Thursday Nov 10 2022 Reservation for 4:30pm. Seated promptly. Service was excellent. Waiter Paul M was friendly, personable, attentive and accommodating. He's a great asset to your restaurant. My friend and I both had the crispy ribs for our appetizer. Wow. Awesome. I would come back just for the ribs. We both had the Oar House delight. Oh wow. DELICIOUS. A little bread to soak up the sauce would have been great. We visited 4 restaurants during Portsmouth restaurant week.. The Oar House was the best. Loved the uniqueness of the restaurant. We will definitely be back.
Gavin C.
My Experience at the Oarhouse was Wonderfull. Food and service was excellent. Superb management, they made sure everyone is taken care of best restaurant in Portsmouth.
Will M.
Great food and atmosphere! Staff was very attentive and restaurant was very clean and organized.
Dmurr
We had dinner at The Oar House before a show at the nearby The Music Hall, which is a short walk. The location is down a back road behind the main street, easy to find. Decor is brick and stone and dark. Very nice. Restrooms were equally decorated, but had a terrible smell. I made a Friday 5:30 reservation, which turned out to be unnecessary, but I wanted to be sure we got a table, since we needed to be at the theater before 7:00. There were only two other tables occupied when we got there, but the restaurant filled up quickly after 6pm. Our waitperson, Leon, was fun and kept our Cokes coming as soon as he saw our glasses were low. My baked haddock was topped with a Ritz Cracker topping, and accompanied by red potatoes. The fish was placed on top of what seemed like boiled kale (I thought it was spinach at first, but the taste was off, so my guess is kale). The entire meal seemed to be swimming in water, from what I assume was from the kale. The meal was served promptly enough that it didn't get soggy from all the water, but the liquid was off-putting. The haddock was fresh and delicious. My daughter ordered the Margherita Pizza, which was traditional and delicious. They don't offer side salads to accompany meals, so she also ordered a full Caesar salad, which was crisp, but the dressing was weak. In all, Leon was awesome, the meal was good, and we'd be happy to return.
Jeremy L.
The place had an interesting ambience to it, and my group got a great table for the evening. I had the Salmon, and I was very impressed by the texture of it. The flesh was not dry, didn't fall off the wrong way on the fork, and had the fatty Salmon umami to it. I will say the portion size was a tad small for my liking. My group did not order any appetizers, as they did not really seem like foods that would work well for group appetizers. Overall the quality of the food was great, but that was expected for the price tag.
Kelly D.
Food was good. Service was good. Granted there were only a few customers. Prices are high. I understood that going in. Quaint inside. However, there is NO NEED to charge 6.00 for a side of broccoli. That is ridiculous. The steamed lobster was 48.00 which is expensive but I wanted to treat myself. It came with 2 small boiled red potatoes. Really 2 potatoes? I felt like they were nickel and diming you. I can see the lobster price for a nice restaurant but should give broccoli and a few more potatoes. That would be good customer service. I may have drinks on the outside deck but doubt I will return for inside dinner with them gauging over little things.
Donna M.
Food is just ok. I got the shrimp scallops and fish baked with a sherry sauce. Very small portions. Left hungry Price for that meal$36. Bloody Mary $14 very thin and water downed. Chourice pizza $14 - very small Too many better choices in the area to go back. Will not return. Nothing that special. Table next to me ordered lobsters ($58). When I was finished, the lobster table were also leaving, they went directly to the ice-cream store and waited in line. I am assuming they were not filled either. Oh, and what restaurant has fine dining and does not offer mash potatoes or rice as a side. Save your money and get better food elsewhere.
Michelle L.
I ate at the Oar House on a Friday night for dinner with a group of eight people. Our server handled it like a champ and it was a hot day and a little warm in there. We had some shareable plates to start including the calamari, fried ribs, oysters, and a few chowders. The dinners we had were a Shrimp Scampi special, Children's Pasta, Scallops, Haddock, Several of the burgers, and I ordered the Salmon (creamed corn - fennel - leek & orange agrodolce.) I really wasn't expecting that much but my salmon was perfectly cooked and the creamed corn agrodolce under it was summery and refreshing. It was a perfect dinner. The pacing of the meal was great and our server kept our drinks filled. Nice place on the water in downtown Portsmouth. Very New England.
