The renovated train station is meticulously clean and well lit. Feels like you are in the actual station without the soot(aka dust) - even with many antiques, no dust! Amazing. The service was friendly and prompt - we sat at the bar for lunch and it was pleasant and personable. Burgers were cooked perfectly, lettuce not so fresh but no other faults to note. Lemon drop martini nicely prepared. We will be back. read more

Former regular customers. Poorly managed, menu could use an update not just changing the names of the pre-made warm and serve. Make sure you have a reservation though as they changed from allowing walk ins to sit in the bar area- You can do so much better at Salem Cross and Fins and Tales...better service and actual fresh prepared food! read more

Took my sister there for her birthday. Lots to see, a train came by while we were dining. Food was decent, atmosphere was superb.

It's seriously difficult after Covid and now serious inflation to find an eatery where you can bring the whole family, get a good meal, and not get soaked. This is the place. Good service, great atmosphere, nice people all around. read more

Visiting family from out of town and we were looking for someplace to eat when we remembered this place. We should have gone some place else. Ambiance- nice but a little loud. Food was decent, but let me tell you - when they say they have a special there was nothing special about it except the price. The special isn't listed on the menu and the servers are told not to disclose pricing unless asked. So here is my warning for you - always ask this place for the price otherwise you'll pay an arm and a leg for a steak and average mashed potatoes that would cost $20 less at a nicer restaurant. If we had been told the special was the price it was we might not have ordered it, and in turn might have tipped the server more. I normally tip more than 20% but don't like feeling like we were ripped off. read more

First timer here... I've been coming to Monson, MA to visit family 2-3 times per year for the last 6 years. I've always wanted to try this place, but the hours never worked out for us. I'm excited to say that I finally had a taste of this historic restaurant. Everything was DELICIOUS! I had the 14oz Steak and my wife had the Pot Roast. Both were amazing and perfectly tender. My favorite item was the Clam Chowder. Never had anything like it (from CA sadly). This was a creamy and authentic chowder. The service was 10/10 and the drinks were crisp and tasty. I only wish I had taken pictures of the food as it came out. It was too good to wait. 10/10 would recommend. read more

Steaming Tender - Cranberry 75 - American Near Me - Palmer, Massachusetts

Food was great. The Impossible Burger is delicious. Hope this burger stays on the menu. Great staff. read more

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Amazing Food, Amazing Service, the atmosphere and decor is amazing. Don't forget to save room for the bread pudding!

Haven't been in a couple of months so my review is a bit late. Recently moved to Palmer and have a few times. Love love this place. Food is amazing every time and staff very courteous. Went last summer and very dog friendly to my dog (we sat in a nice outdoor table). I never mind paying a little more for quality food and service. This place does not disappoint!!! read more

this is a must go if you're from new england!!! we came from NY to meet up with family from boston and it's the perfect meeting spot right off the highway!!! the service was spectacular and more then just having a server, our "conductor" dara gave us an unforgettable experience with history and facts and it made the wait for our food feel like nothing at all! fast, tasty, fresh food and the drinks were super creative and affordable! can't forget the dining room is inside of an 1800's train station with trains going by as you eat! beautiful and cozy spot definitely check it out if you're in the area 10/10 must go especially for birthdays ;) P.S make sure to save room for their whiskey bread pudding read more

Wow is this place awesome. I had a great New England seafood fisherman sampler with fish, shrimp, scallops baked in a buttery lemon sauce with crusted bread crumbs and a delicious bowl of New England clam chowder followed by a whiskey bread pudding that was extraordinary. It is served in an old train station turned into a dining room fit for a wedding reception. We will be sure to return when back In Massachusetts. read more

Menu featuring solid American fare at good prices in a beautifully renovated historic building. Great place for a birthday celebration -- make sure to ask the staff for the choo-choo celebration... read more

Our server was amazing. Helpful and attentive when we needed it. However, don't believe everything you see on the menu online or in the restaurant. We ordered 2 different beers one on tap and the other bottled. "Sorry we don't have them anymore." Uh.. okay then we will change our order. Sigh. Then we ordered from the menu. The Caesar salad didn't have the same ingredients. It was romain, not kale, and mostly ribs and what tasted like bland ranch with a little sprinkles of parm. I'm sorry but what we came for and what we paid for was disappointing. A menu should be updated when it changes both online and on paper. read more

