Surf Portsmouth — Restaurant in Portsmouth

A very nice seafood and sushi restaurant located above the old Harbor with views of the Piscataqua River. when you walk in you would go to the left for the restaurant but they also have a banquet hall, that is used for large events.

This was a Monday evening after work, and I was really surprised how full this place was. The hostess very nicely guided in coming guests to the bar that is located in the center of the restaurant for drinks while we waited for our river views table.

The service was honestly first class. We had a little incident when our meals arrived, but the waitress handled it excellent.

They had a great selection of local micro-brews on tap, which is something that you do not find very often.

Now for the food, which is the whole point why I came here. After reading five star reviews all over the internet, I wanted to order everything on the menu, however financially that would not be possible I am not #GordonRamsey. So after going back-and-forth between the Raw Bar and different Entrees we settled on (1) Parmesan Fried Calamari (2)New England Baked Seafood Trio (3)Roast Atlantic Haddock (4)Shrimp Punta Gorda.

(1) The Parmesan Fried Calamari, was amazing. Nicely battered with just the right amount of spice and zest, from the cherry-pepper vinaigrette. The calamari themselves also tasted fresh, which is usually not something that one would point out as a positive when dinning in a coastal restaurant, but I have visited other venues in Portsmouth where all of there seafood was frozen, yes even there Raw Bar.

(2)The New England Baked Seafood Trio, was not how should I say something you would write back home about. The haddock, was well cooked but everything else like the scallops, and shrimp were overcooked and dry, which was very upsetting. The vegetables that it was served with (bitter greens / dandelion greens and chicory Puntarelle ) also did not mix very well with the taste of the whole dish. To the point, were the server came by and said yes, that is a bad pairing why dont I get you some asparagus. Now I was going to give this restaurant a 2.5 stars because of this dish. However, the server because of how nice she was and how well she handled the situation brought this place back to a 4.5

(3)Roast Atlantic Haddock, was the best of the three entree dishes that I tasted. Although, it had a little too much butter for my taste the fish was cooked perfectly and the vegetables that the chef paired with the Haddock complemented the dish perfectly. I also, like the plating there was just the right amount of color to standout against the sauce. The fresh bacon bites also added a nice contrast when combined with the Haddock.

(4)Shrimp Punta Gorda, sadly this was a dish that I did not photograph as it honestly looked as poor as it tasted. The squire of grilled shrimp, looked like something a 5 year old would plate, and the shrimp themselves were so over cooked, that they dried onto the squire itself. The one highlight of this dish was the perfectly cooked jasmine rice. I would stay away from ordering another Shrimp Punta Gorda for the rest of my life.

In conclusion even on a raining NH evening the views from #SurfPortmouth are amazing. However, the food consistency is a bit of hit or miss, with some of the dishes tasting amazing while others fall short. If you have an extra $80 bucks in your pocket that you are looking to burn and have dinner over looking the beautiful Piscataqua River go to Surf, just don't order Shrimp...

We celebrated our wedding anniversary at Surf in downtown Portsmouth on May 15, and it was the perfect way to end a special trip. We were visiting from Atlanta to meet our baby niece for the first time, spend time with family, and catch the Red Sox vs. Braves game at Fenway with my brother and sister-in-law. Our entire week in New Hampshire was incredible, and Surf capped it off in the best possible way.

The food, the cocktails and the service were all amazing. My sister-in-law recommended Surf for dinner, and it absolutely lived up to the hype. Easily the best seafood I’ve had in a long time.

We started with the sushi special as our appetizer. It was super fresh, beautifully plated, and packed with flavor. It set the tone for what turned into one of our favorite meals of the trip. We spent about an hour on the deck enjoying drinks, the breeze, and the view. And once it started getting chilly, Matt, our server, didn’t hesitate to move us to a warm, cozy table right away and made the transition seamless.

From there, the night somehow got even better.

My wife, born and raised in Georgia, had one mission before flying home: get some wicked good NH lobster. Surf delivered with the Lobster Kristina — buttery, rich, perfectly cooked, and easy to eat without a bib or cracking lessons. She loved every bite.

I ordered the Roast Atlantic Haddock, and there’s nothing to roast in the comedy sense. No punchlines and no burns. Just a dish so good I’ve got nothing but compliments.

Now, let’s talk more about Matt. He was a genuinely cool dude. Fun to chat with, super personable, and clearly wanted us to have a memorable, fun, and incredible night. You’d think he owned the place with the way he hustled, kept the bar and tables running smoothly, and made sure we were taken care of. Once we were inside, we watched him bartending, serving multiple tables, and somehow never missing a beat. Calm, kind, and on it.

Surf, give this guy every raise and promotion you can so he never even thinks about applying anywhere else. You do not want to lose someone who represents your brand so well.

We were stuffed after dinner, but the Blueberry Tall Cake for dessert sounded too good to pass up. We compromised, taking it to go and inhaled it later that night after catching some live music near our hotel. A perfect nightcap. Filling, sweet, and bursting with blueberry flavor.

Surf delivered in every way. It was the perfect end to a meaningful trip and a night we’ll always remember. We can’t wait...

Brought our daughter there for a birthday dinner. Arrived for an early dinner (4:15) to beat the busy time, still seated in far corner away from any view. Was told no tables available but plenty small tables were seated in the 20-30 minutes after us over on the side with a water view. Asked for a cake/candle to be delivered as a birthday surprise (had to ask the host while we were able to when the birthday girl was in the restroom). He was very kind and said he would tell our server (and we asked him while he stood at our table so he knew which table it was). Come to the end of our dinner, server asks if we want dessert, we say no but I smile at her assuming she is planning to bring the cake the host described to us. Then she brings the check, and so I excuse myself to sneak over to the host again ( because our server was never anywhere I could speak to her in private). The host tells me he spoke to her and will remind her again, we pay our check, she takes it and returns the receipt with our credit card, after another 10 minutes just sitting there awkwardly we decide to just leave. Daughter realizes what we are trying to do and says not to make an issue of it and so we just reluctantly left. Disappointing in that the host seemed very attentive and I don’t know what went wrong but we walked out with no birthday dessert and no celebration, and the cake he described to us sounded delicious too. I confirmed it was not on the bill but would have gladly paid for it, it was as if she had no clue we were expecting it. On the way out I told him she never brought it, he seemed confused by why she didn’t because he said he reminded her twice, but it was just too late and awkward at that point. The food there is good but they messed up a very simple thing even after a reminder and plenty of patience on our part. Our server never looked like she had any clue but I could never get her alone to try and ask her about it. Honestly the last couple times it’s been always some minor annoyance which over shadows the food, not sure I will go back for a while but likely won’t be missed since they clearly have more customers than seating most...