Kyle Green | The Roanoke Times

Lamb with apricot and pine nuts.

Kyle Green | The Roanoke Times

Michael Wright is pictured with appetizers, dinner entrees and dessert from the dinner menu.

The old post office on Main Street in Salem is home to a 3-month-old restaurant offering Spanish cuisine and tapas. Proprietor Michael Wright told the newspaper in September that he's never been to Spain, but he's clearly passionate about Spanish food -- about 60 percent of the menu items come directly from Spain to ensure quality and authenticity. Nonetheless, my trips for lunch and dinner uncovered some hits and misses.

THE VIBE

Cafe Madrid seats patrons in one of two dining rooms -- a small one with a bar attached to the kitchen and a larger room across the hall. During a weekday lunch trip, my party of six sat in the large dining room at a spacious round table. It was cloudy out, and despite the windows, the sparsely decorated room was a little too dark for my liking.

During my dinner visit, a large garage door on one side of the smaller dining room made a fun conversation piece as the waiter explained that it was once used by mail trucks (the mail chute is behind the bar). The atmosphere at night was more festive, with glowing white lights strung around the entrance.

THE HITS

Lunch offered several standouts: Gorgonzola walnut salad ($7.99), shrimp in spicy tomato sauce ($11.99) and pork short ribs with sweet paprika sauce ($12.99).

The sherry wine vinaigrette complemented the baby greens, apples, cheese and walnuts perfectly.

The shrimp entree reminded me of a rustic home-cooked dish perfect for a chilly day -- a feeling amplified by the wonderful glazed terra cotta dishes imported from Valencia, Spain. I appreciated the simplicity of four enormous prawns tossed in a flavorful tomato sauce of garlic, onions, smoked sweet paprika, salt and pepper. Delicious slices of buttered and toasted batard (traditional French bread) accompanied the shrimp for sopping (all of Cafe Madrid's bread comes from the venerable On the Rise bakery on the Roanoke City Market).

The short ribs, having been stewed slowly in a wonderfully earthy concoction of sweet paprika, white wine, tomatoes, oregano, and salt and pepper, were moist and fall-off-the-bone tender.

With six in our party, I ordered all four desserts ($4.99 each) to sample and share. The best, by far, was the crema catalana, a Spanish version of creme brulee. While others in my party disliked the almond tourene, I actually enjoyed the sweet nutty taste of these small bars of finely crushed almonds and honey. They reminded me of hardened almond butter.

Dinner was decidedly better than lunch. The creamy tomato soup ($3.99) had a rich, deep tomato flavor that was seasoned just right. The pan-seared boneless pork in red wine plum sauce ($17.99) was delightful, particularly when paired with bites of the sweet roasted plums served alongside. My dining companion's roasted chicken with olive rosemary sauce ($16.99) was moist, tender and tasty, even considering that I generally dislike olives. The roasted potatoes that came with my pork were bland, though cooked well. However, the roasted sweet potatoes served with the chicken were superb.

THE MISSES

Unfortunately, there were a number of misses.

The uninteresting grilled chicken and chorizo skewers with vegetables ($10.99) were all the more disappointing considering they each contained only one extremely small piece of overcooked chorizo. Spanish chorizo, or pork sausage, is different from the fattier Mexican or Latin American chorizo to which Americans may be more accustomed.

The only sandwich I tried, grilled chicken with smoked Spanish cheese and red pepper aioli on olive sourdough bread ($8.99), was competent but forgettable.

Promptly after being seated at lunch, the chef brought a large display of tapas, or appetizers, and explained each one. The platter contained a medley of mussels, Spanish cheeses, chorizo, olives and roasted vegetables. All items were served cold and reminded me of a Spanish version of an Italian antipasti plate (hot tapas are also available). My friend ordered the tapas platter ($12.99) as a meal, and I tried the mussels and the chorizo, neither of which I found appetizing cold. Both were tasteless and rubbery.

Two of the four desserts were misses. The fried milk, a fried custard dish akin to the crema catalana, had an unpleasant texture and a slightly burnt taste. The homemade hot chocolate is a European-style chocolate melted with cream that's not for drinking -- it's for dipping the tasteless churros (traditional Spanish dough spirals with powdered sugar and cinnamon).

Another downside is that the menu is limited, particularly at lunch, which offers three salads, four sandwiches and five entrees. Only the salads and three sandwiches cost less than $10, making the options for an economical lunch extremely limited. In my view, both the lunch and dinner menus are overpriced for this market.

THE SERVICE

Our server at lunch was pleasant and attentive; she even taught me a nifty trick for easily peeling the shrimp with my knife and fork. She refilled our drinks quickly and was helpful when considering which dishes to order. Our server at dinner took a little while to get our drink order and let my glass sit empty on at least one occasion despite the few tables he was handling.

One oddity was the sangria. Given its Spanish origins, I had hoped for the familiar red wine in which various cuts of fruit had been soaking so as to render their fruity flavors into a punchlike drink. Instead, the server poured bottled sangria into a glass and then unceremoniously plopped a small skewer of fruit inside.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Cafe Madrid offers some tasty dishes that adventurous diners won't find anywhere else in the Roanoke Valley. However, some dishes simply cannot be recommended. The menu could also use more breadth as well as more economical options, particularly at lunch.