Quaint interior lots of nostalgia, food could use a bit of attention. Ordered the Waldorf chicken salad. There was an over an over abundance of mayo it and it took over the flavor profile. Partner had Strawberry fields salad, asked for dressing on side got it on side and in it also. I guess the place has a corner on the market while located in a beautiful setting. But for the price I believe they can up their game a bit! read more

Came in thirty minutes until closing and they were happy to serve us. Our server was very friendly and offered some good suggestions. When we told her we were on a road trip she provided some additional options for places we were traveling to. Neat restaurant in an old train depot! Worth checking out if you are in the area. read more

My husband and I were in the area visiting an old friend and decided to return to the Steaming Tender after many years. The service was great. Our server, Kendall, was informed and attentive. I had the warm lobster roll and my husband had the pulled pork grilled cheese. Both were delicious! We have always loved the restored train station atmosphere. Sadly this will probably be our last visit as we have no reason to be in the area in the future, but will cherish the many "meal memories" that we made there! Best wishes and many thanks to the Steaming Tender! read more

It's alright. Not healthy by any means. Cool atmosphere. We got the fried pickles (left a weird aftertaste), fish tacos (app but I got it for a meal and it was sooo good) and my daughter got the kids bowtie pasta. She enjoyed it but there was legit at least half a stick of butter under her pasta. I'm writing this review as we are leaving, but I predict she's going to have a potty emergency shortly. All that butter was unnecessary... at least drain it! read more

Steaming Tender - American Near Me - Palmer, Massachusetts

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I think this may have been the worst meal my wife and I have ever eaten. We ordered the fried artichoke first. It was ok, but it needed some sort of sauce. I had the clam chowder, which came out like warm and was gross. I didn't eat it. The server took it away and told me she would take it off. Then I ate the prime rib sandwich which was awful. It was black from being cooked too long, and it tasted like a microwaved Salisbury steak from a Hungry Man meal. Disgusting. I had two bites and decided I couldn't bring myself to eat anymore. My wife had the scallops which were ok, but she was so grossed out by my food that she stopped eating them. Meagan the waitress was nice, so we tipped her well (it's not her fault the food sucked). Total bill was $78. We gave her $100 and left. Overall, nice setting, fine service, terrible food (just pure crap). Do yourself a favor and eat anywhere else. read more

We have been for both lunch and dinner. It's the most adorable restaurant built into an old train station. Our little one adored the Christmas lights. The food is very good and true New England fare. The staff are always very attentive and kind, but don't hover which is great. The Reuben is a great lunch choice and the fish is always an amazing dinner option! read more

Bread Pudding IN my drink? Yes please. The cocktail was so good, and a great way to try some of the bread pudding if you know that the main you're getting is going to be too large for you to be able to even think about dessert. I had another cocktail that undrinkable though (cant recall the name and their drinks menu is not online). We got the fried pickles, pumpkin pizza and nachos to start, all of which were great (maybe too sweet of a pumpkin pizza but hey, pumpkin is sweet) and I had the mac n cheese for a main which was delicious. Was so excited that the portion size meant that I was going to be able to have it for lunch the next day as well. They have heat lamps and our server was great. read more

We always enjoy going to Steaming Tender. The food is always good. Tonight had the FISK FISH FILET FRIED HADDOCK with SPICY CORN sauce. Awesome! Had a flight of beers. Awesome! The atmosphere is special being a Train Depot and running trains passing if lucky. Staff are dressed as Conductors which adds to the ambience. Staff is always pleasant. Thanks for a nice dinner. read more

The historic building is incredible, thanks to the owners who have worked tirelessly to save it. The food is great, I've never had a bad bite and the wife and I are there a couple of times a month. From traditional pub food to European inspired dishes, you can't go wrong. I'm a huge fan of lobster and apparently so is the owner. When it comes to the quality, it's like I'm in Rockport. I can't recommend this place enough. read more

Yummy Fun Love there chowder Baked Stuffed Shrimp Caesar Salad Clam Chowder Lobster Mac New England Turkey Dinner All delicious read more

