Came here for a grad dinner this past weekend. The menu offers traditional new england seafood (Baked Haddock, Lobster, Raw Bar, Chowdah) but I feel some of the dishes could use a bit more inspiration. The best looking dish was my mom's portugese seafood stew (mussels, clams, scallops, shrimp in a wine broth) for $28. Scallop pancetta appetizer was pretty decadent (only 3 scallops but they were fairly large). Â My flounder on couscous was pretty ordinary. The couscous was a strange mish mash of olives, squash, and a few squirts of pesto and sun-dried tomato vinagrette.
Piano man was playing in the corner which added a nice touch. Service was AMAZING. Drinks were constantly replenished and our waiter was very attentive. I'm sure I'll return and I think I have a better idea of what to order. The hot stone tuna (they give you a hot brick and you sear your own tuna) and Miso Salmon is on my list of what to try next.
Feel like the decor could be kicked up a notch. Perhaps a little more modern and a little less grandma's retirement villa in Sarasota.
I dined at Surf this past week and was pleasantly surprised it was "Buck a Shuck" night. Â Although those in my party do not like oysters, my waitress did not give me a hard time for just ordering two for myself. Â I was also impressed when we were seated that the hostess knew what kind of oysters they were serving, that shows that management cares enough to educate all the employees so the guests can have a great experience. Â For dinner I ordered the half portion surf & turf. Â The portion was very satisfying and everything was delicious. Â Everyone else in my party was happy with the food and the service.
Review Source:We went to Surf to celebrate a birthday. Â Our dinner started with: Shrimp Pot stickers, Parmesan-Fried Calamari, Seared Tuna Bruschetta and Fried Tomato & Crispy Bacon Salad. Â The overall opinion was the calamari was the best EVER!
I had the surf an turf, full size.  The medallions and crab cakes were generous enough that a half size would have been good.  Thankfully my dining companions helped out.  The other entrees were: Haddock Sandwich, Parmesan Crusted Flounder, Bamboo Steamed Shrimp, Lobster Kristina  and Pan Roasted Atlantic Swordfish.  There were no complaints about the food.
Since it was a birthday celebration we had desserts too! Â Which were very good
Highly recommend this spot.
I had been here in the past and was very impressed - however - January 2013 - Saturday night - uninspiring food - high prices for the quality. Crab cakes with little crab; parmesan encrusted flounder too salty and greasy. Moroccan scallops way too spicy and salty. Â So many spices and sauces, the seafood gets over-powered.....
Will think twice about returning.
I've been to Surf a handful of time over the past 4-5 years and I can't say I've every had a bad meal. Â Over recent years I've also grown to like the raw bar offerings as well, so my opinion of the menu has improved as I've developed more experience w/ these items. Â At Surf, the menu has a great selection and it'd be hard to find something that you didn't like. Â
The oysters are fantastic- and it's fun to sit at the bar and watch the staff at work in that area. Â On a busy night, you can see an assortment of orders from the raw bar and it's easy to pick a few items for yourself. Â I have had a lot of southern oysters (NC and SC) but I really enjoyed the selection offered here. Â The guy behind the bar provided great recommendations and he was right. Â The oysters were perfect w/ just a squeeze of lemon- nothing else.
I also love to order whole belly clams when I'm in the NE as well- and the ones at Surf were fantastic. Â They are an appetizer order, but coupled w/ some of the delicious bread + a half dozen oysters, they were more than enough for a meal for me.
Service has always been on point here as well and the full bar and wine menu offer plenty of perfect choices for the fresh seafood menu.
Overall very happy with service, food and ambiance. Â
Shared a few raw oysters (not the best I've ever had but definitely good), as well as the seafood stew and Moroccan spiced scallops. Â
Seafood stew was well spiced, seafood was very tasty, and fresh, though could have done a bit more with the spicing of the soup in general for my tastes. Â Overall solid.
Moroccan spiced scallops were cooked to perfection, and they didn't skimp on the scallops as tends to be common. Â Well spiced with good sauce and sides (couscous and spinach).
