Introducing....Lavinia's Relaxed Dining

[BroadHopper]

I am an alumnus of Belknap College. Coe House was the girls' dorm during the '60's and 70's. I remember well having classes in the front rooms of the main house. I remember the 'Indian' shutters incased into the walls around the windows. I also remmeber the painted mural in one room. I would love to stop by and see how much it had changed since the college closed.

Congratulations in opening a fine dining experience in the area. You will find plenty of competition and that is the fun part. Good Luck!

[laviniasdining]

Originally Posted by BroadHopper

I am an alumnus of Belknap College. Coe House was the girls' dorm during the '60's and 70's. I remember well having classes in the front rooms of the main house. I remember the 'Indian' shutters incased into the walls around the windows. I also remmeber the painted mural in one room. I would love to stop by and see how much it had changed since the college closed.

Congratulations in opening a fine dining experience in the area. You will find plenty of competition and that is the fun part. Good Luck!

The 'Indian Shutters' are still here, and so is the amazing mural! Last year, we hosted a Belknap College reunion, of sorts; they were dedicating a bench in the common, and about 100+/- came over for a luncheon afterward. We were given a great old photo of some of the 'girls' sitting on the porch of their dorm, we gave lots of tours and heard some pretty great tales of college life/shenanigans back in the day!

We'd be happy to have you stop by for dinner, or just a tour! And, of course, we'll expect a good story or two!

[jetskier]

We decided to try Lavinia's this evening for dinner. The restaurant was actually not particularly busy; I suspect due to the fact that we are still technically in mud season. Note that there is no mud here and everything is actually mid summer dry. :-)

We were seated upstairs with a view of the lake. They have done quite a bit of remodeling and there are a number of dining rooms and two bars.

The service was attentive without hovering and the dishes came out in a timely fashion. The food quality is extremely good especially compared with other lakes region restaurants. We tried the mushroom ravioli, lobster pie and pulled pork sandwich. The reviews were positive on all counts.

Lavinia's has a seasonal dessert menu and the choices were too good to pass up. We tried the berries and cream...outstanding.

I think that this is a big step up from Coe House across the board...atmosphere, service and a more contemporary menu (with high quality).

Jetskier

[Barbara]

Wish I could report the same. We went with friends. Service and atmosphere were great. We all had different entrees and all rated the food as okay. We will most likely not return. It is 30 minutes away for us.

[laviniasdining]

Originally Posted by Barbara

Wish I could report the same. We went with friends. Service and atmosphere were great. We all had different entrees and all rated the food as okay. We will most likely not return. It is 30 minutes away for us.

Thank you so much for your comments, Barbara. It's important to hear both the good and not-so-good remarks and suggestions from our customers, and we appreciate your input. It's unfortunate that we didn't meet your expectations the night you dined with us, but hope that if you find yourself in our neck of the woods again, you won't count us out entirely.

Again, thanks for your input--the Lavinia's team is hard at work, endeavoring not only to meet but exceed guest expectations, and any and all feedback is helpful.

[Greene's Basin Girl]

We had a wonderful dinner at Lavinia's on Saturday evening. I had a wonderful mac and cheese fritter appetizer and a pulled pork sandwich. The others had clam chowder and beer battered fish and chips. We were extremely pleased with our meals and we thought the prices were reasonable. We chatted with the owner-Luke. He was very pleasant and cordial. We will definitely return very soon. It would be nice if the restaurant was also also open for lunch, but Luke said it will be dinner only and maybe brunch. He plans on staying open year-round.

[beancover]

Originally Posted by Barbara

Wish I could report the same. We went with friends. Service and atmosphere were great. We all had different entrees and all rated the food as okay. We will most likely not return. It is 30 minutes away for us.

So you try a new restaurant once, you are not completely blown away and you decide not to try it again? Tough cookie.

[chefbrown]

Stopped by Lavinia's tonight after a long week @ the deli. Amazing!!!! Everything was great!!! We are what one might call food snobs, but Lavinia's passed the test with flying colors. Thank you and best wishes!!!

[upthesaukee]

Originally Posted by beancover

So you try a new restaurant once, you are not completely blown away and you decide not to try it again? Tough cookie.

It seems that Barbara's concern is more the 30 minute drive, she did say the service and atmosphere was great and food was ok. To some folks, 30 minute drive is a long drive....Hopefully if she and friends are over towards Center Harbor or Meredith, they may stop in again. She does seem to like the Wolfeboro scene, and that's ok.

[SAMIAM]

I think you're right upthesaukee........seems strange that after all the rave reviews on the forum and from everyone I've talked to on the street,that not a single person in that party of four had anything nice to say about their meals.Seems like they might have gotten at least one right.Makes me wonder if there is not some other issue.
I'll bet if Barbara sent them a PM explaining her concerns,that it would be well received and acted on.

[Barbara]

Originally Posted by SAMIAM

I think you're right upthesaukee........seems strange that after all the rave reviews on the forum and from everyone I've talked to on the street,that not a single person in that party of four had anything nice to say about their meals.Seems like they might have gotten at least one right.Makes me wonder if there is not some other issue.
I'll bet if Barbara sent them a PM explaining her concerns,that it would be well received and acted on.

Yes, I did send a PM to the owner and described in detail what each of the four of us ordered and our critique of each dish. Nothing was awful, most was okay and the calamari were wonderful.

I'm delighted that the reviews of others are great. I wish the restaurant much success. We are fond of a number of other restaurants that are 30 to 45 minutes away that are worth the trip to us.

