51 Mill Street Closed from 8/11-8/17

[secondcurve]

Originally Posted by mcdude

hmmm.....interesting.....we tried to go there for lunch on the Sunday of Columbus Day week-end and the place was shut up tight. Too bad really. One of my favorite places.

Not to worry. It is a nice building with a good location. Probably by next summer someone new will own the building and be running the restaurant. That is the history of this place. Do you remember the Back Bay Boathouse? That was the name of the restaurant in that location up until 1994.

[jeffk]

Originally Posted by secondcurve

Not to worry. It is a nice building with a good location. Probably by next summer someone new will own the building and be running the restaurant.

With the economy the way it is and the fact that the restaurant is fairly large it might not be that easy to get it financed. I would agree that it will be bought eventually. Although the assessed price of $830K seems like a deal. Of course there's the value of all the interior and kitchen if you wanted to buy it as is.

[Mee-n-Mac]

Originally Posted by jeffk

With the economy the way it is and the fact that the restaurant is fairly large it might not be that easy to get it financed. I would agree that it will be bought eventually. Although the assessed price of $830K seems like a deal. Of course there's the value of all the interior and kitchen if you wanted to buy it as is.

Of course if it is sold and re-opens there's no assurance the new restaurant will be of the same high quality as the old 51 Mill St. They do have a problem in that the restaurant is not easily seen from main st.

[Waterbaby]

Originally Posted by Mee-n-Mac

Of course if it is sold and re-opens there's no assurance the new restaurant will be of the same high quality as the old 51 Mill St. They do have a problem in that the restaurant is not easily seen from main st.

They could always have someone walking around by the town docks and downtown with a sandwichboard-type sign on.................... (not sure if that pun was intended or not, )

[camp guy]

You can't get any more off the beaten path than the Woodshed, and it seems to survive. 51 Mill Street is too unpredictable - great meal one time, not so great the next. Also, it is pricey, and that won't fly with the locals in Wolfeboro. If a restaurant is going to be a little on the pricey side, then the food MUST be consistently equal to the price. 51 Mill Street is also suffering the backlash of previous owners (the last several) who let the restaurant go down hill, let the bar take over, and this drives the families away. Parents with children, and also older folks, don't want to go to a restaurant at which there is a noisey, unpredictable, drinking crowd - bad atmosphere.

I hope someone will buy it and make an effort to serve regular food, done well, priced fairly, and served by someone who appears to actually want to be there.

[secondcurve]

Apparently 51 Mill Street is still headed to auction. Is it still open? Maybe the owners can put it off once again?


198 Seat Restaurant

k/a 51 Mill Street

Lakes Region
Wolfeboro, New Hampshire
POSTPONED TO: Tuesday, December 9th at 11:00 a.m.

REAL ESTATE commercial condominium located at 51 Mill Street, #1 – A 5,114± sq.ft. restaurant on 1.03± acres of land with 144± feet of water frontage on Lake Winnipesaukee’s Back Bay. A full service, first floor restaurant with seating capacity of 198 indoor and 113 seasonal outdoor. Second floor has (2) offices, ¾ bathroom and meeting room. Some or all of the equipment, machinery, furniture and other personal property may be included in the sale. Any included personal property may be offered and sold with the premises as an entirety, in lots, by piece, or in some combination thereof, at the sole discretion of Mortgagee/Secured Party. Formerly known as 51 Mill Street Restaurant and Love’s Quay Restaurant. Zoning is Commercial District C-2, Zone A, Greater Downtown. Assessed Value: $830,800. Town Reference: Tax Map 217, Lot 23, Unit 1.

Inspection: One hour prior to auction, if permitted.

Terms: $25,000 Deposit in cash, certified check or bank check at time and place of sale. The successful bidder will be required to increase their deposit to a total of 10% of the purchase price within 5 days of sale. The balance of the purchase price will be due at closing within 30 days of the auction. Sale is a Foreclosure Auction per order of the Mortgagee and the Secured Party.

Directions: From the intersection of Routes 28 & 109 in Wolfeboro, follow Route 109 northwest approximately ½ mile then right onto Mill Street.

[eyenotall777]

Look's like it has been postponed until 12/9.

Not sure if they are still open or not.

[WolfeCrick]

51 Mill is still open.. they had a pretty good late night volume last night. Their house band "Casual Labor" plays a pretty good set every Friday night and the owners have said they are looking to do some entertainment on Sat nites as well.

