I just got back from Bangor and heard the news. Thought I would throw in my Condolences...Thinking of the 40 employees at this time of year as well. Gonna be tough. :(

The Woodshed
 

I was saddened with the news of the loss of the Woodshed. I always loved bringing friends and family there to show them that yes a restaurant nestled in the woods can be a successful place. I always chuckled at the thought of reviewing the business plan of the original owners as they presented it to the bank for a loan. I LOVED the décor. The character that this building had was irreplaceable! The food was not always perfect but the character made up for the problems with change of ownership etc over the years. The Woodshed is not re-buildable. Yes you can move the sign or build another restaurant and put the name Woodshed on it but it will never be the Woodshed we all know. Therefore like many other things in life those who got do visit her will always remember her and the joys we had there. Thanks for the memories!!

PS I've always loved the old farms converted into restaurants as they have wonderful character so we still have the Corner House Inn, Mames, The Common Man in Ashland, The Italian Farm House and I'm sure others can chime in with other local "Woodshed" type places. Growing up in Massachusetts I have always LOVED the Wayside Inn located in Sudbury Massachusetts. The Wayside Inn and the Woodshed always were my 2 favorite place to visit. So long old friend! Let's Skip and Go Naked!

The partners that own the Woodshed are not the same partners that own Magic Foods. Although there is an owner in common, the two businesses are held by different groups. Therefore, moving the site of the Woodshed to the current NE location would be ... complicated. I'm hoping that they decide to do something wonderful (although it will be different) at the current Woodshed location. I love the drive in, off 25, and I think the spot is part of the charm. Time will tell!

The Wayside Inn burned in 1955 and was beautifully rebuilt to its original charm. It can be done.

Anything can be done, it just takes money...

The whole environment of the lake, and competition for business, is much different today than it was then.

Correct Money is all it takes.

Rebuilding the WoodShed however may be hard. As anything new will have to conform to new building requirements. Which may pose problems. While a new building can be constructed, weather it will have the same feel as the original WoodShed is another story all together.

That building and they way it all came together, was some of the Charm of the wood Shed.

Some "If's" ...
 

If they decide to build again, and if they decide to build a barn-like structure to mimic the "old Woodshed", and if they work with the town and state to get all the approvals, and of course if they have the money to do all this, and if they do all of this, there will be many who will say that it is not the same as the "old Woodshed".

Don't expect a "new Woodshed" be the same as the "old Woodshed", cuz it just ain't gonna happen.

However, if they rebuilt with a semblance of the charm and ambiance that was the Woodshed, and couple that with great food and service, then we will be able to say "the Woodshed is back".

And if there are those who have old pictures of the Woodshed, or pictures of those who were adorned on the walls, that would go a long way to a recreation of the Woodshed.

Sorry to those who have lost their jobs, to all who have great memories there, and to the owners who lost their business. Whatever happens, it will end up being the best for all concened.

the loss is not replaceable
 

What a building it was . It was loaded with charm that came from being an original barn structure that cant be duplicated.
To rebuild requires the building be brought up to current code , that's all the ADA act issues and general construction codes . That can't and should not be waved. And with those codes comes a loss of the original ambiance.
The other serious issue is the current owners picked this up at a foreclosure auction for a price that seemed to be well below market price. That's also what helped make it work financially. Rebuilding will be at full replacement costs that will make margins tight . I would call it a game on this one and move on to the next deal .

While agree with your comments about the originality of the building not being replaceable. I disagree with the idea that rebuilding is financially out of the question. While you are correct that rebuilding will be expensive and at full cost, that is what insurance is for. As a business I would hope they would have been insured fully in case of fire, which means rebuilding will not be as costly as one might think, for the restaurants owners.

I am just glad that the fire happened when it did, and all that was lost was a building.

BB, I think you will be proven right on this one. I think the price was just north of 500K (519 IIRC). It is too bad because we went there weekly or so and it was good and so convenient.

Personally, I would not care if they threw up a Morton building and served good food, good wine and have good wine glasses!

Unfortunately, Vita I agree. I will also be surprised if BB is proven wrong.

I remember when Mike Love's restaurant also burned down in Moultonborough. After a while he opened a new rest in Wolfeboro but eventually changed concepts and opened Lemon Grass. I also think it will be tough to open again on same site and assume the same result. It was also my favorite in lakes region and with Wayside Inn my two favorite period restaurants

I worked at the Wayside for almost 15 years. I did almost every job there. Even milled corn and wheat at the Grist Mill and did over 750 Weddings at the Martha Mary Chapel as Sexton there back in the 80's. When you see pictures of the Grist Mill and the Split rail fence....I split all the trees and built that fence. Ah the secrets I could tell of that place.....:D
As mentioned it did indeed burn. A few times and always rebuilt. Henry Ford even had a special pond built after the last fire to hold water in case it ever burned again. It had a beautiful dam. Alas it was built over an aquifer and never was able to hold water. In the building across the street Henry Ford had bought and stored it's own fire truck....just in case.
Reminds me...did the Wood shed even have sprinklers?

