Exeter NH Restaurants: Water Street and Beyond

Exeter NH restaurants cluster along Water Street and the blocks around the Squamscott River, in a handsome seacoast town that is home to Phillips Exeter Academy. Cafes, pubs, bakeries and dinner rooms sit in old brick and clapboard buildings, a short walk from the town hall and the riverside park. Walk the loop once and choose by what you see.

The town is small and walkable, and a loop of the center takes about half an hour.

The academy's red brick and white columns set the tone, and the town hall's clock tower is the landmark you steer by. Everything worth a meal is within a ten-minute walk of the bandstand, and the whole center can be crossed on foot without a map.

Which Exeter NH restaurants suit a first visit?

Start on Water Street and the streets that cross it, where most of the choices are. Park on the street or in the lot behind the shops and walk. Look at the windows for menus, and look at the rooms for signs of life on a weekday. A small town supports a few strong places rather than a hundred weak ones.

Because the academy brings visitors all year, many kitchens are used to serving families and groups. They also keep student schedules, so check hours at the door.

Ask the staff what is local. Seacoast kitchens often buy from nearby farms and fishing boats, and the specials board is where that shows up. A bowl of chowder or a plate of fish in Exeter does not have to be fancy to be fresh.

What is Exeter Water Street dining like?

Relaxed and traditional. Expect Italian, pub food, New American cooking, sandwiches and a few international kitchens, in rooms with wood floors and tall windows. The riverside is the draw: tables near the water fill first in warm months.

On school weekends the street fills with parents. On a quiet Tuesday in February, you can have a corner to yourself.

In a town where many guests are visiting a student, the table talk is often about the school, the team and the weather. A restaurant with a quiet corner is worth the extra minute of looking, and a table by the window gives you something to watch when the conversation pauses.

Where do you go for Exeter downtown lunch?

To a counter or a cafe within a five-minute walk of the town hall. Lunch is quick and local, with soup, sandwiches, salads and daily plates. Offices and the academy send people out at noon, so arrive before twelve fifteen or after one. A takeout lunch by the river is a classic.

The Swasey Parkway page shows how to turn a lunch into a picnic.

Where is an Exeter dinner by the river?

Along Water Street, where a few dining rooms look onto the Squamscott River and its small falls. A table by the window on a summer evening is the best seat in town. Book ahead on Friday and Saturday, and for any party of six or more.

Winter evenings are quieter and cozier. A fireplace and a bowl of chowder fit the season.

Where can you find Exeter coffee and pastry?

On and around Water Street, where cafes and a bakery or two serve the morning crowd. Lines peak before school and again at mid-morning. A pastry and a coffee on a bench by the river is an easy start to a day.

On winter mornings, the cafes steam up and the window seats fill with people in coats. Come with patience and a book. The slow pace of an Exeter morning is part of its charm, and nobody will hurry you out of your chair. The bakery page shows how to compare.

Which tags help you choose in a small town?

A rater can add tags to a meal in the Mosey app, and the Find sheet turns them into a way to search. In Exeter, the useful ones include Family Friendly, Group Dining, Bakery, Coffee Shop, Patio and Quick Service. Tags describe a visit, not a policy, so confirm before you go.

Because few Exeter places have many ratings yet, each tag you add has weight.

How do you rate an Exeter meal?

Stars, then the dish, then a line on the room: "Thursday lunch, window by the river, soup and half a sandwich, quick". If friends joined you, tag them so they can add their own rating of the same meal. Short on time? Rate as you eat, first what you are having and then how it was.

A list called Exeter regulars keeps your favorites together and is easy to share with a parent who visits.

Where next from Exeter?

The US food guides cover the rest of the country, and the parents weekend page explains how to plan a big family table.

For the rest of the state, start at the Food in New Hampshire page.

When you finish a meal on Water Street, open the Mosey app, rate it by the dish and save the place to a list called Exeter for the next visit.