Campo Enoteca

CITY GUIDES | NEW ENGLAND

Manchester’s Best Restaurants: Where to Eat in New Hampshire’s Biggest City

By Eric Barton | Dec. 30, 2025

AUTHOR BIO: Eric Barton is editor of The Adventurist and a freelance journalist who has reviewed restaurants for more than two decades. Email him here.

Growing up in New Hampshire, everybody knows the local sport is ranking towns the way people rank colleges, with a lot of confidence and not much evidence.

I grew up in Nashua, so Manchester was always framed as the “big city,” which mostly meant it had more people, a bigger downtown, and the Palace Theatre. These days, the food scene has also matured into something genuinely impressive. In Manchester these days it’s possible to do lunch downtown and a serious date night without settling.

If you’re looking for the best restaurants in Manchester, New Hampshire, here is the list I keep in my back pocket for friends, relatives, and anyone who texts “where should we eat in Manchester, NH” and expects an answer before the parking meter expires.

Alas de Frida

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While sister restaurant El Rincon delves into classic Mexican dishes, Alas de Frida blends traditional flavors into fusions like noodles with birria-style beef and the Gringo Tacos in a hard or soft shell. The Frida Kahlo theme both gives the place a cool vibe and serves as a nice background for your next margarita selfie.

Best for: Margarita-and-mole nights with a crowd

Cafe at Bravo

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Across from the Palace Theatre, Cafe at Bravo is the rare downtown sandwich shop that acts like a kitchen, not a counter. The menu is built around slow-cooked meats and real assembly-line discipline. Start with The Brisket Bomber (18-hour brisket, beef gravy, Swiss, coleslaw) or lean into the Curtain Call (prime rib, caramelized onions, Swiss, arugula, horseradish sauce), then come back for the Classic Reuben . The kids section includes a grilled cheese, a fluffernutter, and Gifford’s ice cream.

Best for: A sandwich with well-sourced ingredients

Campo Enoteca

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Downtown’s Campo Enoteca proves that Italian doesn’t need to mean chicken parm and red sauce. Here, it’s house-made bucatini and guanciale; beef osso bucco sourced from Little Brook Farm that's braised overnight; and and a pistachio basil pesto with tagliatelle and locally sourced cream. The wine list is all Italian, and the staff knows it inside and out—ask for a pairing, and you’ll feel like you’re at a trattoria in Rome.

Best for: Date-night pasta and a second glass you did not plan on

Cotton Restaurant

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Cotton is a go-to Manchester dinner, because Jeffrey Paige runs the room like someone who cares about the details. Order the retro meatloaf made with Robie Farm beef and pork, covered in a port-wine demi-glace with local mushrooms. Or go straight at the bistro steak and pick a sauce like horseradish crème or bacon bleu cheese butter. Peaches Paige has made the bar part of the point, and the cocktails land with enough confidence to justify lingering.

Best for: A celebratory dinner that still feels like Manchester

The Crown Tavern

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This Hanover Street mainstay is where to go for comfort food that’s never boring. Crown Tavern’s wood-fired pizzas are consistently great, but it’s the overpacked lobster roll that’s my favorite: exactly what you want on a (admittedly rare) warm New Hampshire night.

Best for: Burgers, drafts, and hanging at the bar

Diz’s Café

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Comfort food is on special always at Diz's, which serves lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday. There's a full breakfast on the weekends—think waffles with New Hampshire maple syrup pooling in the crannies and pancakes dotted with blueberries.

Best for: Comfort food dinners and weekend breakfasts

Firefly American Bistro & Bar

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Firefly has been around for years, but it’s still one of the best for casual fine dining. The maple-glazed salmon is a crowd favorite, and their patio seating is perfect for summer evenings when you want to pretend New Hampshire winters don’t exist.

Best for: An easy dinner when everyone wants something different

The Foundry

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Set in the old mill buildings on the Merrimack River, The Foundry has the kind of rustic-chic vibe that says, “Yes, we’re here to eat well, but let’s look good doing it.” Their seasonal menu always has something worth noting—try the duck breast if it’s on offer—and the craft cocktail list is no slouch either.

Best for: New American comfort food in a room that buzzes

Hooked Seafood

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Seafood in a landlocked city can be dicey, but Hooked nails it. Fried clams served back in their shell with tartar and lemon are the fancified version of the ones you ate back in the day on Hampton Beach.

Best for: Lobster rolls and fried seafood done right

Restoration Café

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Steps from Bronstein Park, Restoration Café is the kind of place where you go in for a fresh-pressed juice and end up with a BLT. The avocado toast with marinated tomatoes and everything bagel seasoning is reason alone to go. Add in the bright, cozy vibe, and you have an ideal spot to spend the better part of a morning.

Best for: Coffee, pastries, and a laptop hour that becomes two

El Rincón Zacatecano Taquería Manchester

El Rincon Zacatecano Taqueria

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For authentic Mexican, El Rincon Zacatecano is where it’s at. The street-style tacos and enchiladas bathed in a tangy salsa verde are reason enough to come, but it’s the margaritas served in spicy-rimmed glass goblets that’ll keep you here long after happy hour.

Best for: No-nonsense tacos and weekend menudo

Stash Box

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On Elm Street, Stash Box serves up comfort food in a chic space. The steak tartare looks big-city fancy with its egg yolk and toast points, and the seafood chowder pictured here benefits from a long-simmered stock and large chunks of scallops and fresh catch.

Best for: Comfort food in the center of it all

Thai Food Connection

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A hole-in-the-wall spot on Elm Street, Thai Food Connection is where you’ll find the best green curry in town. It’s spicy, creamy, and loaded with fresh veggies—exactly what you want on a weeknight when cooking feels impossible.

Best for: Reliable pad thai and curries

Zizza Authentic Pizzeria

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Zizza Authentic Pizzeria was a Milford favorite for years before it brought the same playbook to Manchester with a second location that held its grand opening in September. The menu sticks to the hits that built the reputation, from a proper margherita to the extra-cheese, extra-pepperoni Zizzaroni, plus weirder-in-a-good-way pies like prosciutto fig and rosemary and fried eggplant with ricotta, parmesan, and basil. Beyond pizza, there’s a short list of “ZZandwiches,” and there’s also gluten-free crust on the personal and medium sizes.

Best for: Milford’s favorite slice, now in Manchester