Red Hill Dari
 

I was out for a ride on my bike a couple of days ago and stopped in at the Red Hill Dari for a quick bite. I just had a cheeseburger and fries- very good and reasonably priced.

What really impressed me was the positive attitude of the servers and appearance/ cleanliness of the place in general- it was immaculate. I also like the fact that all of the condiments are right there outside the window (including wetnaps) without having to ask for them.

Good job Red Hill!

it's a gem
 

SamIAm has a great place in the Dari - Mickey runs it wonderfully, our kids have a nice, safe, clean place to work (thanks!!), and it's the best lobster roll around. The food is excellent there, always. You can't ask for more of a business or an employer (of your kid).

If you saw a very short, curly-headed dirty blonde with a big smile at the window, she belongs to me. The Dari keeps her in gas money all summer. And lets me keep my money all summer:D

OK where is it?

Downtown Center Harbor. Next to the Red Hill Irving Gas Station.

Lobster Roll
 

I visited them last week and had the Lobster Roll with fries. A generous portion of both makes me glad that I live (summer time) within walking distance of a true icon of Center Harbor, or is it actually Moultonborough, right on the line I guess. They've been there as long as I can remember. Does anyone know about the beginnings of this establishment?

we went today and both had lobster rolls and were great on a rainy day

Try the clams - they are the best!

Awhile back in another thread I asked if Samian owned the Rd Hill and someone commented that he owned the VK, which I knew. This has he confused, does he also own Red Hill?

Samiam
 

Yup. He's a one man dynasty;)

Wonder if he's looking to adopt a kid! :D :eek:

On top of the VK and Red Hill I am not sure but I think he still owns the Coe House and is leasing it out?

I have passed it many times and wondered it it was a good place to stop. Now I know, thanks. :)

A little history of RH Dari
 

If memory serves me correctly, the "Maid" was owned/operated by one Paul Champaign (or Champlain) and his wife (late 60's/70s), Dick Tower also owned it (in addition to Longwood Farms - currently Canoe - and the Woodshed). Not sure of exact order (Paul first or Dick first). Other readers may recall. My brother worked at both Longwood Farms and the Woodshed (as bartender) in his day, and spent one winter (year between college and graduate school) renting a room at Martha Oliver's house on Sheridan Road. Needless to say, Martha was an amazing cook/baker, and my brother gained a few pounds that year. I recall reading on this forum that SAMIAM still uses some of Martha's dessert recipes.

Old friends and next door neighbors at the lake (John and Mary Jane Ives), whom we also knew from Connecticut, actually LIVED in the "Maid" several winters, and I remember visiting them with my husband in the dead of winter in probably 1973, and having drinks with them at the "Maid".

I worked at the Old Country Store for many summers (working my way up from penny candy to the cheese counter and finally the clothing floor). Dick Tower also ran the little Coffee Shop at Old Country Store (no longer there; the former space is now packed with merchandise) Never worked at the "Maid" (Red Hill Dari), but did work one summer at Ken Smith's "Country Fare Inn." I was not a very good waitress. Sweet memories of working at lake during the summers in high school and college. Forgive my ramblings!

Due to a discussion in another thread I "Googled" Red Hill Dari and found this picture:

http://static.px.yelp.com/bphoto/F6-...3NDMWL2t7F9w/l

Now I know what I have been missing. :liplick:

added: The picture was part of a review here:
http://www.yelp.com/biz/red-hill-dari-moultonborough

Redwing, I just saw your post on the Red Hill dari.......gotta hand it to you....you have a great memory. When Dick Tower opened the Woodshed, it was so hugely successful that he sold Longwood Farms to me in 1972 and the Dari maid to Paul Champagne so he could give his full attention to the Woodshed. I eventually ended up with the Dari maid, so I feel like I'm following Dick around :coolsm:
I knew the Ives,also.

Maybe you'll own the woodshed next, Samiam????!!!!

Yum!
 

:liplick:
Went to RedHill Dairy on Labor Day, my mother-in-law and I had the Lobster Rolls and My hubby and father-in-law had the whole belly clam rolls - can you say YUM?! They were so delicious!
Never thought of ordering food there before until I came across this thread - only went there for ice cream. Gotta love this forum!

French fries...
 

Perhaps the best I've had.