I liked the piano player, good live music without being distracting from my conversation. Â Service was prompt and friendly.
I have been here a number of times. I would have given them four stars or even five stars, but they changed the menu this year and not sure if they changed the chef.. But the food has gone down in my as well as my friends opinions..
It used to taste much better.
The service was nice.. Also seems to have gone down a bit.
Still worth a try though..
Amazing place, but yes, definitely somewhat pricey. Stay with the stuff that's special in the NE--Haddock, shellfish, lobster. You won't go wrong here.
We had the lobster sandwich (they pretty much take a ~1lb lobster and take all the meat out and serve it with slaw on a buttered bun). It's huge. I recommend splitting with someone, and getting the raw sampler like we did. Their raw bar is something you do not want to miss, but if you want to pick and choose, I would probably skip the smoked salmon and tuna (though I must say their toro was very excellent). Our favorites were the raw oysters and the scallop ceviche. The smoked trout was great too.
Credit to Andrew, our waiter there. In general, the waitstaff was excellent--our glass was never empty and we never waited for more than a minute or two, and the manager was actively going around checking on tables and service, but there's only one other place where our waiter had ears as sharp as his, paying attention to what his customers are saying. I had something about the raw bar sampler needing chopsticks to eat and he....brought them about 30 seconds later, me not even realizing he had heard it. When I had made that comment I'm pretty sure he was occupied with a different table about 10 feet away. Good job, sir.
Yummy! We go there at least once a month, the service can sometimes be slow, but the food is incredible. I love getting the specials they are always changing, fresh and in season. The "just a bite" dessert is yummy and really is just the right size when you're full and want a little sweet after dinner.
Review Source:Fantastic dinner of appetizers last evening! Â We sat at the bar which has plenty of space to dine and decided to start with an appetizer special - baked oysters with lobster chive butter. Â By far, the best baked oysters I've ever had. Â This should be added to the menu - right next to the awesome seared tuna bruschetta appetizer - another winner!
We were so excited about the appetizers we stuck with them for dinner. Â We then tried the sticky rice and shrimp rolls and the hot stone tuna. Â The shrimp rolls were wonderful, arrived hot and with a dipping sauce that accented the flavor nicely. Â The hot stone tuna I would skip in the future - the oil spattered and I was the target.
We've dined at the Surf many times, typically starting with raw oysters and going for an entree. Â Previous visits we have had the Portuguese Seafood Stew, Sesame Seared Tuna, Chorizo braised mussels - highly recommend. Â Nightly specials have been a pleasant experience as well. Â Last night's dinner of appetizers is something I would repeat again, need to try a few others!
I prefer sitting at the bar but when we dine with family, we sit in the dining room. Â I agree with some of the reviews regarding the tables feeling a bit cramped. Â I also don't enjoy the piano unfortunately, it's just too noisy and this doesn't help. Â I also think the piano space could be used to spread the tables out a bit.
Another plug - the desert option "just a bite".  When you want that ending bite of something sweet but don't want an over bearing desert, give this a try.  Last night was  a mocha flowerless bite - just enough to end the evening.
The staff is welcoming, friendly and attentive. Â We have always had great service, even when it's been extremely busy.
We enjoyed a lovely meal at the bar served very pleasantly and proficiently by Dan. We had a whole lobster and a surf and turf (rare). The steak was cooked perfectly and the lobster was tender and dissected easily for convenient eating. It appears to live up to its reputation from two out-of-towners.
Review Source:I hadn't been here in eons so stopped in for a quick bite as I love seafood. Â
Since I was dining solo and in a hurry, I opted for sitting at the bar which I like to do and I like Surf's large bar. I ordered shrimp potstickers and a fried tomato/bacon salad. Â Accompanying that, I had a glass of Reisling wine.
I was very happy with my server, the quick and friendly service, the food (both presentation and taste), and the ambiance.
