Went Saturday night for the first time in years. The place is beautiful but that's about it. Bar booze is watered down. Food is nothing special. It's too bad because the place is gorgeous. Would do much better as an upscale restaurant. The prices are real low but so isn't the quality of food. Wasn't impressed years ago and still not. read more

Great atmosphere with good food. We were waited on by an awesome bartender named Sarah!! Our serves was impeccable, what a fun experience!!! She went up and above. To bad we don't live closer to visit more. read more

I was not impressed with their Sunday brunch. They didn't offer much and what they did offer wasn't good. Scrambled eggs were over cooked, potatoes under cooked and the waffle machine didn't cook the waffles at all. In my opinion not worth it! read more

Excellent food, staff, and experience! Me and my family go here on a regular basis and honestly recommend it to anyone and everyone. The atmosphere is just astounding. I feel as though I took a step back in time with all the antique decor, amazing restored structure, and music. The wait staff is always friendly and on top of everything. I always look forward to trying all the new specials and I always have to end with the whiskey bread pudding! Strongly recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a new place to try or just an all around amazing meal/ experience! read more

We have eaten here a half dozen times and found the food and service to be good. We like the atmosphere. The restaurant is a converted train station with rail traffic just outside the restaurant. We decided to try their Easter Buffet and we were very disappointed. The food choice was very limited and the quality was poor at best. The food was crowded on a buffet table and not kept warm. Kind of insult to injury to have poor quality food and selection, then it's cold? This being said we might return for standard seating but we will not consider for buffet event. read more

My husband has been here twice but yesterday was my first time visiting this restaurant. What a great place! Our food was delicious and the server, Tammy, was a delight. This old train station is surrounded by active train tracks and out in front, there is an old steam engine and a rail car. Great atmosphere and great food! read more

I was driving back to Detroit from Boston. I decided to stop here for lunch after hearing about this place from several of my friends who are big train enthusiasts. The building is an old train station. The decor is very nice. I had some clam chowder and a burger. The food was very good and my waitress was very friendly and attentive. Too bad I don't live around here or I'd be eating there more often. read more

You know those days when you've been working all day on a project in the house, you're a hot mess, and the whole family is starving, there's nothing to eat and you need food, like NOW? Typically, those are the only days when we will eat at one of the few places in the Palmer/Monson area, with one notable exception: Steaming Tender. This place would be worth a long drive, but luckily it's just down the road. I've had many great meals here including salads, seafood, steaks, the buffet, and lots of apps. The whiskey bread pudding is great and I've only been disappointed by the food once with an overcooked prime rib that I actually ended up throwing away. The main dining room can be drafty (it is an old train station after all) but has a lot of charm. I do wish there was some more intimate seating for couples (horseshoe booths?) and maybe some nicer tables and chairs. The bar would be my go-to hang out locally for lunch and date nights if they would put some love into it. The ONE TV is the size of my iPad and is poorly placed at the bar. There is no Keno or any type of nightlife going on there and they close far too early. In fact, they are closed Monday and Tuesday. The staff is fine, but not exceptional. This place could be so much more with some imagination and effort, but overall a solid establishment. I'd like a more inviting experience upon arrival. Try the Bluebeard Tenderloin or Lobster Salad. Their Pasta Primavera is the best I've ever tasted but it seems to have been pulled from the menu. The kids love this place, too, for both the trains out front and coming through and the many kid-friendly menu options. read more

If you have a food establishment open to the public and close it at normal business hours for private functions you could at least have a sign stating that on the road leading into the parking area. Think as not to tick off your regular customers. read more

I implore everyone looking for a REAL review on The Steaming Tender to look for the option below labeled "31 reviews that are not recommended". It's funny how only the praising reviews are directly visible on the immediate page. What's hidden from view are the reviews that state time and time again how horrible management is and how the owner treats customers and staff like lesser humans. The egotistical owner just shuts down any negative reviews by stating that they're written by "disgruntled employees" instead of opening her eyes and using it as constructive criticism. It's not a hidden gem, it's a pre-cooked, over priced, pretentious hidden horror. Do not give this woman as much as a dollar of your money. read more

Great ambience in a repurposed train depot. Excellent surroundings, fabulous music, great service, and a wolffish dish that is simply fantastic with white bean ragu with kalamata olives, asparagus, in an exquisite sauce. The fish is flakey and tender with a Cajun blackening that is in perfect concert with everything else. Thank to chef Jay for a table visit and friendly chat. He tells me hi is newly promoted to head chef. Great news. He is superb! read more

So pretty at Christmas! Soup and apps were good. but customer service was out if the world! Meals were good everyone enjoyed them however one entre was not to my satisfaction and the manager and waitress were beyond helpful and pleasant. PS save room for dessert - The bread pudding is fantastic. read more

