Alder provided one of the more depressing dining experiences I have ever had. To start out, the waitress was odd, but not in a good way. She made several strange and rude remarks, but just as an example: Me «I’d like the Cajun omelet.» Waitress«We don’t have a Cajun omelet.» Me «Sure you do» while pointing at the menu item that says Big Cajun Omelet. Waitress«That says Big Cajun Omelet, not Cajun omelet. Is that what you want?» Me «Ummm…ok, sure.» Unfortunately, the omelet was no better than the waitress’ personality. All of the meat(what little there was) ended up at one end, and other than some green peppers, I’m baffled as to why it was called a «cajun» omelet. It was just some eggs, green pepper, some sea food and a brown gravy. I could make that myself at home, blind folded. My wife fared no better. She ordered a sandwich that was supposed to be made from jalapeño corn bread. Hers was made from ordinary white bread. When she asked the waitress about this she replied«We’re out of corn bread so we used white bread. But the corn bread is really good and home made and you’d really like it.» Yea… we thought that was a bizarre thing to say as well. I should also mention that we were the only two people in the place, at lunch time, on a holiday weekend(in a tourist town). Avoid this place. Perhaps the next owners/staff will be better.
K K.
Place rating: 2 Talent, OR
The server was very accommodating and the ambiance was nice with beautiful, hanging plants, but the two things we asked for were sold out — one of them being hot tea(really??). Maybe just not their best night.
David N.
Place rating: 1 Post Falls, ID
This place was just plain bad all around. we will never eat here again. The service was just ok but, the food was not good. How can you mess up soda or fries? You can tell, there food was all from frozen and just not good. There was only three other couples in there at lunch time. The other places were full of people. Baby sitting during work is not ok. A Small child with the run of the place and yelling is not so good.
Nathan J.
Place rating: 1 Portland, OR
The food was stale, the restaurant unheated, we couldn’t take our coats off, neither could anyone else… there was a swarm of bugs in the bar area. Service was terribly slow. I won’t be back.
Jonathan S.
Place rating: 2 Portland, OR
The friend I’m visiting said many of the people she knows in town say avoid eating here. The empty dining room when all of the other eating establishments in the vicinity are busyvshould have been another sign I paid attention to. I thought let’s just give it a chance. First off the dining room was too cold to remove your jacket. The pop carbonation was off. The menu says the food is made fresh be prepared to wait, but the wait was still too long with the number of people there. Do not order the fries. The fries have a weird coating and are not tasty. To be fair the prices are decent but don’t bring cash as it’s an inconvenience to the restaurant.
JD S.
Place rating: 1 Eugene, OR
The star is for the sauce on my shrimp and grits — it was actually surprisingly good. Other than that… We come to Yachats a couple of times a year and I don’t expect this place to be here on our next visit. Three tables occupied when we got there at around 6 pm. First table they tried to seat us at had a light fixture that didn’t work, so they brought us to another table in a dark corner with a missing light fixture. I guess that was an improvement? So dark it was hard to read the menu. Tried to take off my jacket, but it was FREEZING. Tried to order a beer but was told none of their taps were working. Almost an hour later(while we were still waiting for our food) I watched a server recite the beer menu and then bring a beer to another table. What was that about? Maybe we were there so long that the taps got fixed? Service was terrible — waited 40 minutes for dinner salads, no check ins. My shrimp was way overcooked and grits weird and lumpy. My six year old didn’t want her French fries, which should tell you something — this kid never refuses French fries! Wife’s onion soup was dishwatery, but at least it was warm. Pretty horrible dining experience.
Blaine P.
Place rating: 1 Portland, OR
Unfortunately the best part about this restaurant are the beautiful house plants hanging from the ceiling. If they took care of the guests half as well as their plants we’d be eating instead of trying to find our server to just pay for our damn beers and go across the street where I can see people with real food!
Jonathan S.
Place rating: 2 San Diego, CA
It took about 30 minutes to get our appetizer and nearly an hour for our entrees… which was odd, because there was only 3 other occupied tables(at around 6pm) in the whole restaurant. The waiter was nice, but her t-shirt and yoga pants«uniform» was a bit off putting. Surprisingly, the food was very good. Very good. This place needs to be on an episode of Kitchen Nightmares or something, because it deserves to be very successful with such good food, but the customer service/experience is just terribly lacking.
Ivonne N.
Place rating: 1 Cedar Falls, IA
Our first and only visit to alder bistro and lounge. One — fish and chips, fish was completely under season the fries were good. Second, ordered gumbo was asked if I wanted vegetarian or added shrimp, chicken and andouille, glad I said yes because it was all I eat, three shrimps and chicken. Gumbo had all spices available in the restaurant. The rice was undercooked. D for effort on attempting to cook brown rice. Service was OK, counting we walked in 20 before closing time, 8pm. Sad only three people at the restaurant when all of the other places were packed on a Sunday night. I understand just change owners, keep trying on the food: over spicing or under season are two very different directions.
Scott L.
Place rating: 5 Brattleboro, VT
This place was just what and when I needed! Was referred to it for«excellent coffee»(which indeed it was!) but ended up being too tempted by the many organic, vegan, and GF options that I wasn’t expecting. I ended up going with a dish out of my comfort zone, and it was excellent! It looks and feels like a good ol’ mom and pop shop, but again has plenty of healthy, not-greasy-spoon options. Loved it! Thanks Alder :-)
Mike M.