The downside? Â I looked around and realized the median age with me included (an older person of 54) must have been 60ish. Â Obviously, since I'm in the "older" category myself, I don't mind hanging out with the older set. Â What bothered me was a place pretty active at 6pm on a Tuesday but noone younger than an apparent 40 years of age was in my line of sight (bar or tables). Â I'm a firm believer that establishments should draw from a variety of gender/race/nationality/age groups. Â
So, what gives with that? Â Is it the prices that deter younger people? Â I have no idea. Â It couldn't be the piano bar (it wasn't even in play at this point). Â :-) Â Just sayin'... there was room for some young blood, too.
Boston city food in small town Nashua. Second try out of Surf and second time to be pleasantly surprised by the taste and quality of the food. It's pricey for the area but it feels like your eating in the city without having the hassle of getting there and back. Whatever meal you have try the key lime cocktail, it's killer
Review Source:I was in a party of 5 and despite almost an hour wait and small bar/waiting area.. It was absolutely worth the wait. The food and service were amazing. I had the hot stone tuna and shrimp eggroll appetizers for my meal and would go back and have them again without a doubt. My boyfriend and a friend got the filet and crab cakes.. Crab cakes were unreal! The last 2 meals were the California fish taco and the blackened tilapia which were met with equal raving reviews. Our waitress was efficient and knowledgable and we were entertained by a live piano. It's the first place ive been to in a long time where I can say I will definitely be going back!
Review Source:Despite the fact that we started dating when both of us were dependent on our parents for rides and we lived in adjoining towns, my mother had never met the father of my fiance. To accommodate both sets of parents, we chose Surf Restaurant to remedy this.
First, although the website says reservations are only accepted for parties of 7 or more, that is codswallop. We were a mere party of 6 and were able to make a reservation for 7:00 on a Saturday night. However, this did not guarantee us a comfortable dining experience. We were placed (crammed) at a table for four so the experience became very...intimate. Potential for awkwardness: slightly elevated.
Despite being stuffed into a small space, at least we were away from the [largely ignored] piano player. And if I can digress a second, what is the point of a piano player? To give an air of elegance or class to a place, I suppose. But truly, they only contribute to the growing din. Which was bordering on excessive and only continued to escalate in a manner directly proportional to the number of alcoholic beverages consumed by the clientele.
Not enough to give pause for consideration of dram shop laws, but the booze was a-flowing. Especially if the level of service we experienced was the same throughout the restaurant. The waitress was perpetually there to refresh a drink. Although, some might think it bordered on hovering I like to think she just wanted to kick start our night. And, hot damn, that kid filling the waters was on top of things. Five stars for him. I don't think I ever saw my glass of water sink below the halfway mark before he'd surreptitiously duck out from behind a plant or pillar armed with a pitcher.
The waitress was incredibly knowledgeable and if she noticed our bemused expressions as she ticked off an epic list of daily specials littered with irrelevant buzzwords, she never let on. Our questions were answered and food was delivered quickly. What more can you ask? Maybe a little less popping up to see how we're doing. "Yep, the eight bite is just as good as the fifth which was as good as the second. Thanks for asking."
As for the food, everyone seemed pleased. Although the appetizer special was small, it was tasty. My Miso Salmon was well cooked and the asparagus was al dente. The ponzu sauce was very complementary and not overpowering allowing the flavor of the fish to shine through. Even more impressive, the jasmine rice was able to hold its own - retaining flavor against the fish, vegetables and sauce.
So why the three stars? I wasn't absolutely wowed by the place. The atmosphere was a bit mundane and the level of noise impeded conversation a bit. While the service didn't leave us lacking and the food was tasty, I might be more interested in having a couple of drinks at the bar in the future.
