Walter’s Basin

What a great view of Squam Lake! The staff couldn’t be more pleasant and gave their recommendations of the best dishes. The meals came out quickly and everything was hot.
The four of us really enjoyed our meals! We enjoyed the steamed shrimp, chicken, steak, salads, warm bread and cocktails.
Beside the wonderful food, you won’t bet a better view.
Great place!

Walter’s fish fry Friday is the BEST around!!! The fish is fresh and you also get a bowl of their delicious clam chowder and fries or you can ask for onion rings (the thick wide type).

Came here a few times during our trip to NH. This place never disappoints. Would highly recommend the teriyaki steak — just perfect! My wife had the blueberry salmon — very unique and tasted great! As always, we’ll definitely be back next time we are in the area.

This review is for the «Bass-​hole» lounge inside of Walter’s Basin. This lounge is a pretty typical casual bar inside of a larger restaurant. It’s located on a lake and has pretty awesome views to look out on during your meal or while sipping on a beer or cocktail. The lounge has a large bar that was filled with young patrons and quite a few tables spread around the bar area. We had a group of five and were seated promptly.
I had a decent margarita that was made with grapefruit juice. It pretty much tasted like tequila and grapefruit juice, but it was refreshing and hit the spot. They also have a draft beer list mixed with macro and craft beers. The menu is pretty large, with lots to choose from ranging from apps, salads, soups, sandwiches and burgers, and larger entrees. My group had just finished a long winter hike, and I was looking for something hot and filling. My eye was caught by the Elk meatloaf, which came with mashed potatoes and a veggie. The menu said that the elk was locally sources in Vermont and I love elk, so I was sold.
Our server was pretty fast and efficient, although not overly friendly. Not rude or unfriendly, just not super chipper. I really enjoyed my meatloaf, which was made with ricotta and a sweet demi-​glaze. It was very tasty and came with delicious, home made, mashed potatoes and mashed butternut squash, which was a treat. I also enjoy a couple local brews. Overall, between the delcious food and drink and the sweeping views, it would be a mistake to pass up a visit to Walter’s Basin and it’s Bass-​hole lounge if you are in this small mountain town in NH.

great spot! great bass hole.

We go here a lot, we love eating at this friendly restaurant. Anytime we have any problems (although not frequent) they correct it fast and nicely. That is a rare quality for a restaurant these days. Very kid friendly also.

Just had dinner in a diamond in the rough kind of restaurant. Walter’s Basin on Rt 3 in Holderness NH overlooking Small Squam Lake. My wife tried the Fried Scallops and was very happy to see a plate full of sea scallops that her words «melted in my mouth» and me being the adventurous one had the 12 oz Sirloin Steak. I say adventuresome as I read recently that beef can kill. Well that may be true but I have to say what a way to go! Ordered medium rare and it was served perfectly in a demitasse that truly added to its already succulent flavor. I highly recommend that if your in the Lakes region you make this one your stops.
In fact go for the view and stay for the food. You won’t regret it.

Walter’s Basin Pub is a great place to enjoy and wonderful sandwich and chips overlooking Squam Lake.

Talked two other couples into joining us on a sunset cruise of the lake and dinner before at Walter’s Basin. This being my first experience, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Imagine my delight when warmly greeted by a delightful, cheerful hostess and escorted to a table reserved for our group of six… almost like they were waiting for us!
Each couple paid $ 100 for a three course dinner and cruise (drinks not included). The evening was the highlight of my summer! The manager visited our table and engaged in delightful conversation (more than the obligatory «is everything ok?»), the wait person kept tabs on our drinks and the food was perfect.
This is a must do again kinda thing!!!

On vacation at Lake Winnipesaukee (Center Harbor) and wanted to try some places away from the lake. Walter’s Basin (about 8 miles from Center Harbor) had good reviews so we gave it a try and were NOT disappointed. It’s a quaint place with an open floor plan and nice views of Squam Lake. The menu had plenty of variety (good for my family of 4 with wide preferences) and the food was generally very good (my vegetables were way overcooked) but everything else was quite good (Haddock, Fish & Chips and Spare Ribs). Our server (Kiki) was excellent and the manager (Greg) was quite pleasant as well.

Another fabulous meal at Walters! Our waitress, Amber, was great and very attentive. I enjoyed the haddock special which was baked, bruschetta style with tomatoes, onions, cheese topping. Bread was very fresh and i also enjoyed the caesar salad with fresh parmesan… yum. Husband had the cacciatore, which had tremendous flavor and was very unique.

Stopped in mid-​March as the lake was thawing and it was quite quiet. Prime table against the windows which was awesome. Very relaxing atmosphere with a lot of tables available. Not sure you would need reservations, maybe for holiday’s or possibly busier summer days.
Good beer and the bar looked nice with a few televisions.
Caesar salad was great as was the fish. Duck thighs? or legs? I believe were a little overcook and burnt. Vegetables seemed like they were frozen, out of a bag not real.
A little pricey, but definitely striving to succeed as an upscale restaurant which is tough in the area.
Would return again in the future.