Place rating: 1 Salem, OR
No stars We were excited when they opened but won’t go back after today’s debacle. Awful service, worse food. The potpie was full of frozen peas, carrots &corn in a tasteless, watery gravy with a small bit of pencil-shaved seafood. Crust was only partially cooked. Caesar salad was tiny and not complete — no croutons, infinitesimal scratch of cheese, bland dressing and little shrimp. Not living up to size for lunch. Go to LunaSea, Ona, or The Drift Inn when needing a nosh in Yachats.
Capro B.
Place rating: 2 Coos Bay, OR
The food was excellent. That’s where goodness ends. The waitress was friendly for part of the meal, otherwise she was curt at best. Our breakfast bore some semblance of what we ordered but it was far from correct, parts of it were even missing. When the waitress finally checked on our food we were done and when we mentioned the missing parts of our breakfast(I wasn’t even going to try to explain the difference in our food from what we ordered) I got an argument then, ‘I’ll check with the manager to see what we can do.’ Very little was offered for the ordeal but it wasn’t worth waiting longer to speak with the manager. End result — a general lack of understanding of customer service, slow everything but excellent food.
Bj S.
Place rating: 5 Yachats, OR
This restaurant was absolutely perfect for our group! We have food allergies, sensitivities, and different preferences. The food was excellent! Lots of fresh, well prepared dishes to choose from. The staff was welcoming and friendly, the service was very good. This is definitely on our return list when we come through Yachats! I would recommend this for anyone who wants fresh, well prepared and presented food. Not preprocessed or fast food!
Darby G.
Place rating: 1 Florence, OR
We went two months ago and it was great… this time a different story and we won’t return. Prices high for what you get. Service very slow even w only two other tables there. Two tables came while we were there and both left after 10 minutes.
Izzy D.
Place rating: 1 Portland, OR
An overall terrible dinning experience. The service was awful, It took us an hour+ to get our food. The waitress even apologized for it taking so long multiple times when there were only three different tables in the whole restaurant. The ambiance… Retirement home mixed with bingo center. The food was cold. My pancakes tasted like wet dog and microwaved water. I also found a hair in my food. Needless to say I will not be returning
K A.
Place rating: 2 Corvallis, OR
First time we went here was no one in the place but food was awesome. Just tried again and not so much… had the salmon with cheese grit. Grits soggy. Husband had pork medallions he said over cooked and dry pork chop. Really disappointing.
Carol J.
Place rating: 1 Newport, OR
We had breakfast 5 – 28. The interior is nice(its from the old La Serre 80s &90’s) that’s where it ends. Service was incredibly slow even though there were maybe 3 to 4 other tables occupied. I had omelet with ham & veges. I got an omelet with 2lbs of cheese, some gray hard chunks(ham?) a bunch of green & red peppers. No mushrooms as was listed in the description. It was horrible. Husband had the basic 2 eggs & bacon. The bacon was a dark brownish, black color. The waiter brought ketchup & hot sauce to the table with the stuff running down the sides! Will never go back.
Steve G.
Place rating: 5 Eugene, OR
This is the 2nd time we’ve checked out this mom & pop bistro with a Cajun kick. At first entrance one might expect meatloaf and baked Alaska what with the high wooden early American chairs and family style ambience however the lounge is comfy and cozy with a fireplace and occasional live acoustic music. Today it was about Easter breakfast starting with complimentary champagne for those who would like. I had the Big Cajun Omelette with blackened crawfish and veggies topped with Etouffe sauce served with cheesy grits and homemade sourdough toast and their homemade jam of the day, apricot. Just exquisitely prepared, like the salmon I had two nights before there for dinner. Oh, and don’t forget to check out the spinach and artichoke pita dip with the smokey flavor. I suppose I could knock the slow service experienced at dinner but why? I highly suggest you wait that out because the food is worth every extra minute!
Betty C.
Place rating: 2 Hillsboro, OR
Wow I hoped they would work out the kinks but mmmm no. Treated w two slices of sourdough toast(you know, like for breakfast) and then the sparkling wine was flat. She noticed it had no bubbles but let me try it anyway. I love being a guinea pig. Wine list is awful. The rib eye was a quarter inch thick. And slopped over overlooked potatoes. The veggies were thrown on top. There is no dessert menu. Servers have no idea what dessert is. Pricing like LeSerre. Food. Not so much. Sigh. I hope they make it but I doubt it.
Q P.
Place rating: 4 Eugene, OR
We tried Sunday brunch at the Alder Bistro after a weekend camping. The line at our usual stop across the street was out the door, so we took a chance and really enjoyed it. Each table gets complimentary house-made doughnut holes, and a complementary glass of brüt(on brunch days). I ordered the 101 omelet and they let me sub-in feta as the cheese. My partner got the chicken and waffles. Both came out in under 10 minutes and the food was tasty. I really enjoyed the potatoes, although I would have put less pepper in the chicken batter. The hanging plants actually help the atmosphere, by adding color and brining your eyes up to the skylights. Overall it was a good brunch and we’d return for more.