Where to Eat in the Seacoast: A Dining Roundup

New Hampshire has only about 18 miles of Atlantic coastline, but the Seacoast punches well above its size when it comes to food. Portsmouth alone has a dense downtown of restaurants within a few blocks of the harbor, and the towns around it, from Rye to Exeter, add coastal dining rooms and farm-driven kitchens. This guide is a starting point for restaurants on the NH Seacoast, organized by town and by the kind of meal you are after.

How the Seacoast eats

Three things shape Seacoast menus. The first is the water: Portsmouth is a working seaport on the Piscataqua River, and seafood shows up everywhere from raw bars to chowder counters. The second is the farmland just inland, which supplies the farm-to-table kitchens that have become a Seacoast signature. The third is compactness. Portsmouth's downtown is small enough to walk, so it is easy to have coffee at one place, lunch at another and dinner at a third without moving the car.

Portsmouth: the center of it all

Portsmouth is the Seacoast's only city, with 21,956 residents at the 2020 census, and it has the region's deepest bench of restaurants. A few from our directory, grouped by occasion:

Breakfast and coffee

• Ceres Bakery is a Portsmouth bakery and breakfast counter, best known locally for its blueberry muffins. It is the kind of place to start a walking day downtown.
• Cafe Kilim is a cozy cafe with good coffee and Mediterranean plates. It is a useful middle-of-the-day stop when you want something lighter than a full lunch.

A special dinner

• Black Trumpet is a small downtown dining room built around the farms, fisheries and foragers of the Seacoast, with a short seasonal menu and a serious wine list. It is the pick here for an anniversary or a night you want to remember.

Late and casual

• Cure is a late-night kitchen built on brined and slow-cooked meats with a tight wine list. It is a good answer to the question of where to eat after a show downtown.

Because Portsmouth's restaurants are close together, it is worth walking the downtown before you choose. Market Square and the streets that run toward the harbor hold most of them.

Rye: dining near the water

South of Portsmouth, Rye is a coastal town with a long shoreline and a quieter pace. Atlantic Grill is a Seacoast stalwart for coastal cooking, oysters and a long raw bar. Pair a meal there with a drive along Route 1A, which follows the shore through Rye and is one of the most scenic short drives in the state.

Exeter: a farm-to-table town

Exeter sits inland, southwest of Portsmouth, at the falls where the Exeter River becomes the tidal Squamscott River. It had 16,049 residents at the 2020 census and is home to Phillips Exeter Academy, so the downtown has a lively, walkable core.

Blue Moon Evolution on Front Street is a farm-to-table kitchen with a seasonal menu and a strong local following. It suits a slower dinner after an afternoon walking Exeter's historic downtown.

Exeter also makes a good dinner town because of its history. The falls at the center of town were a fishing site for the Pennacook long before European settlement, and the town grew up around them. According to former governor Hugh Gregg, the Republican Party was born at a secret meeting at Exeter's Squamscott Hotel in 1853, a story the town still tells. A short walk along Water Street and Front Street before dinner covers the river, the academy and the old commercial blocks.

Planning a Seacoast food weekend

Here is a simple two-day framework that uses the places above.

Day one: Portsmouth. Start with breakfast at Ceres Bakery, then walk the downtown and the waterfront. Take a lighter lunch at Cafe Kilim. Spend the afternoon at Strawbery Banke Museum, the living history neighborhood near the harbor. Finish with dinner at Black Trumpet, or a later meal at Cure.

Day two: the coast and Exeter. Drive south on Route 1A through Rye and stop for lunch at Atlantic Grill. Continue inland to Exeter for an afternoon walk and dinner at Blue Moon Evolution.

Tips for eating well on the Seacoast

• Reserve for weekend dinners. Portsmouth's best-known rooms are small, and weekend tables go early, especially in summer and fall.
• Go early or late in peak season. Lunch at 11:30 or dinner after 8 is the easiest way to avoid waits.
• Check hours before you go. Seacoast restaurants adjust hours by season, and some close one or two days a week. The restaurant's own website or phone line is the only reliable source.
• Park once in Portsmouth. The downtown is best on foot. Use a garage and walk.
• Think beyond the harbor. Some of the best meals on the Seacoast are a 15-minute drive inland, in towns like Exeter.

What to order

Seacoast menus change with the season, so treat this as a guide rather than a checklist.

• Seafood, done simply. Oysters on the half shell, steamed or fried clams, haddock and lobster are the regional standards. Coastal rooms like Atlantic Grill are the place to try them.
• Chowder. New England clam chowder is a cold-weather staple on the Seacoast.
• Whatever the farm sent. At kitchens built on local sourcing, such as Black Trumpet and Blue Moon Evolution, the best dish is often whatever is newest on the menu.
• Baked goods. A Portsmouth morning is not complete without a pastry, and Ceres Bakery's muffins have a local reputation.

Seacoast dining by season

Spring is a quieter time to eat on the Seacoast, with easier reservations and shorter waits before the summer crowds arrive. Summer brings patio season and the heaviest traffic, especially near the beaches. Fall is many locals' favorite stretch, with harvest menus at the farm-driven kitchens. Winter is the time for chowder, long dinners and walk-in tables on weeknights.

Beyond this list

This roundup covers a handful of restaurants we can describe with confidence. The Seacoast has many more, including breweries with food, chowder houses and waterfront patios. Browse the full Seacoast dining section of our directory to see every listing by town.

FAQ

What town on the NH Seacoast has the most restaurants?

Portsmouth, by a wide margin. Its walkable downtown has the region's highest concentration of restaurants.

Do I need reservations at Seacoast restaurants?

For weekend dinners at popular Portsmouth restaurants, yes, especially in summer and fall. Weeknights and lunches are usually easier.

Is the Seacoast good for seafood?

Yes. Portsmouth is a working seaport and coastal towns like Rye have restaurants built around oysters and raw bars.

Where can I eat farm-to-table on the Seacoast?

Black Trumpet in Portsmouth and Blue Moon Evolution in Exeter are both built around local sourcing.

How long is New Hampshire's coastline?

About 18 miles, the shortest ocean coastline of any coastal state.

Sources

• Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Wikipedia (2020 census population; seaport on the Piscataqua): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portsmouth,_New_Hampshire
• Exeter, New Hampshire, Wikipedia (2020 census population; Phillips Exeter Academy): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exeter,_New_Hampshire
• New Hampshire, Wikipedia (18-mile coastline, shortest of any coastal state): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Hampshire
• Business details: each business's directory listing and official website.