After spending 10 minutes looking over the menu we had no idea what to get, a bad sign. Although they have a number of seafood and sandwich items I was in the mood for something else as a main entree. We asked our waitress for help and she steered me away from their Shepherd’s Pie. I ended up ordering the steak tips.
The one thing I immediately decided to order was their seafood chowder. This seemed to be a no brainer decision, after all, it was voted New England's best.
This had a rich, creamy broth but unfortunately no chunks of seafood and it was lukewarm. Okay, this is not my idea of award winning, I've had a lot better. Luckily, I added oyster crackers so there was something in the chowder, this was not brimming with anything as stated in their menu.
After the chowders, we decided on their Tater Tots Cone as a starter:
Served with a Chipotle Ketchup for dipping we enjoyed these as an appetizer.
If the tips shown above aren't tender then there isn't much that can be done and they were not. I had to chew and chew for awhile and if you have ever had tips like this you know what I mean, it can be frustrating. The broccoli was cooked too long and was mushy.
My wife chose their broiled haddock.
Sadly, the fish was dried out along with the same overcooked vegetables.
The service was okay, no complaints.
Due to the mediocre food we do not recommend the River House Restaurant and suggest you seek other options for dinner in Portsmouth.
