CM
Christy Marsh
Sep 3, 2026
Two visits to Sal's, trending in the right direction — mostly.
My husband and I first visited on a busy Friday night this past spring. The woodfired pizza was just okay, and the house Italian dressing on my salad was so bland it was essentially plain olive oil — I ended up seasoning it with parmesan and salt just to get through it. (His Caesar was solid, so lesson learned.) On the bright side, the peach Bellini and limoncello were both excellent, and you can't fault a packed house on a Friday night. We left thinking we probably wouldn't return.
But we decided to give it another shot, and I'm glad we did. We went back on a Thursday evening and were immediately impressed — the interior has been beautifully remodeled. It's a real upgrade that honors the fact that this place has been a neighborhood staple for years.
The food was noticeably better this round. We skipped the complimentary table bread (nothing memorable) and ordered the garlic cheese knots, fried ravioli, and fettuccine alfredo with chicken. Everything was well-prepared and enjoyable. The Moscato and sangria were great too.
Our server was attentive and genuinely kind — no complaints about the wait staff at all. The kitchen, however, was very slow, which seemed to be straining the whole operation.
Two things did dampen the experience. First, we were told there'd be a wait for a table despite at least eleven empty tables visible in the dining room. The hostess had to make a phone call before seating us. We watched another party get the same runaround and leave. We chose to be patient, but it was confusing and off-putting.
Second, throughout our entire meal, a very young man occupied a corner table — eating, drinking, scrolling on his phone and laptop — and repeatedly got up to chat with various servers, walk behind the counter, and insert himself into operations. He never greeted or acknowledged a single guest. All of the servers were in matching uniforms, but he was in street clothes, which made his constant involvement with the staff even more puzzling. At one point he handled a customer's pizza without having washed his hands. Whether he's an owner's family member, a manager in training, or something else, the behavior was distracting and unprofessional, and it disrupted what was otherwise a pleasant evening.
We're planning a third visit because the food and the remodel have earned it. Hoping the front-of-house kinks get ironed out — this place has real potential.