Kettlehead Tavern

[grantdylan]

Originally Posted by MeredithMan

I read the article in the Sun last week that they were opening and it mentioned that it was going to be more than just your typical brewery. The article said that they have a full liquor license, so not just craft beer, and that they will have a legit chef and serve real food, not just bar food. Based on that--and the fact that we used to go to Mame's a lot back in the day and were intrigued how the building now looks--we decided to hit it for a light lunch today.

The food menu is pretty limited at the moment. The server said that they are doing that on purpose to allow the kitchen staff to slowly come up to speed. My wife and I decided to share Hog Wings and a fried grilled cheese. We asked the server how many wings were in the order and she said "4...but they are pretty big". When the wings arrived, it was obvious they were not wings; they were short, wide pork ribs. She never told us they were not chicken and there is no mention of them not being chicken on the menu. We got the sweet Thai chili dipping sauce for them, (thinking it was chicken), but that definitely did not go with pork ribs.

The Fried Grilled Cheese was thick bread with panko bread crumbs and mozzarella cheese.

Neither of us are day drinkers, so we didn't try any of the craft beers...went with craft diet cokes. also they have Windows and doors installation in San Francisco consolewindows.com

The food was fair....would not order either of those again. We both said we'd be willing to try it again in a couple months after the menu expands and the kinks get worked out.

Really cool

[Shreddy]

I'm never one to wish ill will on a local business, let alone a restaurant in our area but I'd suggest heading to the New Hampshire Eats page on Facebook to see what's transpiring with the Za Dude Pizza company.

I've never had them before, but Za Dude seems to be very small company with an owner that devotes a lot to his craft. He was brought in for a partnership with Kettlehead locations and he worked endlessly to get their pizza operation up and running. KH has now allegedly abruptly ended the partnership with Za Dude with minimal explanation as of a week ago or so. As of today, it appears KH has now taken Za Dude's menu and changed some names in a relatively shady move. It's very hard to respect local businesses that blatantly steal a business model. Here, they not only stole the model but abused the training.

Many aspects can be shielded in the confines of a legal agreement, but at the end of the day, being good people will always prevail. If nothing less, it's interesting to see the details unfold on the New Hampshire Eats forum and wish Za Dude nothing but the best.

[thinkxingu]

Originally Posted by Shreddy

I'm never one to wish ill will on a local business, let alone a restaurant in our area but I'd suggest heading to the New Hampshire Eats page on Facebook to see what's transpiring with the Za Dude Pizza company.

I've never had them before, but Za Dude seems to be very small company with an owner that devotes a lot to his craft. He was brought in for a partnership with Kettlehead locations and he worked endlessly to get their pizza operation up and running. KH has now allegedly abruptly ended the partnership with Za Dude with minimal explanation as of a week ago or so. As of today, it appears KH has now taken Za Dude's menu and changed some names in a relatively shady move. It's very hard to respect local businesses that blatantly steal a business model. Here, they not only stole the model but abused the training.

Many aspects can be shielded in the confines of a legal agreement, but at the end of the day, being good people will always prevail. If nothing less, it's interesting to see the details unfold on the New Hampshire Eats forum and wish Za Dude nothing but the best.

Was just reading about this on the Facebook page you mention and the individual restaurant pages. Pretty crazy stuff, though I've never been into KH as the menu always looked awful.

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[TomC]

My wife and I went there this past weekend. If what we experienced is typical, they won't be around long. The place was essentially deserted at dinnertime on a Saturday night. Only one patron at the bar. The beer was good and the server was attentive (hard not to be with virtually no one else there). The food did not attain even mediocre status. The sandwiches were uninspired, but what really got me was the soggy fries. They had the consistency of thick noodles... I have never seen such poorly prepared french fries in my life. Not like the kitchen had much else to do either. Anyway - the Kettlehead Tavern is off the list. Curiously, while walking back to the car, we noticed that the Breeze seemed to be doing a brisk business, so we will try that next time.

[Biggd]

Originally Posted by TomC

My wife and I went there this past weekend. If what we experienced is typical, they won't be around long. The place was essentially deserted at dinnertime on a Saturday night. Only one patron at the bar. The beer was good and the server was attentive (hard not to be with virtually no one else there). The food did not attain even mediocre status. The sandwiches were uninspired, but what really got me was the soggy fries. They had the consistency of thick noodles... I have never seen such poorly prepared french fries in my life. Not like the kitchen had much else to do either. Anyway - the Kettlehead Tavern is off the list. Curiously, while walking back to the car, we noticed that the Breeze seemed to be doing a brisk business, so we will try that next time.

I guess they do a great in Tilton, but they better change things up in Meredith or they won't last long.
I went when they first opened, their beer was great, but their food was terrible, guess that hasn't changed.

[chachee52]

It's kind of interesting that people are saying how bad it is. I have been to the Tilton one once. I can't drink beer so it's all about the food for me, and it wasn't bad if I can remember. They opened a few up, Meredith and Nashua that I know of. So they must be doing something right somewhere? Or is the chef in Meredith that bad?
I'm still waiting for a Distillery to open a pub up.

[TomC]

A long ride from Gilford, but the next town over for me... this distillery is worth a visit. In the summer they sell boxed lunches that you can grab and go sit by the river... https://tamworthdistilling.com/

[chachee52]

Originally Posted by TomC

A long ride from Gilford, but the next town over for me... this distillery is worth a visit. In the summer they sell boxed lunches that you can grab and go sit by the river... https://tamworthdistilling.com/

Have a few whiskey's from them, and my wife likes their Gin. Go there at least 2 times a year to stock up. I agree, well worth it and sit by the river and have a drink.

[BillTex]

Originally Posted by TomC

A long ride from Gilford, but the next town over for me... this distillery is worth a visit. In the summer they sell boxed lunches that you can grab and go sit by the river... https://tamworthdistilling.com/

Had negative experience there. Snooty/unwelcoming. We did purchase a bottle because they are local-pricey!
Won’t return.
We do like cathedral ledge products!

[MeredithMan]

Originally Posted by TomC

Curiously, while walking back to the car, we noticed that the Breeze seemed to be doing a brisk business, so we will try that next time.

Not to hijack this into a Breeze thread, but we are big fans of Breeze Meredith. Have been there 5 or 6 times since it opened, and it has been great each time. Had lunch there on a Saturday a couple weeks ago. We split a bowl of clam chowder and a flatbread that was the special. Flatbread was chicken, spinach, red onion, buffalo mozzarella, and a balsamic drizzle, (I think there was also a bit of artichoke in there too, if I remember correctly). It was delish!