Firefly Bistro & Bar

We used to love Firefly and visited often when we lived in Manchester. We even drove all the way today to celebrate a birthday lunch, which made this experience especially disappointing. I ordered the Tuna Poke because it had been excellent during a previous visit. Unfortunately, this time something was clearly off. Instead of pickled ginger, the dish was served with raw sliced ginger, which was extremely overpowering. If you’re familiar with the difference, they serve entirely different purposes and have very different flavor profiles—it’s not a small substitution. I brought this to our server’s attention, and she responded by saying something along the lines of, “Maybe this batch didn’t come out right or wasn’t pickled enough.” That response was confusing—does the restaurant make its own pickled ginger? More importantly, after I mentioned the issue, her attitude noticeably changed and came across as irritated. It felt as though the concern wasn’t taken seriously, possibly because it was during lunch service. Given Firefly’s past level of professionalism, this was surprising and disappointing. I also ordered the crème brûlée, which has always been a favorite of mine, but the fruit served with it was clearly past its prime, which was very disappointing. Considering the long drive and that we were celebrating a special occasion, this experience was especially disheartening. Sadly, it has led me to decide not to return.

It was my first time at Firefly but my friend has been there before. We ordered shrimp grits, seafood chowder, and chili for appetizers. For our entrees we had the Lobster gnocchi and seared Tuna. Everything was Wonderful! Our server Connie was amazing. My friend has allergies and she took the time to check on the oils and the way certain foods were cooked. We had many questions. I had a great experience overall. My friend will be returning again soon.

Came here for my mom's birthday dinner, and we were all BLOWN AWAY!!! Every single thing we ate was beyond delicious. I had the scallops, and could cry it was so good. The portions were phenomenal, we were all so full!!!! Our waiter was so sweet, and SO fast, even with how packed it was! The drinks were strong and very tasty, and dessert.... I'm going to be thinking about that carrot cake until I die.

Firefly Bistro & Bar in Manchester, NH is a very enjoyable restaurant. There were 4 of us and we got a table with in a few moments. Love the exposed brick inside the restaurant and the vintage feel brings things nicely together. The food was excellent with the proper portions to make one satiated. Wait staff were friendly and I would recommend going when you are in the city of Manchester.

I am in NH pretty often for work. Decided to have dinner here with about 10 other colleagues. The atmosphere was very nice and our appetizers were very tasty. However, our food was not hot when it arrived at the table. I had the boneless short rib with jasmine rice and my other colleagues had the flank steak and other foods as well. The steak was a tad bit tough and the green beans, a little garlic. Maybe the food was not as hot as it should’ve been because there were 10 of us. Needless to say the meal was still good. Just wish it was hot. I will give this place another try this time it won’t be 10 of us just me and I’m hoping the food will be hot.

We visited Firefly Bistro & Bar today for lunch. We were celebrating our 52nd wedding anniversary and we were delighted with everything. All of the personnel were so pleasant and helpful. The menu offered a reasonably diverse selection. I had the Alamo Bowl with blackened chicken and my wife had Murray's Chicken. Mine was nicely spicy and the cauliflower cheddar latke in the Murray's Chicken was an interesting addition. Because it was our anniversary, we got a free dessert (a delightful blueberry cheesecake with fruit on the side). The presentation of all our food was exceptional in addition to tasting great. Firefly Bistro & Bar is definitely on our list of places to go back and enjoy again!

Service was friendly but slow. My brother and I waited for well over an hour after ordering to get our mains and were disappointing when they arrived. Atmosphere around the bar where we had our high-top table was about on-par with upscale sports bars, I wouldn't take a romantic date to the same corner of the restaurant. Food was overall tasty but nothing special for a "grill", and felt like pretty poor value; even just getting a double helping of the frites or mash would've gone a long way in feeling worth the price -- the Go Go Bread in particular was a ripoff. The bill came out to about $80+tip for two steak mains, a small soup, and an app; not bank-breaking, but enough to scare me off a second visit when the experience was overall mediocre.

The staff was friendly. I made reservations because it does get busy. Bar is small so seating is limited and taken up quickly. The food was delicious. Drinks were tasty. Good drink recommendations from the staff. Would def go back.

The food was incredible and reasonably priced. The service, however, was absolutely above and beyond. Every single person was friendly and went out of their way to ensure a great experience for our birthday party of 7. We will absolutely be back, 10/10 recommend.

