Well, that is until I had dinner at the Crooked House Bistro.

Many years ago my husband and I were down in Bandon, Oregon with my in-laws.  We dined at this small restaurant with 12 tables, ordered our dinner, and a bottle of wine from our “waiter.”  The waiter came back with 5 wine glasses, despite the fact that there were 4 of us, and poured himself a bit of wine.  Throughout the evening, he sipped wine with us and then gave us a second bottle for free, because our waiter was the owner.  It was a wonderful, friendly, and casual dining experience with great food and wine.  I believe that the owner sold the restaurant a few years later and retired, but I loved that restaurant and the dining experience.

About a month ago, it was time for a date night for me and my hubby and I told him we needed to head to Crooked House Bistro.  I’d heard nothing but good things about it and wanted to try it out.  As we walked into the bistro, I was filled with warm memories of this Bandon restaurant experience.  Rustic, authentic, and cozy are just some of the descriptions that popped into my mind when I think about the Crooked House Bistro over on Edgewater St in NW Salem.  Chef Bernard Malherbe took the small cottage over from a catering company and created a comfortable dining experience for Salemites.  With just a few tables in the restaurant, this place is the epitome of bistro.  This little building has had a series of rotating businesses in and out of it and I think Crooked House is here to stay.

We were a bit overwhelmed with all the wine choices and asked Bernard for help, who was our waiter for most of the evening.  Without missing a beat he recommended a Chablis to go with our meal, which I was dubious about because well…that was boxed wine in my book.  The wine was wonderful, light, and complimented our dinner, and no…Bernard didn’t pour himself a glass of wine while serving us.  As we were getting toward the end of our meal, I asked if he was the owner and got a joking “well that depends on why you are asking me that.”  I just assured him I had no complaints, only compliments.   I wanted to blog about the restaurant and wanted permission to take some interior photos.

For those of you looking for that formal, stuffy kind of dining experience, this isn’t it.  Fresh, quality made food in a causal friendly dining style?  This hits the mark.  Salem’s newest swan is the Crooked House Bistro.

“Gee hon, what do you really think?  It’s not that bad,” chided my husband jokingly, as he opened the door to go inside.

“Hmmpf,” was all the retort I could muster that day.  It was early in the morning and I really needed some coffee before my wit had a chance to wake up.

“Hey…we can always go next door over there and get some coffee when we are done here?”  he laughed.

I looked over to where he was pointing and saw the little barbecue joint there looking like it was about to topple over.  An asthmatic Big Bad Wolf could huff and wheeze that thing over.  Forget the old arsenic and old lace plan for killing me, I thought…he’s trying to get me with food poisoning.

11 years ago now, my husband and I walked into this dingy old building located on south Commercial street to sign mortgage documents for our home purchase here in Salem Oregon.  Totally out of place in a parking lot, it stood at the corner with an outdated looking strip mall behind it and a small barbecue joint called the Barbecue Pit across the parking lot.  Forget a good pressure washing, these buildings just looked liked they needed a good bulldozing.

A few years later, I noticed that the bank was no longer using the building and it just sat…and sat…and sat.  Vacant.  The Barbecue Pit South, which was one of Salem’s last remaining diners from the 1960′s eras closed (we still have Court St Dairy Lunch and Whites).  Despite making fun of the state of their building, I’m always melancholy when a long standing business closes.  In March of 2007, the buildings were demolished and  then the rumor mill started in Salem as construction began.

“It’s another Starbucks,” whispered one local.  ”Like we need another one of those!” was the retort.  A Quizno’s, Subway…on and on the locals took their guesses about what this small little building was going to be.  Then the signs went up to satisfy our curiosity and dispel the local rumor mill.

French Press.

“I hear they will have crepes,” said one local excitedly.

“And some fancy schmancy coffee,” mumbled another.  Coffee culture is powerful in the Pacific Northwest.  You just gotta live here to understand it.

French Press is located in the Candalaria neighborhood on the corner of Candalaria Boulevard and Commercial. Taking a decaying old restaurant building and turning it into a popular spot for coffee lovers, this place is typically busy.  French Press sits where the old BBQ Pit was and the bank building is gone and is part of the often full parking lot.  The biggest complaint by the locals is that they should have made it bigger. and during busy times, you probably won’t find a table.   If you haven’t tried French Press, I’ve talked about their Kona blend before…only for experienced coffee drinkers.  Their crepes are tasty, and I prefer the savory crepes as their sweet crepes tend to be a bit sweet for me.  Hubby though…hooked on the berry crepes as is my son.

French Press sits in the Candalaria Mall which also houses Bakery D’mour, Blackberries, and yes…a Quizno’s at this time. The whole building was done as part of this renovation project.  If you are considering moving here, this is just one more great example of Salem Oregon going through the rejuvenation process and turning those ugly duckings into swans.

P.S.  The first two of key bank were taken by Robert West. He allowed me to use them in this post.  You can see the originals of Salem Oregon and many more he took of that area on his webpage which is kind of cool and you should check it out!  The photo of the old BBQ Pit/La Perla was taken by Salem Man of the Eat Salem Blog.  Used with permission.

As you drive down high street here in Salem Oregon, the mustard yellow building kind of jumps out at you.  The first time I saw this finished building I wasn’t sure what to make of it.  Was it seriously ugly or seriously cool?

