Oak & Vine at Springside

Was here a couple weeks ago for the first time in a while. I had made a reservation on OpenTable because I wanted to go out somewhere to celebrate being home again after returning from 3 weeks of traveling. The experience just didn’t end up being what I was hoping for.
A friend and I arrived and walked in through the main door of the restaurant, but there was nobody at the hosting table. There was clearly some kind of activity happening at the restaurant and things seemed a bit disorganized too. A couple minutes later, the hostess notices us waiting to be seated and finally comes over to help.
There was prep for a wedding or reception or something happening during the time of our reservation, so that explains why everything felt a bit chaotic. Once seated, we got out menus and ordered drinks. While our server was pleasant enough, she also seemed to be running around from table to table to deal with orders… while also asking other servers to tend to delivering plates to X table, or getting menus to Y table. After my friend and I had ordered our main dishes with our server, our plates were later delivered by someone else. Again… not a huge deal, but it certainly felt disorganized.
As far as the dishes themselves go, they weren’t anything special. I’m typically a fan of gastropub-​style food, but everything here felt very «blah» and lacked in any originality. My calamari had very little seasoning (surprising, considering it was supposed to be spicy and I was expecting a bit of a kick), and my friend said her squash soup appetizer was merely fine. As far as main dishes, there was a special that night of risotto with duck… and my friend being a big fan of duck, she ordered that. Unfortunately, it seemed to be lacking too. There were very few pieces of duck meat in the risotto itself, and again, a general lack of seasoning. My friend had also ordered a side of asparagus that didn’t come out with the rest of the dishes. Whether it was our server forgetting to put that part of the order in to the kitchen, or perhaps the kitchen (or even the kid who delivered the dishes to our table) forgetting to account for that part of the order… well, I have no idea. I had to remind the waitress of that part of the order when we saw her again; however, but the time we DID see her again? We were basically done with our meals… so we just ended up taking the asparagus to go.
Oh, and for what it’s worth… my main dish was the «Chicken & Shrimp Pomodoro,» but it came to the table with an oddly watery sauce… and, surprise surprise, a total lack of seasoning. Wouldn’t recommend that dish to anyone.
TL;DR Service staff was generally pleasant enough, but seemed horribly disorganized. Dishes were pretty flavorless, and I was especially disappointed because I love gastropub-​style restaurants. I don’t get the appeal of this place, honestly, though I guess the view and the grounds are nice enough.

Trying to decide which was worse, the service or the food. Denny’s is much better! Extremely overpriced for terrible food!
Went back again and the quality of food is just above utility grade beef. I guess they are riding the old name and not reinvesting in quality chefs or servers. Sad to see because this was a super place when I grew up in the area.

This place is not as great as they think, unless you’re ok with the cooks calling waitstaff «retards». I’ll pass. I can make better food at home in a cleaner kitchen.

As others have said, this is a beautiful place. The room is cozy and comfortable and the outdoor deck has a stunning view of the grounds overlooking Owasco Lake. Also the service is quite adequate.
Based on Unilocal and the restaurant’s web site, I came here thinking this was a gastropub. Unfortunately it is not. There were only 6 beers on tap and although 3 were from regional craft brewers, nothing on tap was not commonly available in the area. When someone uses the term «gastropub», I expect a wide selection of craft beers including some that are not found in a typical bar in the area.
The other thing a gastropub should have is good food. We both ordered a side salad to start and it was quite good with a lovely light balsamic vinaigrette. I ordered a roasted vegetable pizza, described as including pesto and goat cheese. What I received was a large handmade pizza crust with some spinach and artichoke hearts recognizable under a thick and heavy topping of cheese. Roasted vegetables? Not present. Pesto? Hard to tell when smothered in so much cheese. Goat cheese? Yes but too much of a good thing. My wife ordered a simple burger which was salty!
Again, it’s just not up to the hype. A beautiful place like this deserves a higher quality of food and drink. Currently the only fine dining establishments in the town are considerably more expensive so there’s room for a place with good quality food at a reasonable price. I hope Oak & Vine can become that place.