The service was excellent, our waitress was soo nice. We frequented this restaraunt 2 yrs ago weekly and the food was delicious but then the service had fallen off and we frequently weren't able to get a table so we just drifted away. Fast forward We visited about 6 weeks ago and got a table outside, it was more of like eating in a parking lot than a nice restaurant . The speaker was directly by our table and no one could hear anyone not even the waitress, leaving the ambiance unpleasant. My drink was a cherry chocolate martini but it just tasted like sugary syrup. All the meals came with bland white rice and bland broccoli. I'm sorry to say it was very disappointing from my previous experiences and more of a basic average meal. I do not plan to go back.

I was really hoping this place would be amazing because with all their options there's so much potential. To start, the service was amazing, super friendly, talkative, no complaints at all. The inside was cute too, different set up but good amount of seating. The drinks were firee. Super good, like, I need to learn how to make that drink good. So many great options too. Prices were decent too overall, Now the menu, sounded amazing, didn't really taste like it. To make it clear, not everything was mid. The steak tips were cooked great, just flavorless, calamari was probably the best and the bisque tasted as it should. Plus the grits with the pork. But the pork? And everything else? Let's just say thank god there was salt and pepper. The Brussel sprouts weren't crunchy..rather mushy, the mac and cheese was watery and had 0 flavor, the frites were just eh & the pork wasn't good either. Finallyy the desserts. Crème brûlée was great, the strawberry tiramisu was simply strawberry shortcake, great too, and the pb pie just tasted like a frozen pie, but it was good.

We had a reservation here for our anniversary . The service was quick and our waitress was sweet. They have a variety of cocktails and wines to choose from. I drank a peach infused old fashion which was honestly the best old fashion i have ever tried. I also ordered the beef stroganoff which was delicious, savory, and filling. I highly recommend visiting this place. Dress attire is smart casual.

We enjoyed the grilled salmon snd the steak tips. The bar tenders were very pleasant and knowledgeable. The atmosphere is always cozy and friendly.

A great brunch experience for a group of 15! I couldn't be happier with how our morning went! Our waitress was attentive, food was good, drinks were great! I appreciated the call to confirm our numbers. I had the aloha mimosa and shrimp and grits, both were great! Thank you!! We'll be back!

So we came here for brunch on Sunday, the restaurant itself is uniquely shaped. It sort of shaped like a T. The booths we're already reserved, so we have to sit at a table. The two tables were limited in the moment we wanted were in the was in the corner next to a large and loud party. The menu looks great, but the actual food execution was just okay. I was craving eggs benedict, and I got the Irish variant. Surprised at how little there was with the bearnaise sauce. I asked for more sauce and got something that looked like mayonnaise. It wasn't great. It definitely isn't traditional bearnaise sauce. Then the kicker was there was a $2 charge for it which I was not informed of. Also, the heat temperature of the food was not as hot as desired. Potatoes were actually pretty weak to be frank. Our waitress was quite friendly, but not informing me of the app charge for that nasty bearnaise sauce left a nasty taste. If we return, we may give him another try... But we hope for better based off of the word of mouth for the restaurant.

Overall good experience, would possibly come back. The food is very good. It is decadent and has a wonderful and uniquely complex taste. The portions are VERY small though. The service was also very good. We had a great waitress. The ambiance is also very nice. It is pretty inside, kind of has a modern sports bar feel with fancy dining and fare. The prices are very high, be prepared to dish out a lot. Overall, you won't be disappointed, but be prepared to still be hungry and pay a lot.

This was our second time eating at firefly. The service was fantastic, lovely and attentive. The dining room was nice and not too noisy considering how busy they were. The food was good, but great. The calamari were cooked perfectly , and the fried goat cheese salad was good. Nice that you can still get a side salad for $7! I got the lobster and gnocchi. The dish was overly salted and needs a sauce- the gnocchi just tasted like raw dough-y balls. The lobster on top was cooked right however had little flavor- again the dish needs a sauce. My husband had the halibut special and said the fish was cooked well, but felt the sauce was salty. My son enjoyed his filet tips and they were cooked perfectly medium.

I've been here a couple of times and had some good food each time. It's a nice little place with comfortable seating and nice atmosphere. Service was fast and she let us know the specials and what beers were on tap. I had the burger of the day with a Founders Stout and they both were great. This time there were 4 of us here before a hockey game in Manchester and we all had good meals and good time. I'm ready to go back anytime!