I was visiting from out of town when my family took me here for brunch on a Sunday. My son and I loved the trains and the old history. So cool!! The food was delicious! Corned beef hash was one of the best I've had in a while. My son loved making the Belgian waffles and decorating them with fruit and whipped cream! So fun! The biscuits and gravy was very good. Nice pepper flavor and sausage flavor. Just about everything we tried was delicious! read more

Steaming Tender - American Near Me - Palmer, Massachusetts

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Brought my husband who is the retired engineer for Amtrak he loves this place. The food was good. The white staff was excellent. This was our second time going and we will go again. read more

My siblings and I went there last Saturday for a daytime dinner. Since there was 6 of us, the large round table was great. We had fried haddock, pot roast with amazing mashed potatoes, mac and cheese with added grilled chicken, carrot cake and cheesecake. ALL the food was fabulous including the pot roast that others said was tough; it was plentiful and tender. The service was great and attentive. Highly recommend. read more

This is a very cool spot. Some people will say that all I care about is the food, and for the most part they would be right. But sometimes, sometimes there is a place that is so special on its own, the food just has to be good enough to not spoil the experience. I'd say Steaming Tender falls under that category. The dining room in this converted train station is amazing. Amazing. It's a word that I don't use lightly. Just look up. All that wood. Those ceilings. The huge hand cut beams. The room is simply awesome. The food is fine. My daughter was trying to decide between the hot dog and the chicken fingers on the kids menu. I convinced her to go with the chicken fingers, and seriously, those may have been the best looking things on the table. My caesar salad with grilled chicken was just fine. My mother was happy with her tuna melt, but I would have found it lackluster. For me a tuna melt is all about the warmed tuna salad, tucked away under a layer of melted cheese. There was barely any cheese in this thing. It was more like a patty melt on grilled rye bread. It had cheese on the inside, but it was easy to miss. Maybe that's what a tuna melt is when you're in Massachusetts? I'm not sure. One of the pictures on Yelp shows tables set up in a train car. That does exist. It's outside. However, that's not for everyday service. You can book the dining car for special events, which sounds like it would be a ton of fun. Is the place a couple dollars more expensive than one might expect for the food being served? Sure. But the dining room is gorgeous, and it's well worth the small expense for this trip back in time. Bravo to the team who put together what's clearly a labor of love. One piece of constructive criticism might be to offer plates instead of plastic baskets for lunch items. The plastic baskets work fine, but a plate would really help go the extra mile. read more

The space is absolutely beautiful. The wait staff is amazing. The food was great. A couple of items were not available from the menu. The nachos are not what you think about when you think of nachos. The lobster roll was great. The French fries are excellent. There was a lamb shank special that was great. The baked fisherman platter was delicious. We will be back when we are in Western Ma. read more

This is my first time visiting this establishment. I've heard from a few people the food was good. In actuality the food is unbelievable and the service is excellent. read more

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What a great experience! We(4 of us ) enjoyed a variety of dishes served by our server Jennifer! Extremely attentive while being super busy, never had to ask for anything! Food was prepared quickly and hot! Whiskey bread pudding was a hit! Great find, well worth the trip from RI! read more

This was my first visit, my son enjoys trains so we thought it'd be a neat dinner. We did see an Amtrak pass by which was cool. I highly suggest making a reservation for a weekend it was quite a long wait. The service was fantastic. Our waitress was friendly, gave us a bit of history of the restaurant and made some recommendations. I'd definitely visit again. The food was good, hot and fresh. The ambiance is a bit loud but it's to expect because it is a old train station, lots of echo. I would definitely visit again. read more

High-end food at a reasonable price, very cool, historic building, excellent, friendly service. And if you're into trains, the vintage locomotive and cars and many smaller artifacts are a huge plus. read more

Great food in in a beautiful historic train station. The chicken and so many other things are amazing!

black piece of hair in our wings, eyelash in our blue cheese. No manager ever came over. nothing comped. Food was terrible. sooooo disappointing!!!! read more