Where impeccable ambiance, superlative service, decadent cuisine, transcendent deserts all come together at the best appointed Inn I’ve ever experienced… the only criticism is that I wish they were open later and later and later so we didn’t have to leave! The Springside Inn is the best place to stay whenever we’re anywhere near Upstate New York. PS Ask for room 31! It has a huge jacuzzi!

Oak and Vine’s Saturday brunch is one of my favorite things Auburn has to offer. It is delicious and such a peaceful start to the weekend. The mimosas are great, coffee is always hot and abundant and the pastries are amazingly delicious little gems. My favorite entrée is the stuffed French toast when it is stuffed with fruit filling and mascarpone, and the duck confit eggs Benedict is my husband’s go to choice. We love starting the weekend in such a relaxing and peaceful environment with delicious food and great service. It is the perfect place to take family or friends visiting the area. We truly missed Saturday brunch all winter as it is only seasonal.
We have also been to Oak and Vine for their Sunday brunch buffet (which is very good but not quite as pleasant as Saturday brunch for us) and dinners including burger night. I’m not much of a burger fan, however, their burger with avocado was amazing. I would order it again in an instant.

This is the best restaurant in Auburn.
I highly recommend the beet salad with feta cheese. Also, the calamari is heavenly: crisp on the outside and silky on the inside. For entrees, the scallop dish is perfectly pan-​seared, and the accompanying pesto risotto is delicious. The filet medallions are also very good. For dessert, I have tasted the tiramisu, banana cream pie, and flourless chocolate cake, and all were awesome.
In a perfect world, I would eat here five times a week.

My first trip here was with a bus load of hungry theatre goers. We had just seen a great play at the Merry-​go– Round theatre. We were early, but they seated & served us in a timely manner. Since we were early, we stopped at the bar & were served by a knowledgable bar tender. The food was hot, good & a perfect portion. The only thing I was disappointed in was the wait staff’s personality’s were lacking. They were very efficient, but not friendly. Just took dishes without asking if we were done. No greeting or goodbye. A little strange.

This is proof that you CAN teach an old dig new tricks! dinner — service and food was a real step up from Springside’s usual faire.
Atmosphere attitude have not really risen to the occasion in the bar. Bartender was very busy taking care of server orders leaving us bar customers to wait and wait. He was working very hard. Just not enough hands.
Menu has come right along. We had spicy thai calamari at the bar yum.
I recommend you stop in for a bite.

Living in Upstate, NY it’s like finding a needle in a haystack when it comes to finding an establishment with a great variety on their menu, great beer selection and CLEAN eating. I read a few reviews that mention their high prices. I feel they were right on point with their prices, for the quality of the food, dining experience and the setting they provide. Sure if your favorite restaurant is the kind that provides an overflowing plate of slop for 4 bucks, then you probably shouldn’t even be going here. But I believe they back up their prices and put some TLC into their meals. Something for everyone. Meat Lover, Fish eater, Vegetarian, Pasta Lover etc. I will say, the cook does get a little carried away with the salt just like someone else said. Had the caramelized brussell sprouts which were awesome but the abundance of salt was bothering me a bit. Hoping they do well and remain in the area. Nice little place to remember to grab a bite in this area of Upstate that we find ourselves in every now & then.

Great location. Great menu. Good wine and beer list. Salmon was good. I tend to like things salty but the chef got carried away. However, if in the area again, I will give it another try though.

