The Putnam Inn

"Food was only average. Not certain how much was actually homemade. The bread was definitely not, which is a "tell" in my opinion. Decent selection on the buffet. $42 seems steep, even with crab legs, but $22 without crab legs is reasonable."

"This place has the best food EVER! It is all prepared fresh on-site, even all the amazing desserts. The salad bar is great and the hot bacon dressing is unique. I always consider skipping the salad bar and save room for the main entree but the salad bar is great! Their meat loaf, chicken, pulled pork, mashed potatoes and all the numerous other sides are fabulous. We live out of town, which is probably good, since my portion control is pretty weak. We always stop here when we get in town."

"We love eating at Putnam Inn. Its long-time family owned hometown establishment with a great variety of home-cooked foods at an affordable price. The best thing is when you walk in and your waitress(Amanda E) already knows what you want to drink without having to ask, because she remembers her customers. That’s the kind of service that makes you feel welcome and “at home”. The dessert selection is just as excellent as the main food bar, which includes sugar free and vegan choices. Plus soft serve ice cream! Yum Can’t say enough good things, we love this place!"

"I hate to say it because I normally give rave reviews of most restaurants. It was an okay experience. We encountered three staff persons during our visit. I saw one smile from one person the entire visit. Either they were having a rough lunch service or just weren't very pleased to be there. The food was okay and there were a lot of twists on traditional dishes. Everything in my opinion was very salty. There was nothing Bland to be found for sure. A lot of the sides were pretty much unidentifiable without tasting them. I did find the fried fish, okra, cold salad bar, and blackberry cobbler to be highlights of the offerings. The plethora of odd casseroles made of corn, broccoli, and other ingredients; down to the pecans in what I'm not sure was either sweet potatoes or pumpkin left me wondering what the intent of the dishes were. The dining room showed its age. The chair I sat in creaked and leaned and I was concerned I was going to end up on the floor. It did hold for the rest of the meal. I did the math on a $15 Buffet for two people at $32.10 in my head and my cashier presented me with a bill for $34.78. I explained we only had the two buffets. She went to our server and fixed the bill. I handed her $43 assisted her in making correct change. It was an all right experience but compared to other buffet meals within 100 miles this one was down near the bottom. I wouldn't discourage anyone from eating there. There was good food to be found and for $15 it was an acceptable value just not at the top of my list. I have mixed feelings on whether I'm happy that I didn't go for the $50 special meal on Friday night to be let down or perhaps because of that occasion they pull out all the stops and it might have been a better experience. On a more positive note maybe it was just an off day and I'm still willing to return there and give that restaurant a second chance because it definitely has potential to be a great meal."