The old post office on Main Street in Salem is home to a 3-month-old restaurant offering Spanish cuisine and tapas. Though he's never visited Spain, proprietor Michael Wright is clearly passionate about Spanish food, and about 60 percent of the menu items come directly from Spain to ensure quality and authenticity.

Nonetheless, my trips for lunch and dinner uncovered some hits and misses.

THE VIBE

Cafe Madrid seats patrons in one of two dining rooms -- a small one with a bar attached to the kitchen and a larger room across the hall. During a weekday lunch trip, my party of six sat in the large dining room at a spacious round table. It was cloudy out, and despite the windows, the sparsely decorated room was a little too dark for my liking.

During my dinner visit, a large garage door on one side of the smaller dining room made a fun conversation piece as the waiter explained that it was once used by mail trucks (the mail chute is behind the bar). The atmosphere at night was more festive, with glowing white lights strung around the entrance.

THE HITS

Lunch offered several standouts: Gorgonzola walnut salad ($7.99), shrimp in spicy tomato sauce ($11.99) and pork short ribs with sweet paprika sauce ($12.99).

The sherry wine vinaigrette complemented the baby greens, apples, cheese and walnuts perfectly.

The shrimp entree reminded me of a rustic home-cooked dish perfect for a chilly day -- a feeling amplified by the wonderful glazed terra cotta dishes imported from Valencia, Spain. I appreciated the simplicity of four enormous prawns tossed in a flavorful tomato sauce of garlic, onions, smoked sweet paprika, salt and pepper. Delicious slices of buttered and toasted batard (traditional French bread) accompanied the shrimp for sopping (all of Cafe Madrid's bread comes from the venerable On the Rise bakery on the Roanoke City Market).

The short ribs, having been stewed slowly in a wonderfully earthy concoction of sweet paprika, white wine, tomatoes, oregano, and salt and pepper, were moist and fall-off-the-bone tender.

With six in our party, I ordered all four desserts ($4.99 each) to sample and share. The best, by far, was the crema catalana, a Spanish version of creme brulee. While others in my party disliked the almond tourene , I actually enjoyed the sweet nutty taste of these small bars of finely crushed almonds and honey. They reminded me of hardened almond butter.

Dinner was decidedly better than lunch. The creamy tomato soup ($3.99) had a rich, deep tomato flavor that was seasoned just right. The pan-seared boneless pork in red wine plum sauce ($17.99) was delightful, particularly when paired with bites of the sweet roasted plums served alongside. My dining companion's roasted chicken with olive rosemary sauce ($16.99) was moist, tender and tasty, even considering that I generally dislike olives. The roasted potatoes that came with my pork were bland, though cooked well. However, the roasted sweet potatoes served with the chicken were superb.

THE MISSES

Unfortunately, there were a number of misses.

The uninteresting grilled chicken and chorizo skewers with vegetables ($10.99) were all the more disappointing considering they each contained only one extremely small piece of overcooked chorizo. Spanish chorizo, or pork sausage, is different from the fattier Mexican or Latin American chorizo to which Americans may be more accustomed.

The only sandwich I tried, grilled chicken with smoked Spanish cheese and red pepper aioli on olive sourdough bread ($8.99), was competent but forgettable.

Promptly after being seated at lunch, the chef brought a large display of tapas, or appetizers, and explained each one. The platter contained a medley of mussels, Spanish cheeses, chorizo, olives and roasted vegetables. All items were served cold and reminded me of a Spanish version of an Italian antipasti plate (hot tapas are also available). My friend ordered the tapas platter ($12.99) as a meal, and I tried the mussels and the chorizo, neither of which I found appetizing cold. Both were tasteless and rubbery.

Two of the four desserts were misses. The fried milk, a fried custard dish akin to the crema catalana, had an unpleasant texture and a slightly burnt taste. The homemade hot chocolate is a European-style chocolate melted with cream that's not for drinking -- it's for dipping the tasteless churros (traditional Spanish dough spirals with powdered sugar and cinnamon).

Another downside is that the menu is limited, particularly at lunch, which offers three salads, four sandwiches and five entrees. Only the salads and three sandwiches cost less than $10, making the options for an economical lunch extremely limited. In my view, both the lunch and dinner menus are overpriced for this market.

THE SERVICE

Our server at lunch was pleasant and attentive; she even taught me a nifty trick for easily peeling the shrimp with my knife and fork. She refilled our drinks quickly and was helpful when considering which dishes to order. Our server at dinner took a little while to get our drink order and let my glass sit empty on at least one occasion despite the few tables he was handling.

One oddity was the sangria. Given its Spanish origins, I had hoped for the familiar red wine in which various cuts of fruit had been soaking so as to render their fruity flavors into a punchlike drink. Instead, the server poured bottled sangria into a glass and then unceremoniously plopped a small skewer of fruit inside.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Cafe Madrid offers some tasty dishes that adventurous diners won't find anywhere else in the Roanoke Valley. However, some dishes simply cannot be recommended. The menu could also use more breadth as well as more economical options, particularly at lunch.