Three new businesses in one brings something for everyone to McMinnville's Granary District

A new sports simulator, a diner, and a steakhouse from the owners of Grain Station

A shiny wood bar with backed barstools. There are two tvs and a fully stocked bar. — *Photos by Emily Teel.*

McMinnville’s Granary District is humming with new life including a suite of new businesses from Jeff and Kelly Glodt, the husband-and-wife team behind Grain Station Brew Works.

Last October they opened Alpine Kitchen in the former Valley Commissary location. In the adjacent space, they’ve added Loft & Lies, a game room with golf and sports simulators. Their final addition, opened on Valentine’s Day, is Alpine Crossing, a restaurant with cocktails and a full dinner menu.

The couple has a long history in the restaurant business. Kelly’s family operated Salem eateries including Nopp’s Golden Pheasant, and Jeff’s grandfather started a local chain of restaurants called J’s in the same Monmouth address which, three generations later, is now their second Grain Station location.

The exterior of Alpine Crossing. It is a blue building with corrugated metal siding. There is a covered patio and tables and chairs. Someone walks into the door underneath an open sign.

For years the couple ran Robert’s Crossing, a cozy, special occasion restaurant in a historic building in Salem.

“I’ve always wanted to bring Roberts Crossing to McMinnville,” said Jeff, and when the restaurant’s lease ending coincided with the early effects of the coronavirus pandemic, they decided to close the restaurant in 2020.

Four years later, they’re realizing their long-held dream with Alpine Crossing and Kitchen and Loft & Lies. “It’s like three businesses in one, but separate,” he explained.

For breakfast and brunch all day, head to Alpine Kitchen, which faces Lafayette Avenue. The menu is loaded with diner favorites like fluffy biscuits with country-style sausage gravy; fruit-topped waffles; chicken fried steak; and fresh-squeezed orange juice.

Now that the restaurant has hit its stride, said Jeff, they’ve started adding more options. The breakfast skillets offer a lot of variety. The namesake Alpine Skillet is loaded with potatoes, ham, bacon, sausage, onions, peppers, mushrooms, and cheddar, plus two eggs and toast on the side. They’ve recently added a Midwest skillet with steak, a Southern option with pulled pork, and a Northwest seafood with smoked salmon and scallops.

They’re also experimenting on the sweet side with red velvet waffles and specialty pancakes. These, said Jeff, they’ll test run as weekly specials and rotate in new flavors seasonally. At lunchtime, the menu includes a handful of salads, burgers, and a crispy chicken sandwich.

On the other side of the building, facing Alpine Avenue, Alpine Crossing aims to be McMinnville’s new destination for date nights. “We didn’t feel like there was a real steak and seafood restaurant in town,” said Jeff. He calls it a dinner house, with appetizers, salads, pastas, and a full menu of classic cocktails.

The menu definitely recalls some favorite dishes from their previous restaurant. The horseradish salmon, bourbon and berry-glazed salmon, and chicken saltimbocca will be familiar to former Robert’s Crossing regulars.

“In fact,” said Jeff,“we’re able to do some things here we couldn’t do [there] because the kitchen was so small in our 110 year old building.” They’re hand-cutting steaks, braising pork shanks for osso bucco with mashed potatoes and barbecue demi glace, and swirling silky fettuccine with alfredo sauce, scallops, shrimp, and mushrooms.

The newly renovated main dining room is decorated with vintage ephemera from the family’s former restaurants and Jeff’s father’s golf clubs from 70’s.

Stools are pushed up against wood tables and bars. There is green carpet on the floor. There is simulated golf in a nearby nook.

A former pro-golfer himself, Jeff was excited to introduce indoor simulators to the third business, Loft & Lies, a game room with a floor made of turf. Two of the simulators are for golf only and two have options for indoor bowling, archery, soccer, hunting, and many other games. Guests make a reservation to rent the bays in 30 minute increments.

“We’ve had a mix of couples who come play, kids playing with grandpas, and 25 year olds having a few beers,” said Jeff. “A family will come in and have breakfast and then the kids go play a game, or people will come in and play 18 holes. It’s a bonus for older folks with mobility issues for whom playing outside is more complicated.”

All three are open from 7:00 am until 9:00 pm, Wednesday through Monday.

Emily Teel writes about cooking and dining and develops recipes on behalf of national brands. Mom to a toddler, she’s also an avid gardener and loves to forage for mushrooms in berries in the Pacific Northwest.