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Measurement Summit Preview

The Best Things To Do
In Portsmouth
(When You're Not at the
Measurement Summit)

(revised for 2008)

by Bill Paarlberg (with a tip of the fedora to assistant nightlife editors Jeremy Willis and Katie Delahaye Paine)

The Measurement Summit is jammed with interesting events and networking opportunities. But just outside the hotel doors lies beautiful downtown Portsmouth. It's got all the food, drink, history, art, architecture and cheesy t-shirts you'd expect from a grubby seaport city repurposed as Ye Olde Tourist Haven.

Unless noted, everything listed here is within stumbling distance of the Sheraton, will accommodate a small crowd of 6 or 8, and welcomes your casual attire.

So give yourself and your nametag a break. Walk out the door and see the sights:

Sit and Watch People: Plenty of benches and cafes around Market Square. Just walk two blocks into town on Market Street 'till you get to the big church. The steeple was just restored last year.

Drink Beer: Hoist a pint of local brew at The Brewery on Market Street. Best pub ambiance and darts are at local favorite The Press Room on Daniel Street.

Drink Martinis: Hippest small local bar is The Red Door. No sign outside, just a red door. On State Street down toward the bridge next to Dos Amigos Burritos. If there are more than four of you it will be a bit crowded.

Drink Wine: Both The Oar House and The Dolphin Striker on Ceres Street have good wine lists, cozy piano bars and are close to the Sheraton. Small tables, candlelight. If there are more than four of you, well, you don't want to sit at a small table with candlelight anyway.

Eat Food (inexpensive): Dos Amigos on State Street. Great fish tacos. If you'd rather Italian, Rosa's is across the street. Note the art on the walls by famed local illustrator yours truly. Somewhat more expensive, but still moderately priced and just a block straight east of the Sheraton, is the Blue Mermaid. Recommended by Katie Paine.

Eat Food (very inexpensive): Gilley's Lunch Cart on Fleet Street, open always. Listed in Guinness Book of World Records. If there are more than four of you, you might not even fit in there.

Eat Food (bizarrest decor): The Friendly Toast is a block and a half up Congress from the Square. Inexpensive food and priceless yardsale kitsch.

Eat Food (large groups): The Brewery on Market Street and Portsmouth Flatbread (organic pizza) or The Friendly Toast on Congress can easily accommodate groups of a dozen or more and are reasonably priced.

Eat Dinner, Under $100 for Two: The Green Monkey on Pleasant Street is a block and a half from Market Square (there are plenty of other very good restaurants in town, too). Reservations suggested, and it can be a bit of a scene, so best not to dress like a research geek.

Eat and Drink on the Water Overlooking the Tugboats: The Ferry Landing on Ceres Street. The original, with some of the original local characters usually at the bar, too.

Eat Lobster at a Working Lobster Pier: Chauncey Creek Lobster Pound on Chauncey Creek Road in Kittery Point, ME is about 7 miles up Rt. 103 along the coast through Kittery. A beautiful drive, great food. Bring your own alcohol. Kind of crowded since written up in Travel & Leisure, damn it.

Hear Local Live Music (Irish): Irish pick-up band and sing along at The Press Room, Daniel Street on Friday early evening.

Hear Rowdier Local Live Music: Upstairs at the Press Room on Daniel Street, the Muddy River on Congress Street (also good barbeque there), and the Coat of Arms Pub on Fleet Street.

Shop Discount: The Kittery Outlet Malls are four miles up Rt. 1 in Kittery. Recommended by Lori Grunig.

Buy the Best Local Souvenir: Portsmouth, a book of photos and commentary by Nancy Grace Horton and Laura Pope. At RiverRun bookstore in the Square next to the church. It's a local bestseller and the photographer is my significant other. Yes, I can get it signed for you.

Shop for Wine: Ceres Wine Merchants, on Ceres Street between the Sheraton and the tugboats. Loquacious and knowledgeable proprietor; chat for a minute or two and you might be offered free samples.

Shop for Quirky Local Products: The Odd Showroom on Market Street and Lucky Seven on Sheafe Street just off Penhallow. Handmade and arty, no t-shirts or souvenir crap.

Take the Most Beautiful Half Hour Drive: It's an eight-mile loop down river to Newcastle (where history buffs can visit Fort Constitution) past the restored grand hotel Wentworth-by-the-Sea (where massage buffs can get a massage, recommended by Katie Paine) and back through Rye. Stop at local fav The Ice House for ice cream.

See-The-Sights-in-Under-an-Hour Walking Tour: (This little jaunt includes most of the local scenic high points, plus it will take you past many of the eating and drinking establishments listed above.)

• From the northeast corner of the Sheraton (by the salt piles), head kitty-corner across Market Street to the waterfront alley called Ceres Street, and proceed east up Ceres past many trendy shops and the iconic Portsmouth tugboats.
• At Bow Street, turn left and walk up the hill, keep left where the road forks, past St. John's Church, past the theater and then down to the Memorial Bridge.
• Turn left and walk out into the middle of the Piscataqua River on Memorial Bridge.
• Enjoy the view, turn around and come back until just barely off the bridge. Take the little sidewalk stairs to the left (east) and cross the street into Prescott Park. Walk along the river past the stage to the flower gardens and see if there are any blooms left.
• Turn right, away from the river and walk through the gardens to the big flag pole one block inland on Marcy Street. Turn right and walk back to downtown, passing the edge of Strawbery Banke historic area.
• When you reach State Street back at the bridge, turn left, west (away from the bridge), and proceed two blocks up State past galleries and shops to Pleasant.
• Turn right there and in a block you will be in Market Square. Hang out for a while.
• To return to the Sheraton, proceed north out of the Square on Market Street, passing yet more trendy shops.

Find Out What Else Is Going On: Pick up a copy of the free local weekly The Wire.

Bill Paarlberg, a Seacoast New Hampshire native, was once a Portsmouth magazine publisher and bon vivant. Now he writes about public relations and illustrates architecture. He did the drawings on this page. www.paarlberg.com

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