Even though Surf is on the pricey side, it's fair pricing for the quality food you get. Â The other night I went there with my girlfriend for Valentines day. Â Our waitress was great, she was very helpful and pleasant. Â The VDay menu wasn't really impressive, we both ordered off the regular menu. Â We both started off with the raw bar sampler for two and it was great. Â The seafood was served cold and fresh, we both enjoyed everything on the plates. Â For our entree I ended up with the seared tuna and my girlfriend got the shrimp & lobster carbonara. Â We both enjoyed our meals. Â My wasabi mashed potatoes were out of this world good. Â It was a nice meal, they had a piano player playing nicely in the front corner and the noise level was perfect, we had no problem hearing each other and having a conversation during our meal.
  I would go back to Surf in a heartbeat.  If you like seafood and high end food and dining this is the place to go in the Nashua area.  Loved it.
Surf had a great seafood selection and the Lobster Kristina I ordered was delicious! Â My brother had the shrimp and lobster carbonara which was also very tasty. Â We were here on a weeknight and did not need a reservation although it was very busy. Â My only recommendation for the pricing and overall atmpshere, it would have been nice to have tablecloths.
Review Source:Excellent, excellent, excellent.
Wonderful food. Very fresh and full of flavor. I had the 1/2 portion of the surf and turf which was a 5oz filet (cooked perfectly) along with a crab cake atop of chive mashed potatoes. All were exactly the right amount for one person and delicious. The fried tomato and bacon salad was amazing. Nothing I would have chosen on my own but reading other yelp reviews I had to try. I split it with 2 others at the table and they brought it out on 3 seperate plates equally proportionate, which was surprisingly nice.
The waitress was great. Knowledgable about everything on the menu and the specials.
Recommend it to anyone and everyone.
Lemme sum up: Â Very good seafood, good service, chic decor
For me, seafood restaurants are a binary function. Â They fall into two categories: shacks or fine dining. Â They then either fall into two ratings: excellent or piss poor. Â Surf is the first seafood restaurant I've been to where an imaginary number showed up and destroyed the binary equation. Â Surf is a little bit of alright.
The decor "flows". Â Track lighting, aquamarine hued silk dividers, and artsy fish decor make you feel like your floating in an upscale version of Atlantis. Â Very cool!
The food is a mixed review. Â For dinner I had a wasabi seared tuna steak. Â I asked the waitress to have the chef sear it to whatever they felt did justice to the meat. Â It came out perfect...and huge! Â This, truly, was a steak. Â Sadly, the appetizer of chowder and crab cakes were not as memorable. Â Correction, the chowder was bland enough that it was something I would remember NOT to order in the future.
Having gorged ourselves on dinner, we didn't have room for dessert. Â Perhaps next time I'll skip the apps and save some room for something light and lemony.
There are a couple of detractors. Â It is a bit pricey but that's because it's a tall step above a clam shack. Â Parking is in the few spaces out front along the street or out back in the city parking garage, which always gives me the creeps. Â Also, due to poor economy, they have stopped serving lunch.
If you're looking for a good spot for "date night" with your spouse, or potential spouse, dive in to Surf. Â It's refreshing!
As a Cape Codder, I like to think I know my seafood and this place was it was cracked up to be. Â We were seated near the piano player (who was not corny at all) and had an excellent dinner. Â The ambiance was good, not too loud, and very casual which was nice.
I ordered the swordfish which was amazing, the seafood broth medley was ordered at our table as well as the shrimp risotto dish, everyone loved it. Â While a bit on the pricey side (for NH so I am told) it was worth every bite. Â Will definitely go back!
Went for dinner on a Wednesday evening during Nashua Downtown Spring Fest week. Â 3 courses for $25, can't beat that with a stick. There were 2 choices for each course, and without planning it, husband and I each ordered one of the things, so we got to taste a bit of everything. Â Lovely. Â Had a muscadet to go with our dinners.
There was a 30 minute wait, sure wish this place took reservations. Â
It gets super noisy with people at the bar and tables packed so close, but otherwise, no complaints.
Here's what you need to know...
