Support Local: Get a Taste of the Lakes Region This Winter

Learn more about how New Hampshire’s Main Street businesses are caring for their customers in our “Support Local: Go the Extra Mile” series, which includes regular e-newsletter articles as well as regional videos. Sponsored by the New Hampshire Division of Travel and Tourism.

When it comes to escaping the stress of daily life, few things can compare with gazing out across a pristine expanse of water — something New Hampshire’s Lakes Region is blessed with in abundance. Located in the central part of the state and anchored by the classic lake towns of Laconia, Meredith, and Wolfeboro, the region boasts more than 270 bodies of water, including Winnipesaukee, New Hampshire’s largest lake. This is a landscape that promises rejuvenation, or at the very least a respite. And in winter, when the lakes and ponds glitter with snow and ice, there may be no better place to soak it all in than at one of the Lakes Region’s cozy local restaurants.

Established in 1996, Walter’s Basin in Holderness is the only full-service year-round restaurant on Squam Lake, made famous by the 1981 movie On Golden Pond. For nearly two decades, under the ownership of Gary Chaffee, Walter’s Basin has been a steady presence in the community. And that reliability held true even when New Hampshire restaurants were forced to close to in-house dining last March.

“We were under the impression that it was only going to last a few weeks, so we didn’t want to disrupt any of our employees’ paychecks or the community’s access to Walter’s,” says Chaffee. “So we stayed open for takeout the whole time. We actually never closed one day through the entire [shutdown].

“It seemed a little scary there, when the grocery store shelves were empty, so that ended up being a pretty big driving factor for me, personally,” he continues. “If people can’t buy meat and chicken and produce at the grocery store, at least they can still order off of our menu.”

He saw other local restaurants trying different approaches to keeping their business going, from offering large, family-style meals to buying meat and other food items in bulk to resell to customers. And while Chaffee found those logistics a bit too daunting to attempt at Walter’s, he credits his fellow restaurateurs’ creativity: “That was a really good idea, and it really helped them.”

Chaffee focused on continuity. While keeping the restaurant open seven days a week, he and his team were “pumping social media as much as we could to remind people that we were open for takeout, and the specials we were doing to promote.”

To help let the public know Walter’s was still open, the town of Holderness allowed Chaffee to install larger-than-normal signs, which were provided by partners such as Coca-Cola and beer companies. Meanwhile, food suppliers like US Foods and Sysco offered resources and information about operating a restaurant in the Covid era.

“Learning everything in the beginning, and understanding the regulations and actually processing them — it was a little hard to wrap your head around,” Chaffee says. “We just erred on the side of caution.”

When it reopened in early May, Walter’s got off to a strong start with outdoor dining. “It was a huge hit,” says Chaffee. “Right from day one, the community supported us and came out.”

Inside, the staff also rearranged the restaurant and bar to ensure six feet of distancing and reducing seating capacity from 189 to less than 90. They also implemented numerous safety measures, including touch-free payment, single-use paper menus, hand sanitizers, HEPA air purifiers, Covid-specific cleaning products, and mask requirements.

“We ordered thousands of disposable masks for our guests,” Chaffee says. “We figured that would soften the blow for them. And we told them, ‘We just need you to wear the mask while you’re on the way to the table, when you’re exiting the table, and when you’re using the restroom.’ That’s not too much to ask.

“It comes down to the obligation to the staff and the community, to keep everybody as safe as possible,” he says.

Aside from offering a dining experience that is both safe and enjoyable for customers, another thing that has helped Walter’s Basin stay afloat is simply the loyalty of its clientele. For instance, when it offered gift certificates at a 10 percent discount, the response was huge. “People were calling from as far away as Maryland,” Chaffee says. “We have a lot of lake houses, where people come up for a few weeks in the summer. They hold Walter’s close to their heart, and they wanted to make sure they were supporting us the best they could.”

Thinking of checking out the dining scene in the Lakes Region? Here is a sampling of locally owned businesses that are open and ready to take your order! Find more options at visitnh.gov/things-to-do/food-drink/restaurants.

Canoe, Center Harbor

Nolan’s Brick Oven Bistro, Wolfeboro

Laconia Local Eatery, Laconia

Lyons Den Restaurant & Tavern, Gilford

El Jimador Mexican Restaurant, Belmont