Hooked Seafood Restaurant — Restaurant in Manchester

A friend and I visited Hooked in Manchester, NH on May 4th, 2024. It was a dreary misty afternoon and we figured Hooked would not be busy. We were wrong! lol They had a full house of customers. Thanks to a friendly patron we were able to get two seats at the bar next to each other.

For starters we ordered 2 appetizers: seafood cakes and Kahuna Tuna. The Kahuna Tuna is described on their menu as Seared Ahi tuna strips on a wonton surfboard with baby spinach, pickled ginger and wasabi sauce. They were very good, and you could taste the freshness of the tuna. The Seafood cakes were listed as A perfect blend of seafood encrusted with panko breadcrumbs and served with a lemon caper remoulade. They were good but we were a little thrown off not knowing exactly what seafood was in these cakes. I would probably have preferred a straight-out crab cake, or even a salmon cake.

For our entrees we ordered the Pan Seared Sea Scallops over vegetable risotto with a touch of soy reduction sauce. The scallops were tender and cooked to perfection. The risotto itself I feel was slightly undercooked, but it did have a nice light vegetable flavor to it. I personally ordered the Lobster Mac and Cheese. The Lobster Mac and Cheese was Fresh lobster meat sautéed in garlic, shallot, white wine cheese sauce and cavatappi pasta. It was delicious and probably the best Lobster mac and cheese I’ve had before.

We split a Crème Brulee for dessert which was delicious, and we had no complaints as we didn’t leave a bit.

We rounded out the afternoon with a few drinks, Maple Manhattan and Adult Iced coffee. Both were top notch and perfect the way they were.

Overall Hooked was a perfect oasis from a dreary rainy Saturday afternoon. We will most...

Phenomenal.

Street parking is kind of spotty, but we lucked out. We got there 30 minutes before their closing time, so we expected to do takeout... and even the host said that there was no room and that they couldn't take us in without a reservation. But then I said we could just do takeout, and she was fine with it.

I went back and paid for the parking using the Passport app... and in that time span, our host had a spot cleaned up for both of us at the bar and told us we could order in and sit down to eat. This was fantastic of her.

We sat down at the bar and got drinks. The maple Manhattan was okay... nothing to really write home about. (It mostly nosed and tasted of orange rind, which was okay if you're into citrus notes... which I'm not huge on.)

I ordered the cioppino and my friend ordered the lobster mac. The mac was pretty good... but the cioppino is where it's at. It's hands-down one of the best things I've ever had. The QUANTITY of the cioppino was a bit disappointing (it's in a very deceiving LARGE bowl), but at the same time, it hit the spot. The flavors were great... you could really taste the garlic and the pepper distinctively in the tomato base, and the seafood was good to go. VERY flavorful. I loved every bite of it. Even the bread was great... it had a nice crust and soft on the inside, which was perfect for dipping.

The bartender (Elizabeth) was great and she was very attentive, and again, props to the host. Super friendly staff, great atmosphere, nice location. Highly...

Went here for the first time the other night with my folks to celebrate my mom's birthday. The staff seemed disorganized as three different people came up to take our group's name. This would of been fine except that when a table did become available they sat another group that had been waiting only a couple minutes and had not even put their name in. We were understandably frustrated and confused, and when I brought this up to one of the waitresses she said "It doesn't matter, because you will be seated next." About ten minutes later when another table became available we were ready to let it be water under the bridge and just enjoy our meal. It was busy and stuff happens, right?

We were taken care of by the waitress I had spoken to previously and for the duration of the meal she spoke to us in a curt tone of voice. We had to ask twice for lemon for our water. My mother accidentally dropped her napkin on the floor and asked for a new one, which we never got, even after assuring us she would bring one right out. I don't know if our waitress was doing these things intentionally or was simply forgetful but neither is good.

I'm giving three stars because the food itself was excellent and served in a reasonable amount of time. Given the other reviews for Hooked I assume my experience has to be a wild fluke and will be willing to give it a try again. It just was that the service was so bizarre that I felt it would be worthwhile to post...