Best Of New England 2007

"Eat local" is the rallying cry of dedicated foodies - one The Dunaway takes to heart. This lovely restaurant in Portsmouth's historic Strawbery Banke grows many of its own fruits, vegetables and more than a dozen herbs that grace elegant dishes...

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Lucy took a drive to The Dunaway Restaurant in Portsmouth a couple of Fridays ago and she’s not leaving. It’s not that she’s a particularly loyal guest they can’t get rid of, she’s not a guest at all really, she’s a good example of why you should never name your farm animals lest they become supper (remember that cute chicken in the back yard, “Peepers?” Delicious!) More importantly, Lucy is the embodiment of the wonders and joys of the Farm to Table concept — the pig who became dinner.

Executive Chef Ben Hasty of The Dunaway grew up on a farm and he’s bringing that farm, in the form of pigs and eventually veal, to the tables of The Dunaway. Farm to truck to table. No middleman, except for the butcher in Maine who inspected and certified it USDA.

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The Dunaway Restaurant at Strawbery Banke has appointed Ben Hasty as executive chef.

Owner Jay McSharry describes Hasty, 22, a native of South Berwick, Maine, as an "amazing talent who graduated from the Atlantic Culinary Academy in Dover and then earned the high honor of apprenticing with Thomas Keller at The French Laundry (in Yountville, Calif.)."

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"One of New England's Best New Spots"
Bon Appetit Magazine, November 2006

The Dunaway Restaurant at Strawbery Banke is an incredible cozy, romantic hideaway...

With its own herb garden out back, the kitchen draws on local seafood to creatively delicious effect...The seasonal PERFECT 10 menu is full of creative exciting flavors, local seafood and herbs and veggies from their very own garden.  They're also known for their awesome Artisinal cheese selection..Service excelled... PHAN-TASTIC DINING!

Local Connections
By Alison Arnett

The night was cold, and the sky was a deep midnight blue studded with stars and a sliver of a moon. Snow piled against the fence around a quiet garden in the Strawbery Banke Museum, the indoor/outdoor Colonial museum in Portsmouth, N.H., and a man in period garb led a group of visitors down a candlelit brick path through the charming antique neighborhood. As we stepped into the Dunaway Restaurant, a new place on the grounds of Strawbery Banke, it was necessary for us to pull ourselves out of the rich local history and back into the present.

Please click here to download and read the full review from the December 22, 2005, Boston Globe.

Culinary Cornucopia
October, 2006

For more refined dining, head to Portsmouth, where the Dunaway Restaurant provides a casual but elegant respite after a day of traipsing around. The Dunaway is housed in a softly lighted, rustic Colonial-era buildings and surrounded by gardens.

Elegant Warmth
January 2006

By Rachel Forrest

Simply put, of all of the restaurants Jay McSharry has opened or had a hand in, The Dunaway Restaurant at Strawbery Banke is my favorite. While the décor reflects the understated simplicity found in his other spots (and we all know them - Radici, Little Louie’s, Jumpin’ Jay’s) this new restaurant is elegant in a way the others are not, cozy and warm instead of bright with color or mod with sleek lines, and the cuisine is, as Churchill once said of Russia, a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma - at once complex and layered with undetectable flavor profiles but also wrapped in our familiar New England, more specifically Seacoast, culinary sensibilities.

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TV Diner's "Diner For A Day" 
New England Cable News voted The Dunaway Restaurant a "Thumbs Up - Definitely Worth a Visit".  Check out the segment at www.necn.com. (Scroll down to the "Diner for a Day" section.)

Rising Star Ben Hasty Climbs the Culinary Ladder of Success...
April 2006

By: Rachel Forrest

In the basement prep kitchen of The Dunaway Restaurant in Portsmouth, Ben Hasty, a tall introspective young man in chef’s whites, leans against a gleaming steel countertop while Executive Chef Mary Dumont trims fresh artichokes, placing them in lemon water and Sous Chef Evan Hennessey cleans and prepares long smooth razor clams.

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And more...

"We had great wine, excellent food, and perfect service. I would definitely recommend this place to everyone."
Mark Ruhlman, Author "Soul of a Chef"

"Hot Tables", Hartford Courant, 2007

"I was immediately welcomed by the atmosphere and delicious smells emanating from the kitchen. "
Portsmouth Magazine, June 2006

"Simply put, of all of the restuarants Jay McSharry has opened or had a hand in, The Dunaway Restaurant at Strawbery Banke is my favorite."
The Portsmouth Herald, Jan/2006

"How far is too far for a great meal? Is crossing state lines beyond reason?  Not if your destination is The Dunaway... "     
Boston Magazine, May/2006