Love the different kinds of bread that are obviously fresh baked
You HAVE to try the potato crusted haddock (like my irish gram says "whats dinner without a potato")
Live piano player on the weekends is very nice, love it
Great atmosphere
Done be late, there is usually a line
Went to Surf during a night "Fall Feast Week" in Nashua where several restaurants were participating by either offering a fixed price menu or an overall discount off a meal. Â In this case Surf had a three course prix fixe selection for $25.00. Â For each course there were two choices. Â
To start I had a bowl of fish chowder. I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't a cup of chowder, and if what I received is the size of a Surf "cup" I would hate to see the size of the bowl. There were definitely good size bits of white fish but not the rich creamy texture I prefer in a chowder. Â Good chowder but not reaching a level of greatness.
Next up was a miso marinated salmon. Normally this alone is $23 so the prix fixe special was already working in my favor budget wise. Presentation was excellent.  The salmon was served on a cake of rice and covered with thinly sliced mushroom and asparagus. The asparagus was also cooked perfectly, slightly crisp and not over done. However the miso and ponzu were in combination with salmon and they all seemed  to be competing as strong flavors and not working together.  If this dish were on Facebook its relationship status would be marked as "It's Complicated".
Dessert was a coconut rice custard with cubed mango. Â Again with excellent presentation each served in a two section asian style serving plate with a fresh cut flower blossom. The custard wasn't similar to an egg-based, but more like an extremely thick rice pudding. Â I could take it or leave it. Â I did have a decent cup of espresso which I enjoyed more than the dessert.
The atmosphere in Surf was nice, but the tables did seem slightly close together. Not as cramped as I've seen in some other restaurants, but another foot or so between tables would make it seem less cramped.
The wait staff was excellent. Â Our waitress was attentive and other staffers were around to top off glasses of water on a regular basis. Â
I enjoyed eating at Surf, especially since I was taking advantage of the special fixed price menu (Again, part of a "feast week" in the town of Nashua so this will probably be gone by the time you read this review.). Â I'm split if I would go back, while the presentation, waitstaff, and quality of the food was good, the pricing is higher than what I would normally spend (expect 20-30 dollars for an entree).
If you have eaten at Michael Timothy's then you know what to expect from Surf only focused on seafood.
Absolutely the best in every way as well, which should be expected from the same owner and Chef.
Again it is pricey, but you get what you pay for and since I love a great raw bar, I want to know it's the best!
If you love seafood you'll love Surf, if you don't, look elsewhere.
I'm not a seafood person but I was brought here on a business meeting and didn't have a say in the matter. Â (It probably wouldn't have made a great impression on my boss if I sounded like a whiny teenager and protested in front of our clients). Â That said, there are not many (any?) steak or pasta options on the menu that do not have seafood in them, so I wouldn't come here if someone in your party is particularly seafood averse.
However, I ended up going with the Thai BBQ Steak Tips and Shrimp and it was excellent! Â It's exactly what it sounds like on a bed of fettuccine in a spicy sauce with broccoli. Â Other people in our group ordered the clam chowder, the catfish, seafood stew, and tuna. Â I don't think there was a single piece of food left on anyone's plate by the time the meal was over. Â Our server was pleasant and attentive.
The decor sort of looks like Red Lobster, so that's not much of a selling point. Â I have no idea what other reviewers meant when they said that the tables were 'squeezed together.' Â I actually noted that there was a lot of empty space in the room. Â Prices are very reasonable for a seafood restaurant, and we had no trouble finding parking as there is a large garage right behind the restaurant. Â Desserts were just OK for the most part, but the home-made ice cream was very good.
Please note that I do not make a habit of reviewing a restaurant after only one visit.... that being said, I've only been here once - and I feel like it deserves the following:
Food: Yummy Yummy Seafood. Each dish was prepared and presented beautifully.
I went for an early dinner with my mom, and in typical Mom fashion "got a few things to split and share".
We had a sampling from the raw bar, and while I'm hardly a connoisseur, I thought that they had a decent selection of locales and varieties. Enough oyster choices to be a little picky, and we were totally satisfied with our choices.