Stopped in for lunch, late June. No lines, no waiting, lead right to a table. Dining room was empty except the tables along the window wall overlooking the lake.
Waitress came right over and took our drink orders (lemonade and a water) and when they came, placed our order for meal, Chose Lobster Roll and Beet, Pear Salad. In under 5 minutes from placing order, our meals were on the table.
Lobster roll was served with fries. Roll was a hotdog bun (and we don’t recall if it was toasted or not) and lobster salad was primarily whole claw meat with some shreded lobster meat — did not find any knuckles or lobster tail chunks. Lobster salad was lightly dressed with mayo and mixed with pieces of celery. It didn’t have much flavor to it.
The French Fries were warm and crisp on the outside but soft on the inside. Found them to be addictive — couldn’t stop eating them from dining companion’s plate.
I chose the Beet, Pear and Goat Cheese salad and although disappointed in the presentation, satisfied with the meal. I say disappointed in presentation as the beet slices were on one edge of the plate and the pear slices on the opposite side. The plate was piled with mixed greens and chunks of goat cheese and topped with a crushed walnut dusting. I was expecting the beets and pears to be spread across the entire plate and for larger pieces of walnut mixed in.
Total price for the meal was $ 34 — high for the meal we just had.

The kids and I had just had a nice day at the Squam Lake Science Center and a boat ride searching out eagles on Squam Lake. We were super hungry when we got back to the dock and Walter’s Basin was right there!
It was bike week, so the pub side was pretty packed, the hostess ended up seating us in the dining room. The menu was good, had some seafood restaurant basics and some more interesting choices, I ordered the Lobster Salad BLT & avocado club. The prices seemed high, but if the quality is there, I’m willing to pay a bit more. Unfortunately, my sandwich came out with no avocado and the bacon was undercooked at best, I did get one piece that was completely uncooked, at which point I gave up and had to order something else.
I never send food back, but this time I had to. What really saved this experience was our waitress who was absolutely awesome and the owner and/​or manager was very concerned and made everything right, which is why I’m giving them 4 stars.
I will go back for another try, but we’ll try the pub side next time, see if it’s a little cheaper!

We went for lunch and had soup and buffalo burgers. The view was great, the service was decent, but the food was just OK.

Food was fantastic. The only thing that was better was the lake views all the way around. Great place. Would definitely go back. Service was very good also.

Last summer (2012) we had a few bad meals there and had chosen not to return. I was sad about that as the view is wonderful and it’s close to our place on a neighboring lake. We decided we would try again after not being there all summer. I do want to say that it was like eating at a different place. We enjoyed our meals and the server was good and everything was exactly as we wanted it.
I’m glad we gave them another chance. I would recommend it again and we hope to be back again before we close up our place for the season.

We stopped in here for a brew after playing at the science center. It had beautiful views of the lake. The service was friendly and they had nice selection of drafts. We played pool for a bit.
Food looked good from what I could see at some of the tables, but we didn’t try anything. Good place to chill out for a bit.

Unless you’re pawing salmon with local Kodiaks, there isn’t much to do in Holderness mid-​winter.
Kara G and I MacGyvered a Pringles antennae to catch a smidge of a cell signal, and found what promised to be the townie spot for drankin: Basshole Pub.
See, it looks like Asshole. But it’s got a B in front of it. And it’s on a lake, where fish live. And a bass is a fish. Get it? GET IT?
Expecting what could easily have been a rundown House o’ Stares, we found parking roadside and walked in to… the lobby of a Comfort Inn? Neg, Ghost Rider. ‘Twas a hotelish dining room, closed for the night but still spitting sounds of raucous revelry and televised sports. We followed the cacophony, only to discover…
An equally unadorned bar! Packed to the gills (BASSHOLE!) with Holdernessians drinking and talking and NFLing. Eh, whatever; let’s grab one.
Our server Dustin was quick as lightning, taking our order within moments of glutes hitting cushion. Bar food menu still in effect, we ordered the KG Special (just fries, a big ol’ plate of fries) and a couple cocktails. Maybe three minutes passed, and we found ourselves face-​deep in a massive pile of double-​fried potatoes, heavy pours and at-​home comfort.
Another round, a Broncos loss (yes, it was THAT Pats game) and we asked for our bill. Two vodkas, two Jacks and a bucket of hot, crispy fries: $ 25.00.
o_​O
And that’s when I fell in love: hook, line and sinker. Get the net.

We went for a hike up West Rattlesnake and enjoyed the beautiful view of Squam Lake from up there. After we got back to the car, I had our car’s navigation system tell us where were the closest places to eat, and Walter’s Basin was right near the top of the list. I seemed to recall someone told me it was good, so we decided to give it a try.
We had an AWESOME lunch here. Very nice atmosphere in a clean restaurant with a nice view of the lake. It was moderately busy for a Friday around 1 p.m., but there was no wait for a table with a great view of the lake and the service was prompt and professional.
They have a single page kids menu with a fish to color on the back, and they provide crayons for the kids to color. My boys each had a cheeseburger off the kids menu, and they were huge. I tried a bite and they were delicious. The french fries were awesome, too.
I was really tempted to try one of their lobster creations, but at $ 12 for lobster bisque, or $ 19 for a lobster roll or a lobster salad BLT, I opted for the less expensive fish tacos. Now, if you’re from southern California or Mexico, don’t get all excited or expect Baja fish tacos — they’re not. But still, they were quite tasty.
There’s a really nice map of Squam Lake painted like a mural across the wall of the men’s restroom, too.
I’m very glad we stopped here for lunch. Top notch food and service in a nice lakeside atmosphere.