[Newbiesaukee]

I always read Barbara's enthusiastic restaurant comments and have no doubt that she is objective and knowledgeable. It is also well done for her to have PMd the folks at Lavinia's. However, had she been more specific about what was only "OK" about the food, it would have been more helpful to the Forum readers.

[Barbara]

Originally Posted by Newbiesaukee

I always read Barbara's enthusiastic restaurant comments and have no doubt that she is objective and knowledgeable. It is also well done for her to have PMd the folks at Lavinia's. However, had she been more specific about what was only "OK" about the food, it would have been more helpful to the Forum readers.

I think the issues we had were with sauces and seasonings on our entrees. That seemed to be at the crux of what each member of my group disliked about their dish. The entrees we had were statler chicken, hanger steak, Steal Lauren and pasta fra diablo.

The owner has been in touch with me about my comments and I have never experienced such attentiveness to my views. He has been so receptive to my critique and wants to make right whatever we felt was wrong. This attitude and amazing customer service is reason enough for us to make another visit to Lavinia's.

[mrschefbrown]

I wanted to elaborate on Cheff Jeff & I's expierence at Lavinia's. The food was awesome! We started off with the Seafood Cakes & they were out of this world, very little breading and large chunks of shrimp & scallop, the aioli dipping sauce was delicous. I ordered the Filet, Jeff rolled his eyes at me beacuse it was $30 but I felt I deserved it! And it was well worth it, we have eaten at high end steak houses in Miami & Boston & this was an excellent cut of beef, the sauce, mashed potatoes & asparagus were incredible. Jeff had the BBQ Pork Bellies that were braised and served over french toast with fresh fiddleheads, I didn't think I would really like it but it was awesome. Jeff who is sometimes hard to impress with food was blown out of the water. And for dessert we had the Chocolate Quiche with a Rocky Road topping and again awesome! We will be back for sure...

PS We sat in the pub with our two young kids, and they loved it as well. The service was great & we met some very nice diners sitting in the pub as well.

[SAMIAM]

So glad you might give them another try, Barbara. I've seen your restaurant reviews in the past and they are very fair and thoughtful. I'll bet that if you try some other entree's you might become a fan. My wife had the beef wellington and it was perfectly cooked with a beautiful pastry crust. I had the lobster pie and loved it. It was served under phyllo pastry with corn and potato's that add some depth to the sauce which, unlike most, wasn't overdone with sherry. Very light and creamy.

[Barbara]

We definitely will give it another try. I love Beef Wellington, so that will likely be my choice.

[surfnsnow]

wow, we're going to have to try lavinia's. i was never impressed with coe's, it always seemed to be a bit overpriced and a little pretentious

[Jumbie98]

Lavinia's has been three for three for us! Had another wonderful meal and evening this evening! Just love the atmosphere, the service has been great (and consistent!) and we all tried 4 different menu items..all were fantastic..definitely a nice addition to the choices we have here!

[Greene's Basin Girl]

I just made reservations for Mother's Day at Lavinia's. They will be open from 11AM-8PM. They will be offering their regular menu along with some Mother's Day specials. My mom will be 91 in June. We are so blessed to still have her with us.

[Sunset View]

Came to the lake early today from MA. Stopped in Lavinia's for a quick bite. What a fabulous experience. Starting with the facility itself;it is gorgeous yet not stuffy. Neat, clean, bathrooms immaculate...just tastfully done in every way! The staff is attentive and friendly in a genuine manner. The food was superb yet priced fairly. The calamari was excellent, my marinated steak and my wife's burger cooked, garnished and served perfectly. Our very sharp waitress (Sue) was articulate, knowlegable and attentive to our every request, she was outstanding. Here's something you don't see very often....the owners, Luke and Ann Dupuis greeting and making it a point to walk to every table, speaking to customers and listening to reviews of the experience.......I must tell you, it is refreshing to see proactive owners going to the customer rather than the other way around. More restaurant owners in the lakes region should follow Luke's lead and get out from behind the desk or grill and talk to your customers...that connection and attention to detail is priceless!

We will definitely frequent Lavinia's again; Luke, Ann, Sue, Jeff and Team, kudos....you have established and set a new standard in the Center Harbor, Meredith, Moultonboro, Wolfeboro and Tuftonboro restaurant scene. NICE WORK!

[donnamatrix]

Three of us Friday 6/8 at 6:30 with reservation. The scallop appetizer was underdone - sushi style. Clam chowder was good, the "crispy" calamari was sodden. We had one person order a Caesar salad and asked for it to be delivered after soup. The waiter brought during the soup and was told we weren't ready for it. Then we had to wait an extremely long time for entree delivery, and the place wasn't even crowded. The fish & chips were excelletn and the musroom ravioli quite good, although a little heavy. We were underwhelmed but will go back.

[laviniasdining]

Thanks, donnamatrix, for your feedback. We're disappointed we didn't have our best foot forward the evening you dined with us, but very glad to hear you'll give us another try. We strive to make every diner's experience exceptional, but it appears we may have missed the mark this time, in a few areas.

Shared your comments with our team, which will undoubtedly make us better in the long run. Thanks again, hope to see you soon.

The Lavinia's Team

[Newbiesaukee]

For years we thought about eating in the cupola but never got around to it until last week. It was a unique experience. The deal is that it is the regular menu but a 30% gratuity is added. We knew it was small and high up, but did not realize it was so small and so high up. My wife and I are relatively small but it is tight for the table for two. Can't move either chair because it hits the wall. Multiple very narrow flights of stairs to get there. But, the view is beautiful. We tried to order so the waitstaff would not have to come up unnecessarily. They earned the 30%.

We like the new Lavinia's and this might be an option for a very (by necessity) intimate special occasion for two.