No sprinkler system, and no fire detectors that I ever saw in any of the eating areas. Very surprising.....

I can tell you I was shocked to recently see the absence of sprinklers in another popular restaurant in our area, absolutely floored by the lay out.

Their kitchen would have been required to have an ansul (chemical) system, at least in the area around their hoods (law in NH) and I can't imagine any insurer would have covered them without wired-in smoke/CO2 detectors...but they may not have had a sprinkler system. It looks to my novice eye, from the photos of the fire, that the most intensity was centered around the location of the fireplace in the dining room. Since they were open only hours before the fire broke out, it was likely that they had a fire in that fireplace... I guess time will tell what the inspection brings. Hopefully they had enough detection installed to meet their policy requirements...and thank God no one was there!

With all of the history that was destroyed, the owners aren’t sure if they’re going to rebuild.

“I think it's one of these places that unfortunately, how do you rebuild and how do you ever try to bring something like this back. I think there are just too many irreplaceable memories,” co-owner Scott Ouellette said.

The above quote is from co-owner Scott Ouellette. Obviously, it is early on in the process and he was still stunned when he made the comment but it does allow a glimpse into his mind concerning the possibility of a rebuild. It will be a big task if undertaken.

Without a major renovation in the last 30 years or so it is unlikely that sprinklers/fire alarm/detection would have been required by code, insurance requirements might be different, (except for the kitchen hood which would be required and I have to assume was there in functioning order).

Would anyone happen to have any good pictures of the woodshed before the fire? I've seen the some online but I was hoping for some better ones.

I did a search on the photo gallery and was surprised to find absolutely no pics of the Woodshed!...however, you can find a few HERE and HERE

https://scontent-a-iad.xx.fbcdn.net/...04220679_n.jpg

Thanks Mcdude. I saw those but if I enlarge it, it gets fuzzy:(

Any word yet on the cause of the fire?

Guess my reservations for New Years Eve at my favorite restaurant, at my favorite table, won't be honored , so sad, better start looking for another prime rib dinner ! Only been going there for at least 20 years.....

You think it was drafty before !!!

This is horrible.

I do know of a precedent for an old, charming and unique place burning to the ground and then being rebuilt with same charm and feel. Actually, two. The Margarita's in Mansfield, CT was completely destroyed in 2000 and rebuilt using harvested old barn timber. I never went there before the fire but it's a lovely place to eat.

The Common Man in Lincoln also burned down, and was rebuilt, including reproducing the famous fireplace.

There is a theme here that these barns are a hazard.

But hopefully, all hope is not lost.

I think they build the new place in Lincoln around the fireplace. It was the only thing left standing.

<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--> You're absolutely right…we were having lunch at the Common Man in Ashland on Saturday the manager came by to see how we were doing we got talking about the Woodshed she told us about the fire in Lincoln she was the manager at the time and said that the fireplace was the only thing they saved.
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Maybe the Common Man will open a restaurant there if the Woodshed can't/won't reopen? I know it wouldn't be the same but it would be better than nothing.

Does anyone know if a cause of the fire has been determined?

There was an article in the Union Leader yesterday stating that they are still investigating.
http://www.unionleader.com/article/2...219260/-1/news

Woodshed Gift Certificates
 

Has there been any information on how they intend to deal with gift certificates to the Woodshed? There is no information on their website & I cannot find a working telephone number. Thanks.

Oh no! That happened to us a long time ago. We had a gift certificate to that place near Irwin's on Union Ave and didn't use it before it burned. 50$ was quite a bit way back when to lose.

would assume Scott would honor at his other restaurants but should be answered

try their email...
 

Taken from their website.

info@thewoodshednh.com<info@thewoodshednh.com>

You could also try to contact Scott Oullette through his company Magic Food...

http://magicfoodsrestaurantgroup.com/contact-us/

good luck.

They probably won't pay the gift certificates until they settle their insurance claim. Just a guess on my part but it seems logical that their cash flow won't support paying gift certificates at this point.

pictures of the Woodshed
 

I took these pictures the night of January 22, 2011. I actually sent them, by email, to the Woodshed email address and suggested they could use them if they wished.

Two years later, we went there and, lo and behold, one of the pictures was ON THE MENU COVER, with an attribution to a fictitious watercolorist.

Oh well, no free drink for me . . . . .

Has anyone heard of a cause yet ?

Nothing that I've heard. I'm sure they are trying to rule out arson especially given that the ownership of the business recently changed (it is like when a woman is murdered the first person police must rule out is the husband. Standard operating procedure). Hopefully, they find the cause soon so someone can take a run a rebuilding the restaurant.

I have heard that the fire burned so hot, that they likely will never know the cause.

Regardless, I am not holding out much hope for a rebuild of this icon:(

Sal, Fantastic images!!!

I remember Mike Love's restaurant in Moultonboro. It was the Sweetwater Inn.
I proposed to my wife there in 1989. My in laws lived in Center Harbor and my mother in law and brother in law both worked at the Sweetwater during the time I proposed. It was a great place with great food and a great atmosphere.
Too bad it had the same fate as the Woodshed.

Where exactly was the Sweetwater Inn?