I base this review on two visits; one at the bar at Oak & Vine and yesterday for Easter Dinner.
We were happy to find The Springside had opened Oak & Vine so this past Friday we found ourselves seated at the bar right at opening time. The staff was in the bar having a meeting with the chef, clearly a good sign to gather the staff and talk about the food, to me that shows the chef cares.
We sat down and immediately greeted by a nice fellow, clearly a professional bartender. He made fitting suggestions without being intrusive or pushy and was truly a nice guy. Through conversation we find he is from The City we love and miss so much, San Francisco. We traded restaurant stories and tales of The City in general and really enjoyed his company.
The food was OK. The prices are high and my expectations were too. We shared a rock shrimp appetizer (you do not see rock shrimp around here and I love them) for $ 10 and a crab, avocado and tomato salad, also $ 10. Both were lacking. The shrimp was lacking in substance. I think we counted 9 shrimp and if you know rock shrimp they are small, but flavorful to begin with. Flavorless and tiny portion. To the chefs credit the sauce was infused with popcorn flavor which gave the dish a twist but I question the flavoring being all natural.
The crab salad was better with decent chunks of crab meat layered with avocado and out of season tomato in a ring mold. I can just imagine this dish being served in the summer with ripe tomatoes and at a more room temperature, the tomatoes were too cold throwing off the room temp avocado.
Onto Easter Dinner yesterday two days after our first experience.
We arrived early, thank God because the place got packed just after we arrived inside. There was no one at the host stand. Really? So we went into the bar with my parents and ordered a very expensive round of cocktails. Which reminds me. The drinks here are off the charts expensive for this area. I understand restaurants survive on alcohol sales but I left both times feeling gouged. Is it necessary to charge $ 5 for a pint of LOCAL beer?
I finally go back up to the host stand and a woman was now there, but on the phone. I waited but saw our name on the table map which was inside the Oak & Vine dining room as we opted for family style served dinner opposed to the banquet option.
We sat outside on the porch (which was lovely) and had our cocktail and watched the hordes of people arrive. I mean it was like the entrance to the State Fair. I was amazed watching car loads of people arrive and walk up the driveway. I sat there thinking we better get inside and get our seats in case they run out of food.
We sat at our too small and awkward table which was a 2 top pushed together with a 4 top. The seats on one side were a bench, a pew perhaps which looked nice but functionally speaking it was too long for the short table. The rest of us sat in chairs which ended up being not fun as every staff member bumped into me each time they went by. But not to worry as our dinner was over in 30 minutes, which brings me to the 3 star rating.
I have NEVER felt so rushed eating in my life. And I eat fast. There was NO greeting by any staff member. Our salads were preset and as soon as we sat and took a bite BOOM platters and bowls of food were PLOPPED on our table. Not one staff member even spoke to us. ??? Really? This is Easter Sunday dinner dip shits.
The food; our warm preset salad was not iceberg lettuce but a mediocre selection of lettuce, red onion and croutons.
The cheese soufflé had decent flavor, but the presentation was bad. It looked like scrambled eggs.
The meat platter was overcooked roast beef, razor thin ham and chicken that was pale and not brown and crispy which oven roasting indicates.
The mashed potatoes were real but lacked flavor, no butter, no salt, no pepper.
The veggies were not bad but a boring assortment of broccoli and carrots.
The stuffing was gluey and mushy and seemed an after thought. Was this food meant to be served to grandparents only? Everything was soft, over cooked and under seasoned.
Plates were cleared, boxed desserts were served NO COFFEE WAS OFFERED, even though cups and saucers were preset making a small table even smaller.
Service was atrocious and I was embarrassed because the whole thing was my idea.
Once again if the service was welcoming things may have taken a different turn. The staff looked tired and hung over and we all knew they all worked all day because it showed at the 3:30 seating as did the food. It all came off as a lazy attempt to feed the masses fast and get the hell out of there.
The «waitress» added herself 15%, which pissed me off because the service was non existent but we normally tip over 20%, she deserved nothing.
We will NOT be back for Easter dinner again.

We just checked out this newly renovated restaurant and it did not disappoint. Firstly, the interior has a nice feel – like a cozy living room. The waitstaff were perfect, they really impressed us. They never left us waiting and were always there to fill our water glasses – something so simple yet often lacking. And one thing I applaud the chef for is that they are making an effort to use local ingredients.
Their new menu has many interesting items including full entrees, smaller plates, salads, pizzas, and large sides to share. I ended up getting the polenta small plate and a side of caramelized brussels sprouts – both were delicious. My husband got the special trout entrée with leek sauce, a potato side, and grilled baby bok choy. He said his trout was cooked perfectly. I only wish they had at least one vegetarian entrée (they have several vegetarian pizzas just no main entrees). We finished our meal with a Bailey’s flavored crème brûlée that was perfectly crisped on top. All in all, this was an excellent experience and a welcome addition to the area with their more unique menu.