The Dunaway

Dunaway is now CLOSED. more

My wife and I have been to the Dunaway twice and have loved it both times. The room is warm and inviting... more

My wife and I have been to the Dunaway twice and have loved it both times. The room is warm and inviting and the food is topnotch. more

For the price and the hype I expected more. It is tauted as a fine dinning experience with natural local ingredients. When the salmon appetizer was not wild Alaskan smoked king salmon and standard farmed Atlantic I was disappointed. Maybe the app's set the stage for a mediocre experience. All I know is I have been back twice and it is mediocre. Apparently they changed chefs so I went there for brunch and that was a total disappointment but in fairness it was their first Sunday serving brunch. Great location, Great ambiance, and great potential. Pros: Great Ambiance Great Service Great Location Cons: Mediocre Foood more

Very suprised by the other ratings, I've been to restaurants in Boston, New York, L.A., and Miami, and this restaurant tops them all. We tried three different appetizers (lobster roll, crab salad, dinner salad), and three main courses which were all excellent! Plus the desserts were to die for! Service very attentive and knowledgable on the dishes. I highly recommend this restaurant, whether its a romantic dinner for two, or trying to impress a boss, bring them here. I promise you won't regret it. Pros: EVERYTHING!! more

I've had the pleasure of eating at many fine restaurants around the globe. I have had fantastic meals in humble kitchens, and disgraceful meals in fantastic kitchens. Unfortunately, this experience fell into the latter category. After much hype, I was very dismayed at the pathetic meal I was served. The service was horrid, I actually saw waitstaff eating bread during downtime. None could appropriately pair wine with anything on the menu, even the manager was unsure of his footing in this area. As for the meal, I've tasted better frozen dinners. I'd had Miss Dumonts food before and was shocked at what she was serving. I later learned that she was not only out of the Kitchen that evening, but that she had left to open a new venture. Replacing her was her former sous-chef, who, in my opinion, is underqualified and overwhelmed. Pros: pleasant location Cons: overcrowded parking lot, rude waitstaff, terrible food more

Recently dined at the Dunaway...frequented it last summer with my family, came back to the area for the season and the restaurant had done a total 180! Food was lackluster, uncreative, and cold (literally!!!). Service was barely tolerable..we waited for 15 minutes to get spoken to at our table! Very disappointed, wont be back. Sad to see it go from best to one of the worst so quickly. Pros: parking lot Cons: the parking lot probably tastes better than the food. more

We received a gift certificate last Christmas from friends who knew this was our favorite restaurant. We made a reservations month prior, only to find out when we arrived for the dinner that Chef Mary Dumont was no longer in the kitchen. On that token, we weren't psyched about staying but figured since we have a gift certificate we might as well stay. Pros: beautiful atmosphere Cons: poor service and salty, bland food more

Thank God! Finally another great restaurant in Portsmouth! I travel through the area on business all the time and usually end up in Ogunquit or Portland to dine. After several friends had eaten at The Dunaway and all the great reviews and press it's been turning out, my wife and I stopped in on a Saturday night. The place was packed and we waited a few minutes at the bar for our table...not a problem. We were offered a drink and then promptly brought to our table in view of the open kitchen. We started off with the scallops and crab salad...both heavenly...I had never had rosemary with crab and melon before and it was soooo good together! My wife agreed. Our entrees took a little long to come out, but it was busy and our server was attentive and curteous which made the time go by. I had the Ribeye and my wife had the lamb. I have to say, it was worth the stop in Portsmouth which I for too long drove right by. The portions are large and we skipped dessert, but had a drink in the lounge by the fire. Nice touches, beautiful place, great food...what a treat! Pros: great parking AND a fireplace ! Cons: wish i knew about it sooner more

On a recent visit to Portsmouth my wife and I wanted to try something different. It was my birthday and my wife wanted to make my dinner special, after several inquiries, several people recommended Dunaway. We have visited Portsmouth many times and are familiar with many of the restaurants in town but Dunaway was new and was receiving lots of attention. Upon arrival for dinner we were promptly seated and ordered our dinner. Pros: Simple Setting Cons: Food Quality more

Just went to the Dunaway in Portsmouth - it opened a few months ago and I've been saying I need to check out Portsmouth, it's been a while. Went there with a friend from Newburyport and we both loved it. The duck was excellent, maybe the best duck I've ever had. Truly. And my friend had the shortribs, totally tender - my friend did salt it more, but I liked it as it was. Lots to choose from - the scallops and the salt cod sounded great - but we'll have to come back to try. Beautiful room, warm, inviting, as if in someone's home. Chef told us she is planning a new menu shortly - she picks a lot of veggies right from her kitchen gardens out back. How very cool. Yes, we'll be back. Pros: beautiful setting, great menu/very local, great bar w/friends Cons: 1 hour drive from bos more