My husband and I are headed to North Conway a couple of days after Christmas. We’re not really skiers, but just want to be in the gorgeous mountains. Any suggestions for mostly casual, not too expensive meals? We probably aren’t looking for a break-the-bank night out, but one nicer meal is a possibility. Thanks!
The Black Cap Tavern is pretty good. Upscale pub food. Also, Delaney’s, same deal, pub food. Both popular and good. A more upscale dinner would be at the dining room (Ledges), at the White Mountain Hotel & Resort (West Side Road at Hale’s Location). They also have a pub menu. Food is very good and they have an interesting wine cellar. Prices are not over the top. They also have a killer Sunday brunch that’s very reasonable.
Enjoy,
CocoDan
All of CocoDan’s ideas are good; if you want something besides the usual pub food, there’s several really good Thai places in town – I had a nice meal at Bangkok Cafe last time I was there.
Thanks, CoCoDan and boston-otter. It’s nice to go with some trusted reviews rather than relying on yelp, etc. As far as Asian goes, sadly my husband tends to appreciate Asian as more of a quick takeout, go the pub recommendations are probably more up his speed, and the Ledges looks perfect for a special but not over-the-top night out.
You’re welcome. N. Conway is a real nice area and we always have a lot of fun there.
Going up myself tomorrow, but coming back the same day. Too bad.
CocoDan
So I thought I’d report back after a lovely few days in North Conway. On Sunday night we headed to the Shovel Handle Pub in Jackson to take in some live acoustic music. What a neat place. The food is not groundbreaking, but was solid. The pub itself is in a wonderful converted barn with a terrific atmosphere, and we lucked out with a couple of talented young musicians from Virginia putting on a great show. My husband had a simple baked haddock with decent mixed veggies and rice and seemed happy enough with the dish, and I had Hunter’s Chicken (not cacciatore in a traditional sense) which was actually a moist chicken breast cutlet with good garlic mashed and mixed veggies. The sauce with the chicken had lots of mushrooms and a slightly salty demi glace which was a bit overwhelming. Not a bad dish, though. Prices were reasonable.
Monday morning we hit up the Stairway Cafe in North Conway village for breakfast after reading glowing reviews online. We both had huevos rancheros, which were clearly freshly prepared but really under seasoned for our taste. The tortillas were really good, though, but we probably wouldn’t return.
With the forecast of snow for Tuesday, we figured we better get our Kancamagus road trip in on Monday before the storm hit. We stopped by the White Mountain Cider Company to check it out as a dinner possibility. While there, we grabbed a delicious hot cider and absolutely sublime warm and crisp apple cider donuts. My husband is still thinking about them! The restaurant menu looked great and it’s definitely on our list for when we return. We also stopped by The Ledges so that we could check out the view. Absolutely stunning, and the room is beautiful too. Unfortunately, we didn’t make it to either place for dinner because my husband had developed quite a cold and decided that we would stay close by in Conway. We ended up at Vito Marcello’s Italian restaurant and had simple, well-prepared Italian-American comfort food. The wine list there was pretty weak but our server was excellent.
On Tuesday we headed to Peaches in North Conway for breakfast, once again based on the online reviews. My banana bread French toast was quite good, and my husband’s “stuffed” French toast with chocolate, berries and cream cheese was just okay. Old-school service and atmosphere, not bad. For dinner we were torn between Chef’s Bistro or Moat Mountain and decided to go to the latter. I had a very good med-rare (closer to medium) burger with good fries and my husband had a tasty grilled meatloaf. It’s a fun atmosphere and our server was very attentive.
Our last meal was breakfast on Wednesday before heading home. We stopped at the Sunrise Shack in Intervale and were quite happy. I had breakfast risotto, which was tasty and interesting, and my husband had the Huevos Rancheros bowl, which he loved. This food was definitely a cut above, and we will head back there when we return to the area.
Thanks for all your help. We want to head back in the warmer weather and will try more of the recs.
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