WEST BROOKFIELD – The site of countless romantic dinners and family gatherings since it opened in 1961, the Salem Cross Inn recently added another accolade to its long list of praise and recognitions. Earlier this month, the historic eatery was voted one of the three top Massachusetts restaurant destinations for romantic dining in the latest Taste of Massachusetts online polls.

“We are honored to be chosen,” Martha Salem, a spokesman for the family-run business told Reminder Publishing about the poll results. “It was something we knew nothing about … we saw [the award] on Instagram; they sent us a message.”

More than 5,000 participants took part in three rounds of voting on Taste’s Facebook and Instagram pages, resulting in people’s choice status for nine restaurants in three different categories – People’s Choice for Most Romantic Restaurant, Favorite Romantic Restaurant and the category that included The Salem Cross Inn, Most Romantic Destinatination Restaurant.

The Inn was joined by two fellow  restaurants in The Most Romantic Destination category. In  first place was The Red Lion Inn and Tavern, Cohasset (www.redlioninn1704.com) and in third place, the Stars, Chatham Bars Inn Cape (www.chathambarsinn.com/dining/#stars).

"We’re in good company, which is always nice,” Salem added.

The recognition came at a difficult time, however, as Salem said the restaurant has made the decision to go into hibernation after the Valentine’s Day weekend. She said the Inn has only been open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays since cooler weather curtailed outdoor dining, and though the weekends are busy with both in-person and take-out dining, without their traditional Fireplace Feast events, closing for the remainder of the traditionally slower winter months was a prudent, but painful decision.

Salem was adamant, however, that the Salem Cross Inn would be open and welcoming diners again in the spring. The Inn chose to wait to reopen until July of 2020 after shutting down under Gov. Charlie Baker’s initial lockdown orders last March, she said.

“We are going to take the temperature of everything in the spring, and as soon as we can open, we will,” she said. “We’ve been open since 1961 … we’ll do what it takes to get through this.”

More information on The Salem Cross Inn can be found at www.salemcrossinn.com. The first place restaurant in the Taste of Massachusetts’ People’s Choice for Romantic Restaurant is Alma Nove, located in in Hingham (www.Almanovehingham.com). The other two People’s Choice winners were: second place, French Quarter, Boston, (www.frenchquarterboston.com); and third place, Bocado in Worcester (www.bocadotapasbar.com).

Those restaurants chosen as the Favorite Romantic Restaurants by the latest Taste of Massachusetts poll were: first place, Tosca, Hingham, (www.toscahingham.com); second place, Mistral, Boston (www.mistralbistro.com); and third place, Seaglass, Salisbury (www.seaglassoceanside.com).

For more information on the Taste of Massachusetts and its poll results, visit https://m.facebook.com/TasteofMassachusetts/.