T7494RYjohnb
The only thing worst then bad food is very bad management. This place should be on the hit TV series BAR RESCUE, the only star in this place was the server. There motto should be the customer is always wrong. We will never return to this place
MassachusettsMomof3
We had a wonderful dinner here seated in the bar area and served by Leon. So fun! Haddock was delicious and the wilted greens it was served on were even better! My husband loved his shrimp scampi. Don’t miss this charming spot!
It's amazing how badly this place delivered from the opening drink to the dessert. We ordered straight-forward items from a limited menu. My Manhattan tasted like it was made with dishwater. The Haddock and Scallops had been sitting in the grocery for a few days before arriving at our table. And the Key Lime Pie sure wasn't from the Florida Keys. It was indescribably bad.
Killeen Dwyer
For years, We have always loved coming here for dinner when visiting Portsmouth. Over the weekend, we looked forward to going, always amazing food , service, and atmosphere. However, really disappointed this time. Unfortunately, they changed their menu and no longer offered the meals we look forward to. The meals we did get were just ok. Maybe just an off night. However, the worse part was that our waiter was very rude and unfriendly. We definitely did not feel welcomed. It’s really makes me sad because this was one of our very favorite places to dine. 
Jennifer Greene Budny
We love the Oar house! We go there when we want to guarantee delicious food, great service and historic nautical atmosphere that is warm and upscale without being uptight. We were sat in the pub section last night for dinner reservations and our waitress was over the top attentive to our needs and beyond generous with her time and energy. She truly treated every table like it was her only table-rare service these days. I wish I could remember her name! Thanks Oar House & staff- we are super grateful for you?⚓️??
Killeen D.
Been coming here for years and have always been very happy with service, food, and love the atmosphere. We were looking forward to going again this year, but were a bit disappointed. We felt the server was very unfriendly. Definitely did not feel welcomed. They also made changes to their menu and the meals we looked so forward to, were not on the menu. The meals we did have were decent but not as great as we expected.
David Vaas
Great food! Classic downtown eatery in portsmouth.
Thursday Nov 10 2022 Reservation for 4:30pm. Seated promptly. Service was excellent. Waiter Paul M was friendly, personable, attentive and accommodating. He's a great asset to your restaurant. My friend and I both had the crispy ribs for our appetizer. Wow. Awesome. I would come back just for the ribs. We both had the Oar House delight. Oh wow. DELICIOUS. A little bread to soak up the sauce would have been great. We visited 4 restaurants during Portsmouth restaurant week.. The Oar House was the best. Loved the uniqueness of the restaurant. We will definitely be back.
My Experience at the Oarhouse was Wonderfull. Food and service was excellent. Superb management, they made sure everyone is taken care of best restaurant in Portsmouth.
Great food and atmosphere! Staff was very attentive and restaurant was very clean and organized.
We had dinner at The Oar House before a show at the nearby The Music Hall, which is a short walk. The location is down a back road behind the main street, easy to find. Decor is brick and stone and dark. Very nice. Restrooms were equally decorated, but had a terrible smell. I made a Friday 5:30 reservation, which turned out to be unnecessary, but I wanted to be sure we got a table, since we needed to be at the theater before 7:00. There were only two other tables occupied when we got there, but the restaurant filled up quickly after 6pm. Our waitperson, Leon, was fun and kept our Cokes coming as soon as he saw our glasses were low. My baked haddock was topped with a Ritz Cracker topping, and accompanied by red potatoes. The fish was placed on top of what seemed like boiled kale (I thought it was spinach at first, but the taste was off, so my guess is kale). The entire meal seemed to be swimming in water, from what I assume was from the kale. The meal was served promptly enough that it didn't get soggy from all the water, but the liquid was off-putting. The haddock was fresh and delicious. My daughter ordered the Margherita Pizza, which was traditional and delicious. They don't offer side salads to accompany meals, so she also ordered a full Caesar salad, which was crisp, but the dressing was weak. In all, Leon was awesome, the meal was good, and we'd be happy to return.