As an industry professional in the Lakes Region, I talk with a lot of the area restaurateurs - every one is struggling in this economy; everyone is experiencing volume significantly 'down' from last year. The National Restaurant Association stated a few months ago that the restaurant industry was down 40% in the last 12 months - about $80 billion nationally.

It's tough for your local restaurant owners to maintain consistency and an upbeat attitude given the times. This industry employs a lot of young people in this area; young people with young families - they're really struggling to make ends meet, especially the tipped employees.

The downturn makes it that much harder for independent restaurants to compete against the national chains.

[DREAMS]

Let's give support to the current owner's of 51 Mill Street as they have provided a quality and unique menu to the Wolfeboro area. We have only been about 3 times but were pleased every time with the meals, lunch and dinner. Their prices for lunch seem very reasonable. They certainly are struggling with the challenge of a high overhead building and operation. The days of owning a restaurant with an affordable mortgage are long gone. The only survivors will be chains which we don't need in Wolfeboro. Gardwoods has some average food but also charges high prices for their quality. Gardwoods Dockside restaurant is priced ourtrageous with small portions of food and middle quality. Their staff is so young they could care less to be serving you as well. They are there for the paycheck like most of us with our jobs. Gardwoods main restuarant menu needs improvements for quality of food, selection, variety and pricing. As most say, the Wolfeboro Inn Food has never been anything to brag about and needs a major revamping for quality and pricing.

Let's hope the 51 Mill Street owners can find a new affordable location to provide a second opportunity to make a dream come true with success. If Mike Love made a go of the same location based on his quality food and fine dining, others can if they have an affordable overhead and costs - of course with a 3/4 to million dollar loan payment to start, that is not affordable to the Wolfeboro location and a season tourist community.

[Argie's Wife]

I'm looking forward to checking the place out - and if you've been thinking about it too, check by on this Friday night because Bittersweet will be rocking in the house that night!

[Waterbaby]

Originally Posted by Argie's Wife

I'm looking forward to checking the place out - and if you've been thinking about it too, check by on this Friday night because Bittersweet will be rocking in the house that night!

Does that mean Argie's band is playing Friday night? Dang, wish I lived closer so I could hear them!!!!!!!!!

[Argie's Wife]

Yes - Argie's band will be playing. (Argie plays rhythm guitar and sings - never met a microphone he didn't like.) There's 4 members and three of them sing, so there's no real front person, and there's a drummer, bass player, lead guitar and rhythm guitar. If you like oldies rock and roll (Steppenwolf, Stones, etc.) and some of the contemporary stuff (Bonnie Raitt, Nora Jones, etc.) then you'd like Bittersweet.

I think I'm going to go with some friends of mine to check it out... girls night out... it's been a while (too long!) and a little place like that just in the next town is perfect. Wish I'd known about it before or I'd have dragged Argie there for a drink.

[Neko]

Just wanted to let every know that 51 Mills Street is alive and well.
Had Lunch on Friday and an early dinner on Saturday. Both were great.
Looks like they may even open up on Sudays once the Inn cleaes for reapirs.
Glad this find place is staying open
Keep up the good work!!

[secondcurve]

Originally Posted by Neko

Just wanted to let every know that 51 Mills Street is alive and well.
Had Lunch on Friday and an early dinner on Saturday. Both were great.
Looks like they may even open up on Sudays once the Inn cleaes for reapirs.
Glad this find place is staying open
Keep up the good work!!

I hope you are correct. However, according to the below link the restaurant is scheduled to be auctioned on Tuesday. I am pulling for these folks, but it is concerning that their bank keeps scheduling auctions that are apparently resolved just before they are conducted. Let's hope the owners are successful again this week.

http://www.paulmcinnis.com/Lakes-Reg...-Hampshire.asp

[secondcurve]

Interesting. The below paragraph came off the paul mcinnis auctioneers web site. The auction was postponed again.......I wonder what is going on?

On Lake Winnipesaukee’s Back Bay
Known As 51 Mill Street
Wolfeboro, New Hampshire
1/6/2009 at 9:00 AM
AUCTION POSTPONED TO: Tuesday,
January 6, 2009 at 9:00 a.m.

[eyenotall777]

As of today - the date has been pushed out until 3/25/09.

Hopefully this is Good News!!!

[secondcurve]

Originally Posted by eyenotall777

As of today - the date has been pushed out until 3/25/09.

Hopefully this is Good News!!!

Maybe they are going to pull this out. It seems some of the most successful restaurants in the lakes region operate on a seasonal basis. Maybe that is the direction this family plans to take with 51 Mill Street.