I've been here a few times and I am never not impressed by the food and staff. Always a Great experience!

fair warning i prefer not to eat new american food for dinner. but it was bumping on a friday night. had a reservation but still had to wait about 10 minutes which was slightly frustrating considering a reservation should circumvent waiting. i digress; the waitress we had was attentive and sweet. the starter we had was a crowd pleaser (some bread dipper) and everyone enjoyed their food enough. it was good! just not my personal taste for dinner. good place to come with friends where everyone can find something on the menu

Great little spot. We went for a late lunch on a Monday. Atmosphere was lovely and the food was excellent. We had the salmon and steak frites. Both awesome!

I'll have to say the wait staff was friendly enough but not so much attentive. The pumpkin martini was fabulous!!!! The Murray Chicken was so dry I could not eat it. Kept cutting closer to the bone to see if I could get a moist piece but no. The cauliflower latke was mush. . The broccolini was good though. Will not return for food again.

I apologize because I always just get too excited with good food and I never remember to take photos before I eat! Firefly was slight confusing for me to find the entrance. It is in the back of the building with the parking lot! I didn't think I needed a reservation but I am so glad I made one. It was very busy on a Friday night but our server was very quick and attentive. Went here before seeing a play at the Palace theater and it was so perfectly convenient. Just a four minute walk! Our food was fantastic! I got the lobster risotto special and I loved it! There is also an extensive cocktail menu so be sure to check that out as well! I was very impressed and happy with my time here

First time customer and I will definitely come back! Excellent menu with something for everyone. Butternut squash soup was the best I ever had and the Tuna Poke bowl was amazing! My husband had yellow fin tuna (blackened) and it too was excellent. Cooked perfectly. Great ambience and the icing on the cake was Holly, our waitress. Super nice and spot on with service. Next time, we will ask for her again.

Wen there for brunch with my family. It's cozy inside in old mill building in downtown. Outside seating is also good option but it was a little warm. Our server was friendly and their coffee was good. I got shrimp and grits with over easy eggs on top. We also got blueberry muffins to go with the coffee. It's a perfect brunch place. Can't go wrong

Met an old work colleague and his wife from Boston here to catch up on life. Firefly is about mid way for each of us but is the perfect spot due to the great chef and bartenders. Our waiter was wonderful and knew the brunch menu inside and out. My Bloody Mary was perfect as was my wife's specialty cocktail. My Greek omelette was excellent as well and melted in my mouth. Desserts were decadent and tasty. Overall, a wonderful dining experience in an upscale casual setting with nice service. Nothing to detract from this 5 star experience- next year, we will return to this Manchester gem. Reasonably priced menu with parking nearby.

This place was awesome! We stopped for a drink and didn't feel the online reviews left a good enough impression so needed to add more. Amazing and intricate cocktails, quick service, and in general had a more relaxed and "sexy" vibes at the bar. Great for a date night with some cocktails.

Had an amazing dinner here the other night. It was busy on Saturday so I would suggest making a reservation. They also have a bar with first come first serve seats. We got a bottle of wine which was decently priced and our meals were also priced well. I got a pasta dish and it was amazing. Service was friendly and quick. The inside is cozy. All the other food also looked amazing!

Upscale food and drinks at a great price point with a dog-friendly patio and super friendly and knowledgeable staff. We're repeat customers every time we're in town!

Great food and excellent service. We sat outside and Holly was always around when we needed her but didn't hover. The food was high quality and delicious.

We had reservations for New Year's Day for 6. We were sat at a spacious table near a window with nice bright lighting. Our server (??) was great and attentive. Everyone enjoyed their sangrias, bloody Mary's. My dish was the fried battered pork chops and they were so tender and delicious and very filling! Highly recommended Dessert was shared cheese cake and apple crisp both fresh and amazing. Atmosphere was lively but not loud which made conversation easy to hear. All around a great experience.

Horrible service! The server gave our food to another table. After almost a hour waiting,we finally asked where are food was and then she realized her mistake . She never even noticed we had no food. And when we finally got our food, my toast was cold.

Food, service, ambience? All great! Very hip bar and restaurant located in Manchester's happening neighborhood. They have parking! For those of you who don't like to parallel park on the busy streets or don't want to have to rely on the structure (which is free at night and a quick 60 second walk lol.) The lot is smallish so if you're going before or after the rush you should get a spot. The entrance is through the parking lot, so don't get lost looking for the doors like we did. Our service was quick and no mistakes made. I got an outstandingly delicious blood orange jalapeño margarita. I would seriously come back just for the drink. We got the brussells sprouts appetizer, which was also good. For my main, I got the scallops. Very good, would get again.