Great atmosphere, beautifully restored train depot. Good, solid American food. The burgers are spot on and their signature whiskey bread pudding is a good ending. read more

Very disappointed. We spent over $200 for dinner.. the fish was square? 3 shrimp and 3 scallops really ? The lobster had one ... yes one piece of claw meat .. the rest was finely shredded lobster in a nasty sauce.. plain old butter would have been fine. They gave us a few cold slices of a bread or roll ?? Not sure but when asked for more they gave us plain old bread cut in half .. ohh and dessert. Bread pudding is NOT slices of bread spread out flat in a pan THATS French toast casserole. BUT.. the service was good, fast and friendly ... the drinks well prepared. The place is cute and lots of fun things to view. But I think it's time for a new cook.. no Real Chef would put out that kind of fare. read more

First time I went here was about 6 yrs ago. Was blown away. The food was top notch, huge servings, and reasonable prices. Atmosphere was and still is nice. Been going back every year since our first visit and unfortunately the food has been steadily going downhill. Serving sizes are down and prices are up. Quality of the meals are lacking as well. I'm still holding on to my first visit, but at this point I'd have a hard time recommending this restaurant to others. read more

First time ever trying Steaming Tender, went in for lunch the other day. Service incredibly slow and food not at all what we were expecting. Kids orders were brought out right away, which was fine until it became unreasonable the kids had to wait for the adults to get their food and then finish eating. Poor poor accommodations on catering to a party of two adults and two kids. We waited for our chicken salad sandwiches for an incredibly unreasonable amount of time (probably 20 mins to 30 mins and that's no exaggeration). Table next to us was seated after us. Received all their HOT meals long before we received a cold chicken salad sandwich that should have already been prepared. Once we got it, the chicken had NO DILL which was described on menu and it was so dry and bland it was almost unbearable. Starving at this point and in a hurry to get out of there for a long day trip we were now late for, we ate with no complaints. Unfortunate. We went because they were featured on phantom gourmet and highly suggested. Won't be back again. read more

Had lunch there returning home from a funeral. Saw the billboard in Palmer and thought it sounded interesting. My Dad is a train buff, so we figured we would check it out for him. I was totally surprised by how incredible the food and service was. Being an old train station made the location and decor pretty cool to begin with (and 2 trains went by during lunch), but our server, Amy, was so friendly and attentive -- and our food so delicious -- that our lasting impression is more than just a cool location. My wife and I started with the buffalo tenders, which were clearly not just frozen patties. Then we each had a tuna melt on the largest, softest rye bread we have ever seen. Just awesome! My wife had the homemade chips, which were warm and tasty, and my fries were equally tasty. (We appreciated Amy's recommendation to add ranch dressing as a dipping sauce!) We go out to western Mass a lot and have friends in Palmer (and it turns out one if their children also works there, although we didn't know it), but now we have another reason to look forward to out trips! An instant favorite! read more

Steaming Tender - Giant sandwiches! - American Near Me - Palmer, Massachusetts

Food is terrible! The only thing this place has going for them is the fact its in a train station. The service is slow, the management unprofessional, the food was horrible and definately not worth the prices. When I sent my dish back because the noodles weren't cooked (not aldente either, im talking teeth stuck together un-cooked) they said because it was my "personal preference" they would not remove it from the bill! I havent gone back since, and never will again. read more

Great building but quite cold. A couple of observations: Food was not warm, beer battered onion rings definitely were not (in spite of what the hostess claimed), server was excellent and bread pudding dessert was a total winner. For the price, food and presentation were not noteworthy and as mentioned earlier, not warm. Very disappointed by onion rings, I know frozen onion rings when I see them and these definitely were from a bag. read more

We live over an hour and a half away but we stop here at least five times a year. The atmosphere is charming and the food is delicious. The train usually passes by while we are there, which is neat. We were there yesterday and had the best waitress, Summer. She was very patient and attentive and made a GREAT suggestion for dessert! It is a real treat to eat here and look forward to the next time! read more

DO NOT GO HERE. Awful, experience. The management is unprofessional and it shows in the staff. We spent our dinner listening to a lunatic OWNER Robin M. Lamothe yelling at everyone. She was rude and obscene and it affected the entire dining experience. You are welcomed in an akward dark dingy setting by and unfriendly staff (no wonder they work for such a poor owner/manager). The food was only marginal and the prices were too high for the quality. The only thing this place has going for it is the trains going by. Absolutely dismal experience and I will not return, or suggest anyone to return there save for people I dislike. I would have rather ate at the Mug and Muffin in Monson, what a dissapointment. read more

Absolutely delicious! Great staff , great food, great atmosphere! Just can't say how much we all loved our food and the service! I had the ribs, simple, tasty and enough. Came on paper with some excellent slaw! Hubby had the pot roast, melt in your mouth. read more