The place had an interesting ambience to it, and my group got a great table for the evening. I had the Salmon, and I was very impressed by the texture of it. The flesh was not dry, didn't fall off the wrong way on the fork, and had the fatty Salmon umami to it. I will say the portion size was a tad small for my liking. My group did not order any appetizers, as they did not really seem like foods that would work well for group appetizers. Overall the quality of the food was great, but that was expected for the price tag.
Food was good. Service was good. Granted there were only a few customers. Prices are high. I understood that going in. Quaint inside. However, there is NO NEED to charge 6.00 for a side of broccoli. That is ridiculous. The steamed lobster was 48.00 which is expensive but I wanted to treat myself. It came with 2 small boiled red potatoes. Really 2 potatoes? I felt like they were nickel and diming you. I can see the lobster price for a nice restaurant but should give broccoli and a few more potatoes. That would be good customer service. I may have drinks on the outside deck but doubt I will return for inside dinner with them gauging over little things.
Food is just ok. I got the shrimp scallops and fish baked with a sherry sauce. Very small portions. Left hungry Price for that meal$36. Bloody Mary $14 very thin and water downed. Chourice pizza $14 - very small Too many better choices in the area to go back. Will not return. Nothing that special. Table next to me ordered lobsters ($58). When I was finished, the lobster table were also leaving, they went directly to the ice-cream store and waited in line. I am assuming they were not filled either. Oh, and what restaurant has fine dining and does not offer mash potatoes or rice as a side. Save your money and get better food elsewhere.
I ate at the Oar House on a Friday night for dinner with a group of eight people. Our server handled it like a champ and it was a hot day and a little warm in there. We had some shareable plates to start including the calamari, fried ribs, oysters, and a few chowders. The dinners we had were a Shrimp Scampi special, Children's Pasta, Scallops, Haddock, Several of the burgers, and I ordered the Salmon (creamed corn - fennel - leek & orange agrodolce.) I really wasn't expecting that much but my salmon was perfectly cooked and the creamed corn agrodolce under it was summery and refreshing. It was a perfect dinner. The pacing of the meal was great and our server kept our drinks filled. Nice place on the water in downtown Portsmouth. Very New England.
The only thing worst then bad food is very bad management. This place should be on the hit TV series BAR RESCUE, the only star in this place was the server. There motto should be the customer is always wrong. We will never return to this place
We had a wonderful dinner here seated in the bar area and served by Leon. So fun! Haddock was delicious and the wilted greens it was served on were even better! My husband loved his shrimp scampi. Don’t miss this charming spot!
Restaurantji Recommends
It's amazing how badly this place delivered from the opening drink to the dessert. We ordered straight-forward items from a limited menu. My Manhattan tasted like it was made with dishwater. The Haddock and Scallops had been sitting in the grocery for a few days before arriving at our table. And the Key Lime Pie sure wasn't from the Florida Keys. It was indescribably bad.
For years, We have always loved coming here for dinner when visiting Portsmouth. Over the weekend, we looked forward to going, always amazing food , service, and atmosphere. However, really disappointed this time. Unfortunately, they changed their menu and no longer offered the meals we look forward to. The meals we did get were just ok. Maybe just an off night. However, the worse part was that our waiter was very rude and unfriendly. We definitely did not feel welcomed. It’s really makes me sad because this was one of our very favorite places to dine. 
We love the Oar house! We go there when we want to guarantee delicious food, great service and historic nautical atmosphere that is warm and upscale without being uptight. We were sat in the pub section last night for dinner reservations and our waitress was over the top attentive to our needs and beyond generous with her time and energy. She truly treated every table like it was her only table-rare service these days. I wish I could remember her name! Thanks Oar House & staff- we are super grateful for you?⚓️??
Been coming here for years and have always been very happy with service, food, and love the atmosphere. We were looking forward to going again this year, but were a bit disappointed. We felt the server was very unfriendly. Definitely did not feel welcomed. They also made changes to their menu and the meals we looked so forward to, were not on the menu. The meals we did have were decent but not as great as we expected.
Great food! Classic downtown eatery in portsmouth.