Your Guide to Portsmouth Restaurant Week
Enjoy world-class restaurants at a bargain price
The holidays may still be a few weeks away, but we think this is the most wonderful time of the year. Portsmouth has been called one of the eating capitals of New England and named among the top foodie towns in America, and, this week, its best eateries open their doors for Portsmouth Restaurant Week.
Assuming there's some room left in your diet between last week's Halloween candy and looming Thanksgiving feasts, you'll find food for every taste at unbeatable prices with this event. More than 40 Seacoast restaurants are participating this year, and they're almost all offering the same unbeatable prix-fixe deal: three courses for $16.95 at lunch or for $29.95 at dinner. Festivities began last night and will run through November 19, and organizers recommend making reservations before your Restaurant Week meals and posting photos afterwards with the hashtag #RWPortsmouthNH.
Ready to start exploring but unsure where to start? Here are our suggestions for the spots you simply can't miss.
Tinos Greek Kitchen
Cuisine editor Susan Laughlin recently named this 11-month-old eatery one of New Hampshire's Best New Restaurants for 2016. Their Restaurant Week menu showcases chef Mark Segal's flair for the Mediterranean with dishes like keftedes Greek meatballs and feta-brined chicken breast.
325 Lafayette Rd., Hampton. (603) 926-5489; tinosgreek.com
Moxy
Restaurant Week's most inventive offering comes from this downtown Portsmouth hotspot. Two-time James Beard semifinalist Matt Louis has cooked up a five-course menu that plays on New Hampshire history and culture. Enjoy courses like "colonial" (tea-poached cod, Boston beans, and croutons) and "tourism" (raclette with balsam seed and cherry).
106 Penhallow St., Portsmouth. (603) 319-8178; moxyrestaurant.com
Black Trumpet
Restaurant Week isn't the only thing that this bistro is celebrating. Chef Evan Mallett recently released a cookbook of New England cuisine, so now's the perfect time to try his dishes before picking up the book and trying some at home. Choose from seven appetizers, four mains, and three desserts in one of the most extensive menus of the week.
29 Ceres St., Portsmouth. (603) 431-0887; blacktrumpetbistro.com
Hayseed
As always, the menu at this 2015 Best New Restaurant is focused on local ingredients, like Brookford Farm cheese and NH Mushroom Company mushrooms. The lunch and dinner offerings are also dietary restriction-friendly, with nearly every menu item designed or available vegan and/or gluten-free.
105 Towle Farm Rd., Hampton. (603) 601-8300; smuttynose.com/restaurant
Cava
In keeping with their small-plates format, this tapas restaurant and wine bar is offering four courses for their Restaurant Week menu. From yellowfin cruda to chickpea fries to dry boat scallops, everything looks delicious, but with a choice of valhrona's guaraja dark chocolate, churros and drinking chocolate, or a pumpkin torta with graham cracker and candied pumpkin seed, their dessert course may just be the best of the week.
10 Commercial Alley, Portsmouth. (603) 319-1575; cavatapasandwinebar.com
Row 34
This buzzy Boston-imported oyster bar carries the distinction of being the only Restaurant Week eatery with a brunch offer. The lunch and brunch menus are nearly identical, with dishes like butternut squash soup, crispy fish tacos, and depending on the time of the day, roasted chicken with sweet potato or braised pork hash. The eatery also provides wine pairing suggestions for the special meals.
5 Portwalk Pl, Portsmouth. (603) 319-5011; row34.com
You've got some ideas. Now go forth and eat!