The muscles - in a wine broth with Chorizo and other delights were just perfect. The flavors were strong without being too intense - making 2 very happy mouths! The broth was so addicting. Thank goodness they provide the tables with delish homemade bread (well if not homemade - quite tasty), because I felt the need to soak up every last drop of broth and grab each bit of chorizo and tomato left. I would happily eat this again and again. Leaps and bounds better than many "muscles in wine broth" starters I've had at other restaurants. Not just leaps - Leaps AND Bounds!
For our main dish we split the grilled miso marinated salmon.
I love when a restaurant actually splits the dish in the kitchen - arranging 2 portions on 2 plates.
Surf did this, and we were pleasantly surprised to see that each plate looked like a full portion size, fully "plated" - such nice presentation.
Flavor was phenomenal. simply excellent. Cooked perfectly. I will attempt to recreate this dish at home, but it's good to know that even if I don't succeed - I can, and will, go back to have it again at this place!
The atmosphere was lovely. Excellent (like really super) service from the hostess, waitress and very attentive water server. Fun decor and nice lighting. I had not one complaint. Which isn't so typical. Kudos to Surf for an unexpectedly fantastic meal.
After reading the other reviews, I'm thinking our experience had much to do with the fact that we were total Early Bird Specials, as it was barely 5pm on a Saturday... the place was empty when we arrived and getting pretty darn full as we exited. I don't live in the area, so I haven't a clue what the normal crowd is like, or how they handle a packed house.
With this in mind, on any return visit I will get there early enough to avoid any crowd related hassles and hopefully have a repeat performance of this delish meal!
With the price and reputation in mind I came to Surf with high expectations. The restaurant is located in Nashua's downtown area where parking is always a hassle. The building is nice enough and the interior has a classy modern feel complete with a piano. However, you will most likely not hear the pianist as the restaurant is rather loud. Also, the tables are squeezed tightly together, which is never a good thing.
I came to dinner prepared with a reservation, but was still required to wait for approx 25 minutes to be seated. This is a huge pet peeve of mine, if you have a reservation you shouldn't have to wait more than maybe five minutes. It was also a good indication of the service for the rest of the evening, extremely slow! Everything took forever to arrive: food, check, etc. Not only was the service slow, but the waitress was rude and condescending. I never understand this mentality, sure you work at an upscale place, but no offense or anything you are still a waitress.
The food was pretty good. I ordered swordfish as an entree. As others mentioned the quality is there, the fish was fresh, but the portions are rather small. It was plated nicely, but tasted rather bland as did the side dishes. It really was nothing special especially for the money. When I foot such a large bill I expect better food and service. I can't say I'll be heading back anytime soon.
When was looking for a new restaurant to try my friend recommended this place, and after reading some reviews on yelp my Mom and I decided to check it out. Â I realized even though I spent many days at the pheasant lane mall or the rows of strip malls nearby, I had not gone to dinner in downtown Nashua. What a cute city!
And Surf did not disappoint! I The decor was blue - I loved the lights and they had a piano player. Live entertainment too! We ordered tuna a shrimp cocktail to start and then we split the fried tomato and crispy bacon salad and the surf and turf. I thought their dishes were creative and delicious! And even though we split  them so we could save room for dessert, we still didn't have room. So next time maybe I'll order dessert first! What a find!
My favorite restaurant! Â The Portuguese Seafood Stew is the absolute best. Â In fact, I am not qualified to comment on any other meal, since I always get the same thing: Â Portuguese Seafood Stew, the Fried Tomato & Crispy Bacon Salad (my mouth is watering just thinking about it), a bottle of wine, and the Creme Brulee for dessert. Â
For a large group, the Ultimate Raw Bar can't be missed either. Â Be sure to try the Michael Timothy martini as well.
The food is solid and decent. The fish stew was a "4" according to my dinner partner. My lobster was a "3" - it was tough and chewy; although the sauce was great. The calamari appetizer was o.k. The wine list is respectable. But the cosmo was pretty unappealing. More like a shot of vodka colored with a bit of juice to make it pink.
The service was pleasant and reasonably fast. I've been here a few years ago and was more impressed then than I am now.