We go to the VK at least once a week, but I had never been to the Dari Barn.
Last week we had guests and took them to Red Hill Dari for lobster rolls which were terrific and the fries were the best I have had. Who knew....apparently lots of people just not me.:laugh:

Went there last week for the first time. I had a fishermans platter and my wife had the lobster roll. Both meals were very good, we'll go back.

I stopped at Red Hill Dari in August for the first time. Had a lobster roll for lunch and it was delicious! The outdoor seating area they have is very nice and CLEAN (which is very important to me....a little OCD).

Overall, I think it's a great little spot to grab a bite to eat in the Center Harbor area.

...a little OCD?? I know better than that!

OK OK....a real lot!! LOL :laugh:

Red Hill closes up too early for the season... :(

When, exactly, do they close?

samiam might need to correct me...
 

...I believe at this point they are open Thursday through Sunday, and they close for good every year after Columbus Day weekend. I'm always sad then:(

Not positive but I believe I've looked for them open during the fair weekend and they were not. I could be wrong, I usually am. :D

if I remember correctly...
 

...my daughter was serving up lobster rolls and ice cream last Columbus Day at the Dari.

We went there by boat this summer and had a great lunch...the annual fried food splurge. Clean, friendly, great food...we'll probably make this one an annual affair. It's also nice to walk around town before lunch.
We had one minor concern...it was a very hot day and we noticed the tarter sauce was sitting outside in a big container. Warm ketchup is no danger but potentially warm milk based foods can be a problem. I imagine they are able to swap out the tarter sauce and keep it cool but we would have been happier had we received a little paper container from the frig. We didn't ask or say anything because we were very satisfied anyway and just went a bit heavier on the ketchup instead. And while I havn't reveiwed all the posts of Red Hill, there seem to have been no problems. We gave them an A. We also shared our food with the sparrows, which is probably not great (teaching birds to beg and its consequences) but sometimes hard to resist. One of the best days of the summer 2009 season.

You have a good eye,Turtle Boy and you're right.Tartar sauce should always be kept cool.We have a special insulated cold pack dispenser for that,with a spare liner so that it can be changed frequently.Probably was being washed when you came by.

We had such a great day at your place...can't wait to come back...see you next year. And sorry about the sparrows...couldn't resist.

Sometimes the little buggers fly right down into the trash cans for a snack........you go to throw something in and they fly out of there and startle you.........we don't care,though.Who doesn't like birds?

My wife and I went today around 3:45 for our first time. We were heading over to check out the steamboats and do a little shooting and decided to give it a try. She had a lobster roll which she thought was very good but not great - said the lobster seemed a bit watery, possibly previously frozen. Absolutely nothing wrong with that if it's done right. As a commercial lobsterman I used to freeze a lot of meat for the winter in brine and after it was served I don't believe anyone could tell the difference. I had a pt of clams and a small onion rings. Clams were some of the best I've had in this area but not equal to Farnums or the Clam Box. Small onion rings were more than the 2 of us could finish and excellent. Fries were as good as any I have ever had anywhere. Certainly cannot complain about the portion size or the very reasonable prices.

We will definitely be back but have to try VK first.

BTW The tartar sauce was outside and I took a small squirt in one of the cups and it was not cold or cool so I passed.

Was that you Seeker?
 

I was there about the same time, had a delicious Lobster Roll for take out with nice lite (not soggy) fries :)

Opening 2010?
 

Samiam, I see that the sign has changed to opening soon- any insider info on the date?

Thanks for asking VB.....looks like this coming weekend...weather permitting. We were hoping to get open earlier, but couldn't spare Mickey from the VK due to losing Zack.....tough shoes to fill but we're getting there.
Starting to get some beautifull small clams out of Canada....yum!

Thanks for the info! See you there soon

Looks like temps near 80 so get ready for great food at the RHD.

It's open, it's open!!!!
 

:D My recuperating-from-knee-surgery teenager and I are wolfing down lobster rolls, onion rings and fries as I type. The little one chowed on a cheeseburger. I don't care how cold it is out there, or the fact that it snowed 10 inches up in Littleton yesterday (of course her surgery was at Littleton Hospital!), summer is here when the Dari is open :liplick:

Great place - have stopped there many-a-time for lunch, or for a quick and "early dinner" on the way home from the weekend. You know that it's good with the VK connection, (best breakfast in New England btw!) and the fish sandwich is one of my fav. items on the menu - plus, you can't beat the price!