This is the second time I have eaten at the Steaming Tender. The first time, it was a magical experience. My boyfriend and I had a wonderful meal, the food was delicious and the whiskey bread pudding was worth the trip from South Hadley! The architecture is beautiful, such a great idea to make a restaurant out of a former train station. When my sister visited from out of state, I made a reservation for the five of us to enjoy a family dinner together. Our reservations were for 6:30 pm, but we arrived early, 6 pm because of the distance to the restaurant from home. I checked in with the hostess, a middle aged woman, and asked since we were early, did we have to wait until 6:30 pm if a table opened up before. She very rudely told me "Yes, and that it was going to be a while ". We were OK with that, after all we were early, until a party of five walked in and was seated before my party. At this point the rude hostess walked into the dining room and a young, friendly blonde woman came to work the hostess desk. When I asked her about seating before 6:30 pm she explained that the restaurant keeps the reservation seating on time which allows walk ins to be seated also. I'm not too thrilled with that policy, as I had taken the time to make a reservation but she was very professional and kind. The middle aged hostess could learn a lot from her. When we were eventually seated, we were seated by the dining room entrance door. If the older hostess stomped by our table once, she stomped by at least 9 times. Then she hit my chair on one of her passes never stopping to apologize. She had a puss on her face the entire time we were there. She gave off the impression that she was overworked and aggravated. Not the best qualities of a hostess who is the first impression made upon entering the restaurant. I would have given this restaurant a five star review, but only if the older hostess is removed from the front of the restaurant and placed in the back room. Everything else was amazing! read more

I don't usually write reviews, but I absolutely had to this time. I've been there a few times and obviously keep going back because I like it there. The food has always been good, large portion sizes, and I like the atmosphere. Tonight I had the privilege to be served by Joe. People think being a waiter/waitress is easy, but it is a job I would never be good at. It takes a lot of hard work, and that's what Joe provided. He made my wife and I feel like we were at a 5 star elite restaurant. He was friendly, courteous, attentive, and expedient. From now on, whenever I go back, I plan on sitting in his section. Trust me, I'm a very picky person and this guy was awesome. I'm in for giving him a raise! So since I can't, I have him a big tip for doing a great job. Thanks Joe! And by the way, ordered Ruben egg rolls, Irish Cottage Pie, and Strawberry Shortline. All was fantastic and the Strawberry Shortline.....awesome and enough for 4!!! read more

I ordered the turkey dinner. I wasn't too impressed with it. The stuffing tasted like Stove Top Stuffing and the gravy was bland. If I do go back there again I won't be ordering that again. read more

we went here while traveling on the masspike as an alternative to the many fast food options. we got the recommendation from the toll taker who led us to believe it would be black tie affair. it was definitely not, which was good. we were looking for a quick, casual bite and that's what we got. the architecture and woodwork was, definitely, the best part. food was fine. i got fried chicken which was oddly sweet. my husband got fresh cod which was actually really good. prices were very reasonable. definitely worth checking out if you are into trains, or are traveling to the berkshires and don't want mcdonald's. read more

Just enjoyed a fantastic Mother's Day brunch with my family. The architecture and opportunity to see trains (we saw 5 go by in just the time we were there-- and that was a Sunday) was nonpareil. Service and food was very good. I will definitely be back. read more

Went for the breakfast buffet coffee and the muffins were good nice staff and atmosphere but cold eggs and super greasy cornbeef hash. Pointed this out was no one came and checked the temp of the eggs or the corn beef hash and no apology. Was not looking for anything free but attentiveness to the complaint. read more

We were driving down Mass Pike and ready to eat dinner, so I looked up restaurants on Yelp. The Steaming Tender was the first one that came up, and we were so close to Palmer already that I didn't have time to read anything about it - we just took our chances and went! What a fun, pleasant experience it was! We loved the old 19th century remodeled train station that houses the restaurant. It was so cool on the inside, with lots of antiques and artifacts that made you feel like you were really in a train station! They have a huge menu, with everything from soups, salads, burgers, nice entrees, etc. But we ordered from the "Daily Specials" menu. My baked sole with stuffed lobster was very good. The fish was fresh and the sauce on it was creamy and yummy. My garlic mashed potatoes were also very good. My husband liked his New Orleans style haddock, though it was not spicy as we know Cajun food to be. The sides of rice and mixed veggies weren't great - over cooked and barely warm when served. But all-in-all it was a very good meal and very reasonably priced. Service was good and friendly. Our only criticism was that the portion sizes were way too large. There was no way either of us could eat all the food we were served, and we're not wimpy eaters! read more

I have eaten here often. The food is good and so is the service. Very reasonable price for dining. People are friendly which is all I ask so very nice. The place is an old train station so there are trains passing all the time. The passing trains are fun but could disturb others; personal preference I guess. You will not go wrong visiting this hidden gem. I highly recommend this place if you are passing through the Palmer area. Very easy to get to and from Mass Pike from Exit 8. read more