My boss likes this place, so one day he took me and a few colleagues who travels a lot to Surf.
Located in downtown Nashua, it's nice place for some night life for the locals. The waiter was funny and helpful with the menu. One of my colleagues has a broken leg in the cast, the waiter even went through some trouble to find her something to put her leg on.
We've ordered the Deluxe Raw Bar ($50) to share as starter, it's 2 plate full of oysters, cocktail shrimp, smoke salmon, tuna sashimi, etc. on a rack. Enough for 5 people to enjoy.
For Entres, a couple of us ordered Sesame Seared Tuna, 3 of us ordered the special of the day, which I forget the name now, but some nice fish dish.
We chatted and enjoyed the night. Of cause the best part is our boss picked up the check, oh yeah :)
What a delightful find! Thanks for the recommendation, Suzanne.
We are increasingly finding Nashua quite the destination for both dining and shopping. Its unfortunate we don't quite have the same options in Lowell....someday.
We decided to dine early, getting to the restaurant around 6:30. The place was packed! We had to wait about 20 minutes fro a table. The dining room is large and fairly loud, but not uncomfortably so. The decor is nice, but not quite as "high end" as we would have expected. The bar was crowded and did well with our drink order.
The fish and seafood was top notch! My partner started with, and loved, the crab cakes. I enjoyed the chorizo braised mussels. My entree was a take on New England seafood dinner. The scallops, shrimp and haddock were PERFECTLY cooked! The dish was light on the veggies, though. My partner had their evening special, pan fried tilapia with a maple burre blanc. He enjoyed it but found the fish to be on the bland side. Frankly, what should one expect from tilapia? We capped the evening with dessert. I had their apple tartlet....okay, but nothing out o the ordinary. My partner had their evening's selection of creme brulee that he absolutely loved!
As with other seafood establishments we've tried throughout eastern Massachusetts, its lovely to find a place like Surf. We look forward to returning in the future. We look forward to rying the third restaurant in the chef/owner's deck: Â his steak house in Merrimack, NH. Hopefully, the third continues to be a charm!
Surf is a great seafood place immediately across the street from the chef/owner's original restaurant Michael Timothy's. Â It's bigger, livelier, slightly cheaper and, obviously, specializes in seafood instead of the more "nouvelle" urban bistro menu of its sibling. Â Other differences include the fact that it doesn't serve lunch and is open Tue-Sat instead of 7 days.
The fish is bought fresh each day and the dishes feature the same excellent preparation and attention to detail that all of chef Buckley's restaurants do. Â They've got the old standbies like fish and chips (but a tempura panko version), cioppino, and a New England seafood dinner, but they've also got more inventive dishes that you won't find elsewhere. Â There are specials each night -- typically two appetizer and two main courses in addition to the standard menu. Â I usually end up ordering one of the specials and I don't think I've ever heard the same dish twice in two years of going there. Â There's a raw bar with the standard shellfish and some non traditional items like ceviche and small (tiny) selection of sashimi.
The bar is a large u-shaped area with the raw bar at one end. Â The wine list is modest in scope and price, but it's got sufficient variety that everyone should be able to find something they like. Â There's a small martini menu of 8-10 special martinis if you go for that sort of thing. Â The only significant weakness is the draft beer selection which is abysmal. Â They've got Sam Adams on draft and occasionally have UFO, but other than that, the small (6?) selection of taps feature "beers" like Bud Light.
I don't think they take reservations (except for large parties?), but there's a large bar area to wait in and the dining room's big as well, so I think turnoveri s pretty quick (although I tend to eat at the bar, so waiting times are guess based on observation).
The only live music is a piano player off in the corner of the dining room. Â He's usually barely audible over the conversation, but if you're interested in live music after dinner there's usually someone good playing either at Michael Timothy's across the street or Del Vaudo's around the corner.
I'd probably give this 4.5 stars if that were an option just to keep it below Michael Timothy's, but it's miles better than almost any other restaurant in the area.
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