Eating lunch at the Steaming Tender Restaurant was as close to a perfect dining experience as I've gotten - from the location, decor, waitress service to the unique food items and delicious meals there wasn't anything that I could find to criticize in my entire visit. To start, it's located in an old train depot right on the (still active) tracks. I only went inside to use the restroom and from what I saw the decor was historical and very cool. I won't ruin the bathroom's decor but it was interesting and worth looking at! We were seated outside and there was plenty of outside seating so it was great. They even give you a golden railroad spike to weigh down the paper menus. Very cool. There are a lot of drink and food options. Many clever names that made me chuckle. I went a little crazy and got their bread pudding martini. It's basically made to taste like their famous whiskey bread pudding with maple liquor and whiskey and it also features a huge chunk of the bread pudding. Very decadent! And delicious. And strong. Just wow. That's the best word - wow. My dining partner got a cinnamon rim lined pumpkin beer that was very nice. For food, we figured the meals would be big so didn't order any apps or a salad/soup to start. I went with the traditional turkey dinner. It was really tasty - I loved their stuffing. And huge. My partner got the pistachio crusted salmon (unique!). His came with a side choice and when the waitress explained what was in the coleslaw we just had to say yes. No lie, I've never had coleslaw like this and it was so tasty - it came with pineapple (yes, pineapple!) and raisins mixed in. It was so good we ordered a side to take home. No complaints (and no offer to share which usually indicates he really loves what he's eating) on his meal and he actually ended up helping me with mine because it was so huge. Tender turkey, a lovely house made gravy, lumpy real potatoes, cranberry sauce, stuffing (yum) and corn. Fantastic. The prices were great too. The meals were really decently priced for the amount of food and quality. We splurged on the martini since it was so unique and that was a little pricey at $15 but you got almost a dessert size portion of bread pudding with it so it was worth it. Plenty of parking and the outside seating was very nice. We were there early which seemed the right time as it really filled up with customers as we were eating. I'm not really near the Palmer area but might make a special trip next time in the general area just to go back here, it was that good! read more

the food is great, I love it. I really like the fact theres an active train track right next to the restaurant. The history behind it is amazing. The staff is super sweet. read more

Truly a great and unique place, the building is 1 of a kind and a great historical monument perfect for anyone of any age with trains going by right next to the building throughout the day the employees who work their are amazing and make sure you have a great experience definitely a place you need to check out for yourself especially if you like trains read more

We just moved to the area and are trying out all the restaurants. Tonight we went to the Steaming Tender. The waitress was awesome. Knowledgeable, pleasant and well mannered. We ordered bone in wings for an appetizer. The drums were not cooked as there was blood on them when we bit into them. The waitress said this is how they are and that other people have complained about them. The cooks say it's because of the vein in them. We always get them wherever we go and have never experienced this at all. Then we had burgers. The menu states "comes with a side car salad side". Mediocre at best. No flavor to the meat. Once we got the bill we were charged a dollar for the salad. We asked the waitress why and she said it's their policy as it is a side upcharge. When you order a burger and it says "comes with" there is never an upcharge. Now a dollar is not a big deal but it's the principal of it. We paid and while walking out there was a women at the door. We tried to tell he our concerns and she told us she was the owner. I expected an owner to hear our concerns and ask how they could make it right. She was rude and snapped the menu closed when we tried to show her the issue with the language on it. We will not return to this establishment. There are so so many restaurants to go to we do not need to go to a place where they are manipulative to get a dollar out of customers for something that "comes with" the meal. read more

My husband and I had a nice lunch here on a Sunday afternoon. Only a 5-10 minute wait. The environment is worth the trip. Old pictures and styled lighting.. planes hanging from the ceiling, trains going by at fast speed. We got a beverage and I got chicken tenders with rice, he got the haddock sandwich. We both were happy with our meals and would like to come back to try more food. I think the rice could have had more flavor but I mean it's rice you know what you're getting! Lol the haddock was fresh and yummy. The chicken tender plate meal wouldn't be for a grown man though more a pretty lady based on its size. If my hubs had ordered my meal he would have still been hungry. Will come back and try Reuben and duck! read more

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We love Steaming Tender! Our meals are delicious each time we visit. The service is always amazing as well, we've honestly never had a bad experience! If you're in the area make sure to stop in read more