feelings there). But what we experienced was beyond disappointing — it was insulting.

Let’s talk ambience: outdoor seating is a joke. You’re practically dining in a traffic median — enjoy your overpriced pasta with a side of diesel fumes, roaring engines, and the soundtrack of the street. We wisely chose to sit inside… and then began the long wait. Nearly 20 minutes just to get water. My iced tea sat empty for half the meal, and no one seemed to notice or care. It took well over an hour for our food to arrive — which would’ve been forgivable if the food hadn’t been an absolute trainwreck.

What I was served barely resembled the dish I knew and loved. The Molte Carne used to be creamy, balanced, hearty — with al dente pasta, juicy meat, and a sauce that sang with depth and freshness. What I got instead was a bitter, acidic mess. The sausage was nearly blackened and dry, the meatballs flavorless and somehow both rubbery and crumbly. The sauce? Sour, overpowering, completely devoid of the richness it used to have. The pasta had the bizarre slimy texture of something microwaved — I’ve had better spaghetti from a gas station. Honestly, it reminded me of the spaghetti McDonald’s used to sell in the 90s — and not in a good way.

My wife’s Pollo Gorgonzola? Bland. The chicken was dry — which is impressive, considering it was literally soaking in sauce. The whole dish lacked any identity, any flavor punch, any reason to exist. She barely touched it. And for the first time in seven years, we didn’t even ask for boxes. That alone says it all.

Gamberetti’s didn’t just drop the ball — they torched the whole field. This isn’t just a bad night in the kitchen. This is a complete and utter failure of quality, care, and consistency. What was once a Salem staple — a place we were proud to bring friends and family — is now just another overpriced, soulless downtown hotel restaurant.

RIP Gamberetti’s. You had a great run. But the magic is gone, and we...

My husband and I have been craving Italian food so we decided to look up some good Italian restaurants near us. The closest one to us was about a 35 min drive so we decided based on the reviews we would come check it out. As we were heading out my husband called to ask if we needed reservations, a gentleman answered the phone and was a little short with him and said it’s first come first serve unless it’s a party of six or more. we assumed they were probably busy which is why the guy wasn’t very friendly. Upon arriving (this was at 12:15 on a Monday) there were a few tables occupied but there wasn’t anyone one ahead of us. As soon as we walked in we were immediately greeted with “how many and what is your name?” I said two people and that we don’t have a reservation.” He then replied “it’s not for a reservation it’s because we are fully occupied and there is a 10-15 min wait.” So he put our names down and we waited. By then multiple people walked in and put their names down on the list. While we were waiting we could hear one of the two waitresses that was working sighing loudly as she was closing tickets. After about 15 min we were seated outside. We then waited another 20 min for someone to come get our drink and food order. Which was fine for us because we weren’t in a hurry and it was a beautiful day today. The waitress took our order and then we waited about another 15/20 min for our drinks (one water and one mojito). The waitress apologized and said it was just two waitresses working today. We were totally understanding and said no worries it’s totally fine. We aren’t the type of people to constantly bug or call the waitresses over multiple times. It was probably around 1:15 at this point so an hour had gone by from the time we arrived to the restaurant to the time we got our drinks. More time went by and even more time went by. We noticed everyone around us who arrived after us were already eating and finishing their food. It was 1:50 when the waitress came over and told us they had lost our ticket and that should could expedite our food. We had already been waiting for almost two hours at this point. We said no thank you and walked out. I have never experienced the lack of service and hospitality as we did today at Gamberettis. We were really looking forward to trying their food. All of the things that had happened prior to us waiting for our food just did not sit well with us as it was but we wanted to give them a chance. We will NOT be coming back. We understand things happen restaurants get busy, but show some compassion and friendliness to your guests. They did comp the only thing we had that was purchased which was my $6 mojito but other than that they didn’t seem to...

Disappointing Experience at Gamberetti’s Italian Restaurant

As Kansas City natives, we’ve been spoiled by Ragazza—our go-to spot for impeccable Italian cuisine and top-tier service. Naturally, we were excited to try Gamberetti’s, hoping it could live up to our beloved hometown favorite.

Our visit began with promise. After finding the restaurant via a quick Google search, we learned that the listed location had recently changed. Upon arrival at the old spot, we could see its inviting ambiance—cozy, warm, and reminiscent of the classic Italian restaurants you’d see in movies. The staff greeted us kindly and informed us that this was their opening night at the new location, which was only a short seven-minute walk away.

Unfortunately, things took a turn for the worse. The new space lacked the charm of the previous one, seemingly aiming for a more upscale feel. We were seated immediately, but our placement—tucked away near the kitchen—was less than ideal. What followed was an evening of being overlooked and forgotten.

It took 15–20 minutes before anyone acknowledged us to take drink orders. By then, we had already decided on our meals. Our waitress jotted them down, returned with drinks 5–10 minutes later, and then vanished. We watched her and other staff repeatedly pass by without stopping, and even the manager roamed the floor without checking in on guests. An entire hour went by without an update.

Finally, our waitress briefly paused to apologize, saying she had just seen our meals being prepared in the kitchen. While we understood the challenges of opening night, another 30 minutes passed with no food and no communication. The manager eventually brought out some salads but failed to notice our empty drinks—nor did our waitress ever return aside from delivering our entrees. I had to request refills myself.

We hoped the meal would redeem the experience, but sadly, it didn’t. The overcooked chicken tasted like it had too been forgotten just as we had been. The pasta was bland and uninspired. The sole saving grace was the tiramisu, which I ordered to-go.

In an attempt to make amends, they discounted our bill by 50%, yet the evening felt wasted after a long day at work. While bad service can happen, we couldn’t shake the uncomfortable thought—was our treatment influenced by the fact that we are transgender? In a world that often tries to erase us, this night felt no different.

At least we have Ragazza, a restaurant that consistently delivers both exceptional food and a welcoming,...