Thirsty Moose Taphouse — Restaurant in Exeter

Anyone that frequents the Exeter area has driven by the recently opened Thirsty Moose and, if you're like me, you've noticed the packed parking lot, which in turn spills over and occupies most of the defunct car dealer next door. And you've wondered what all the fuss is about. Also, if you're like me you've been reluctant to take the plunge and wait the project 45 minute to an hour wait time. Myself and a friend of mine decided last night finally to take the plunge.

We walked in at around 7:00, and were greeted by a raucous, hectic atmosphere. The place was packed to the gills, including the outdoor seating outside and most standing room. The hostess took down our name and phone number and gave us the standard hour estimate. We walked over to Walgreen's to print some pictures while we waited, and within 10 minutes of our arrival received a phone call offering to seat us if we were willing to sit with strangers. We declined, as we're apparently not that social. About 15 minutes later, we received a phone call that our table was ready. Ultimately, we were seated 30 minutes in to our projected hour wait time, and pleasantly surprised.

We perused the extensive menu of local favorites and trendy options, my companion settling on garlic knots and poutine, and myself ordering the cheeseburger sliders and onion rings. The food arrived fairly quickly in consideration of the volume of business they were taking care of at the time, I'd say within about 20 minutes.

The sliders were cooked to perfection, and dressed in the traditional fashion. The onion rings are thick and beer battered, not overcooked, and with a distinct ale flavor. I didn't try the garlic knots, but I sampled my friend's poutine, and it was AMAZING. It was surprisingly light in consideration of what it actually is. Everything that should be cruncy was cruncy, nothing was greasy or soggy. The ingredients were high quality and very fresh.

In closing, the Thirsty Moose is always packed for good reason, which is to say that it was entirely...

Let me start by saying that this review won't matter to most people. I get it. I was in town for work and stopped in to watch some football and get a burger. It's a bar. They have beer and bar food. It's not unlike the thousand other similarly charming shabby chic joints around the country. You know what you are getting. You don't need to read these reviews. It's not 'amazing '. It's not awful. It is what it is. So back to the burger. I don't eat meat anymore and they have impossible burgers, I think. I ordered the Bahn Mi Impossible burger because it sounded good. When the plate dropped, I said 'this isn't mine', as it didn't look right, to which the server said, 'I'm sorry, I thought you ordered the Impossible Bahn Mi', to which I said, 'I did'. After a bit of back and forth, I accepted my new reality that this was their version of a Bahn Mi Impossible burger, cleverly disguised as pulled pork. After one bite, I questioned the server once again, and after another Q & A, I was told that yes, in fact this is not really pork and they have crafted the Impossible product to resemble pulled pork. After now being outed twice as 'that guy' at the bar, I sheepishly ate my incredibly realistic fake pulled burger thing. When the bill arrived, my first reaction was, oh it must be on sale, because what I ordered was more expensive. In the end, I realized the server had no idea what she was talking about and I just my first pulled pork sandwich in over 5 years. It is unlikely that I...

My friend and I live right down the street and have been trying to go here for dinner for a while now. The problem is, my friend is in a wheelchair and there are only 3 small tables that are handicap-accessible. We don't mind waiting for a table like everyone else but when you are waiting for one or two specific tables the wait-time could be hours. I called tonight and explained our situation to the hostess, that we've been wanting to go and try their food for a while but it's just impossible to get one of the few tables that are handicap-accessible on a Friday or Saturday. I said I know that they don't take reservations but considering we only have 3 tables to choose from, perhaps they could make an exception, and even offered a later time like 7:30 or 8:00... The hostess simply said you should try coming in on a Monday or Tuesday. Well, like most people, Fridays and Saturdays are when we can go out to eat. We were offered nothing else in the way of a suggestion. We've made it in for drinks at an off time once, and the place was nice. The atmosphere on a busy night looks awesome and the menu looks great as well... unfortunately it isn't for everyone to enjoy. If you are person with disabilities, it is probably best to go...