Salmon Run was built in 2004 by Curry Brandaw. It is a mixed use space that has a few condos and office space.  Situated on Mill Creek, the building has a very nestled feeling when the leaves come in during the spring. The location is fabulous as it sits just across the street from Pringle Park.

The building replaced the Five Oaks Building which lacked any type of  architectural distinction.  It is a definite improvement over it’s predecessor, that’s for sure.  One of the things I always liked about living in the Chicago area was the vastly different architecture of the city. It’s lack of sameness is what made it kind of cool.  To that end, Salmon Run has achieved a unique look that I think is a nice addition to the changing look of the downtown core.

My final verdict on the Salmon Run Building?  It’s grown on me:  I like it now.

Read the other posts in this series.

This photo was used from the Salem Public Libraries Historic Photos Collection.

As you head out of downtown on high street you will see some carpet warehouse buildings off to the left.  Head just a bit further and you will hit the Broadway revitalization area.  My swan feature this month is the Salem Cinema.

I’m a fan of movies and one of those people that likes to see movies that would be shown at Sundance.  As such, I was really excited to see a better venue for our independent movies here in Salem. The high street cinema is still there, but the new Salem Cinema is so nice!

Heading to Boon’s Treasury pre or post movie is such a nice treat, or just walk across the street and hit Christo’s for some pizza.  While there is still lots of work to be done is this area, this is a really nice addition that almost gives Salem an upscale feeling, even if it only lasts while you are in the theater.

So…for movie lovers looking to move to the Salem Oregon area, we have our regular theaters, and don’t forget to pay a visit to the new Salem Cinema.

Salem is one of 8 cities across the nation that was awarded a Kroc center by the Kroc family…you know the founders of McDonald’s.  Upon her death in 2003, Joan Kroc established a trust and bequeathed to the Salvation Army 1.6 billion dollars to be used to establish community centers across the nation.  Salem’s opened in the fall of 2009.

It is an incredible building and truly a gracious donation to the city of Salem and it’s residents.  The building has an olympic size swimming pool, full basketball court, wave/splash pool, rock wall, fitness center, music lessons, dance lessons, drama, art…on and on.  The first time I walked into this building, I was stunned with the beauty of the building and the incredible generosity of the Krocs.  It is truly a wonderful gift and has turned just a portion of a really blighted area into a beautiful swan.  They do offer scholarships for lower income families. The goal of the facility and the grant is that this building has to be accessible to lower income families.  It is meant for the entire community, not just those that can pay the monthly fee.

For those of you considering relocation to Salem Oregon, this is a new gem that is a wonderful addition to our area.

Taking a city block the Phoenix Grand Hotel and the Salem Convention Center are a mix of old style architecture and modern architecture.  I personally like that they made the Hotel have an “older style” feel to the exterior to blend with the existing downtown architecture.  With this improvement came Bentley’s Restaurant.  Now Salem had a few good restaurants prior to Bentley’s, but Bentley’s brought with it a trendier atmosphere that Salem sorely lacked.  A bit more hip, compared to other offerings, this restaurant set the stage for what downtown could become.  I have yet to be in the restaurant when it isn’t busy.

As one of the first buildings that you see as you enter the downtown corridor, then hotel and convention center set the stage for a rejuvination of the downtown area.   When this project was completed I know I thought, WOW…the downtown could look pretty awesome with projects like that…and projects like that continued to occur.

I love old architecture and am not a fan of tearing buildings down unless necessary.  Honestly I can’t even remember what was on the corner of before the hotel and convention center went in downtown.  I tried to scrounge online for some “pre” photos to link to but I didn’t find anything.  If you are considering a relocation to Salem Oregon, just know that rejuvination projects have been occurring all over the downtown and central areas, improving Salem Oregon in positive ways.

It took me a while to adjust to the slower pace of Salem, and I have learned to love the fact that I don’t sit in traffic.  As a parent there are many things I appreciate about Salem and it’s slower paced lifestyle for my family.   I like to take photos and so I’m always looking at things that are interesting or beautiful.  10 years ago, Salem wasn’t winning any beauty awards with me.

In the last three years…that has changed.

I am on forums all of the time, and Salem Oregon constantly gets bashed by people who lived here a long time ago.  My first question is, have you been here in the past three years?  If not, then Salem is a differently city then you know.  I decided I would do an Ugly Duckling to Swan Series about Salem because I do think that Salem is becoming a swan.  Not there yet, but these things take time.

There are many great projects that have gone on since I have lived here,  rejuvinating this city.  Probably one of my recent favorites is the Union pedestrian bridge.

When I moved to Salem Oregon I was stunned at how poorly the city used the riverfront.  The Willmette River cuts through the city just like it does in Portland. The riverfront park was brand new when I moved here, the carousel yet to be open.  On the other side of the river was an undeveloped Wallace Marine Park.  Today both parks are developed and they took the old railroad bridge connecting the two and make it a pedestrian bridge.  It opened in September 2008 and connects the two parks.  It is a GREAT addition to making Salem more liveable, walkable, and our park system more enjoyable.

So if you are considering moving to the Salem Oregon area from another part of the country, I encourage you to be cautious about the opinions of former residents who haven’t been here recently.  Rest assured that the residents of Salem are very much interested in improving this city and this bridge is one of the many projects that is turning this “ugly ducking” of a city, into a swan.