Used yelp to find this place. The location is perfect and takes you back in time. We had a pleasant meal and a drink. Food was good but Huot outstanding hence the 4stars. Well worth a visit if you are in the area. read more

We love this place! We found it by accident many years ago as we were nearing the end of a long road trip from Michigan to the Boston area. We were hungry and tired and saw the sign and decided to exit and eat. We have returned many times since. If we leave home very early in the morning, we are at the Steaming Tender by 5 pm. Haven't had a bad meal yet! The atmosphere is so unique being an old railroad station, and it is such a nice relaxing place to have a nice dinner. Casual attire is not a problem. We are always rejuvenated and ready to hit the Mass Pike again to finish the last 2 hours of our long ride to the east coast after having our dinner. Keep up the great work Steaming Tender! read more

My first time here, with my wife & 3 of our (older) kids. Lunch time - shortly after opening. We were greeted warmly & promptly seated. We all admired the architecture & décor - the owners have clearly put a lot of thought and effort into creating a unique experience. Now, the food: beer battered onion rings & loaded potato skins for appetizers; plus they brought out some of those warm, melt in your mouth rolls. We all tried these - 10 thumbs up! Now, for the main course, I had the Reuben sandwich: near perfect, with the corned beef super juicy & favorable. Cole slaw was ok, more sweet than vinegar. My wife had a burger - with sweet potato fries; I nibbled the fries, then had more - quite tasty. The kids were super happy with their meals and asked me to put this on our "visit often" list. Service was attentive but not intrusive - only once did we run out of drinks and have to request more. Definitely will be returning. read more

Great atmosphere and location. The food, though, is always inconsistent and it is not very good most of the time. I'm done giving this business more chances. read more

I had a very nice lunch with my wife and parents this afternoon. Service was excellent and the food was very good. I really enjoyed the all the historic artifacts and trains on the property. It was like dinning in a museum. I had the lobster Mac and Cheese which had a generous portion of lobster in it. My wife had the fried fisherman's combo wich she thought was pretty good. My mother had the baked stuffed shrimp. The breading was a bit rich but overall very good. My father went with the scallops and really enjoyed them. He is 86 and gets a little stubborn when it comes to food so when he approves of something it's a good thing. The only one very small complaint I have is the cheaper brand of "fancy ketchup" that they use on the tables. I understand it is an overhead cost thing but honestly you can really notice the taste difference between that and Heinz. It's just not the same. I would defintley eat here again, some of the other food items that were being delivered to the other tables looked very tasty. Extra points for restoring and preserving a historic property and piece of history that we all can enjoy. Well done! read more

Love the ambiance , pretty cool to eat dinner in an old train station and watch train go by. Food is really good as well, we have only been her a couple of times but will definitely go back. read more

Went to eat there on Saturday 21 January 2017 never again had fried clams all 3 of them were tasteless tiny and cold French fries just as bad wife and sons meals no better don't waste your money or time read more

Very disappointed. Our family (2 who fly in from CA) has attended the wonderful reading of The Polar Express at Christmas on the restaurant's own rail car (for $15 per person) since they started several years ago. It became a family tradition. (As I recall, they had 2 - 3 readings per day on Saturdays & Sundays over at least 2 weekends each December). The Conductor who does the readings is terrific! Last year the restaurant decided that the ONLY way to attend the reading was now to also buy their dinner (from a fixed, limited menu). Dinner was around $35 + $15 for the reading = $50 per person now to attend. With Christmas presents, airfare from California, it was a squeeze for 4 of us but we went last year. The food selection was terrible, "bus stop" like food. Then this year the announcement that there will be only 2 readings (1 each 12/16 & 12/23) at $50 per person. Period. That's now $200 total for the 4 of us instead of the $60 for 4 that we used to pay. After last year's bad food experience & cost, we are sadly NOT going back and our wonderful holiday tradition has come to a very rude end. We will continue our annual Thanksgiving family dinner at the Steaming Tender and other occasional special visits. The food is very good. Note: The YELP price rating should be at LEAST "$$$" for this restaurant now. It is VERY expensive now. Otherwise, food, service, ambiance are very good and we will continue to recommend it to others. read more

Great time! The four of us loved the atmosphere. The tables and chairs were well spaced and not on top of each other. The food quality and portions were very good by everyone. Service was efficient and relaxed. It was worth traveling 40 minutes for us meeting friends who travelled three hours. read more

Made the trip with a group of Harley people today 08/26 to visit your place and enjoy the breakfast buffet,,what a disappointment...hash not cooked waffles stick in waffle maker..no refill on coffee..and oh, lets not forget the flies everywhere.disgusting..we won't be back! read more