Drove by Red Hill Dari tonight and it looked open to me.

We are up for a work weekend and stopped long enough to go to Red Hill for lobster rolls. They were great and still best for the money. Next time will get the clams

Fond memories are made at places like this
 

My sons fondly remember stopping for the biggest ice cream cones in the world! at the Red Hill Dairy when they were in elementary school and their grandfather took them to day camp at The Science Center in Holderness. On the way home he would buy them a large cone just for the joy of watching them eat it all. Grandfather is gone now but the boys, now young men, talk about him each time we pass by or stop at The Red Hill Dairy. Places like this make fond summer memories.

Stopped in a couple of times for lunch this season. So happy it's open again!

Red Hill Dari
 

As my Father's Day treat, my youngest son took me to the Red Hill Dari. He knows I love their delicious whole belly fried clams. We also each had an order of french fries, the best I've ever had.
With the world's best clams and fries, you can't go wrong at the Red Hill Dari.

Stopped by yesterday...wife and I got two kiddie cone soft serve...nice to get a reasonable size cone at a reasonable price. Sometimes at other places you get TOO MUCH ice cream and you feel guilty not finishing it. We're always happy when we go to Red Hill Dairy.

us too!
 

That's where we took my husband for Father's Day, it was gluttonous and fabulous, as always:D

Looking forward to our yearly Red Hill splurge.

My review
 

I went there on 8-11-10 and my only dissapointment is that I had never stopped before after having pased by many times over the years.

Soft Serve: While vacationing in North Conway my wife and I had soft serve at Dairy Queen several times so based on comments here we had to try the soft serve, we each had a "kiddie" size. I had a black and white and the vanilla was rich and the chocolate really tasted like chocolate. My wife had the black raspberry and it was great. Probably the best soft serve we have ever had, really like hard ice cream.

Lobster Roll: I just had to take a picture. (see below)

The fries looked undercooked but they were not. They were crisp and the best I have ever had. The bun was lightly toased, had a thin piece of lettuce to keep the lobster from falling through the bun and stuffed full of chunks of lobster lighly coated with mayonnaise. Perfect! :liplick: The cole slaw was great too! :liplick:

Fried Clams: We stopped again late afternoon and got a "Clam Boat" (smaller version of a Clam Plate) to take back to camp for supper. The clams were also great, tasty and not too much batter, but seemed more like clam strips with no bellies. I did enjoy them. :liplick: Same great fries and slaw and a roll all well packaged "to go".

The only tables are outside but the umbrellas provided ample shade on a sunny day and it was pleasant sitteing there. I also have to compliment the two young ladies at the window, they were smiling, pleasant and not anoyed by stupid questions.

RI Swamp Yankee you have made me hungry:) That's a great picture. I've never been to Red Hill, but I'm going soon.

Thanks RI Swamp Yankee!
 

Thank you very much for providing such a great review RI Swamp Yankee and many more thanks for the picture to go with it!!! A picture is worth a thousand words. ;)

Just like Irish Mist, I've never been to Red Hill Dari, but I'm going soon! That lobster roll and those fries look delectable! :liplick:

Just in case any of you want to try Red Hill Dairy, IT IS PRACTICALLY ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE CENTER HARBOR FORUM FEST SITE THIS WEEKEND!!!!!

coming up next weekend will Red Hill be open . Looking for the first lobster roll of the season

They were open today when I drove through Center Harbor and the sign read "100% Lobster Roll".

that is great

anyone know when they will open this year

Opening.....
 

Mother's Day weekend I hear!

Good Job !
 

Had an hour to spare before we had to pick up our youngest son in Center Harbor from a birthday party last night. Wanted a quick bite to eat and stopped into Red Hill Dairy, my wife and I shared the fisherman's platter. The crew at Red Hill did a great job as we got our food quickly with very little wait as people were coming and going. The food was excellent and cooked just right and the value was even better. Thanks Red Hill for dinner !

Thx siamiam for both red hill and village kitchen

And thank you for supporting us. Your support all summer allows us to stay open year round at the VK and get through the winter with no layoffs.

What are your hours in September Sam . Will you be open during the week or only weekends