The hubby and I were looking for a new place to celebrate our anniversary, and we decided to try Firefly. It was very busy and we had to wait an inordinate amount of time to put in our order, but our server was apologetic and very friendly. Of course, all was forgiven when our food came out promptly. I ordered the Bourbon Street pasta and he got the braised short ribs. Both were scrumptious! It has been quite some time since we have gone to a restaurant and we had no complaints about the meal. The only problem we had was that we were seated next to the bar and some guy was a loud talker and quite profane. It put a damper on the ambiance, yet we tried our best to ignore him. Next time, I will ask not to be seated next to the bar, Otherwise, Firefly was great! We can't wait to return

excellent food and brunch is fantadtic. the atmosphere is really cool and love sitzing at the High Tops!

First time here. I love the decor. Very large space. Has outdoor seating. Parking on street and there is a parking lot. Must pay for parking but super cheap .75 cents an hour. You can make online reservations. Our server, Cassie, was exceptional. She picked a nice Chardonnay for me. We had a coconut mule that was delicious. I had the salmon special w asparagus and Caribbean flavors. My husband had Tomatoe soup that was out of this world and the chicken sandwich. Crème brûlée so yummy. Amazing food. Amazing service. I definitely will return.

We stopped in for dinner, and we're so glad that we did. Service was excellent, we sat at a hightop in the bar, which was perfect for people watching. The bar area is really cute and has a relaxed but upscale vibe. We started with spicy, dirty martinis and calamari, which were delicious. The calamari was crispy and the chili sauce went really well with it. They had a filet and shrimp special that was very tasty. My husband had the bourbon street fettuccine and it was next level delicious. We will definitely be back.

Today my company ate at the Firefiy. My company ordered the fish special which was very dry. I ordered the Beef stroganoff which was extremely soupy. Both were just okay. The Bloody Mary, according to my dinner companion, was the best she has had in Manchester or surrounding area. My peach Sangria was delicious! The carrot cake was amazing! The service was excellent! The Litchenstein picture added to the atmosphere.

Great service! Food is solid. It's a little loud but it's a brunch spot. Overall, I'll be going back when I'm in the area.

Slow but pleasant service, food was marginal. wanted to order wine with dinner, but waitress never returned to table in time to order.

The food was amazing.. Let me tell you this the white cheddar grits with pork belly oh my so tender. With perfect pork chops, fresh calamari in sweet thai chili. Fresh steak fries with garlic aioli. To the juicy steak with mash & broccoli. #newhampshire #goodeatsinct #foodporn #foodie #fooddestination #travelingandeating #roadtrip #restorationcafe #firefly #fallweather #winterapproaching #manchesternh

Made a reservation for an empty diner. Clearly the staff wanted to leave. We were rushed through dinner with our meal. We were celebrating a birthday and our surprise birthday desert came out with our entree. Which was also Served before we had finished our appetizer. The food was forgettable. Don't seat people if you don't want to serve them.

Went on a Thur night for 5pm reservations. Our table was ready w/in a few minutes after. Ambiance was very cozy and decorated beautifully for the holidays. Our server, Danni was wonderful! She was very attentive & personable. Our drinks took a bit to get but were very good. Salads were quick and nice and cold! Both our meals were outstanding and nice and hot!!! Definitely worth going if you haven't been and we will be going again!

We ate at the Firefly during a very short windows between my daughter's two performances at The Palace Theatre. I called ahead when I made the reservation to ask the staff if our group of nine could eat lunch and be finished in time for the second performance. They took care to make sure everything flowed smoothly. I asked everyone in our party to look at the menu ahead of time so we could sit and order immediately. The staff and cooks were fantastic! The food was great! Our table was perfect! The entire place is clean, comfortable, and nicely decorated! Highly recommend!!

First and last time here. Brought my husband here for his birthday dinner. DO NOT order and steak here. My husband ordered the fillet "medium rare more on the rare side" came out well done. Server agreed not cooked correctly. Came back with a not cooked steak. It was still refrigerated cold to the touch on the inside. Manager never bothered to come to the table.

This is a very nice restaurant. It's always busy so I would recommend a reservation. Some friends and I last went here as part of a night out. Our waitress was very pleasant and helpful with recommendations. I can't quite tell if the prices have gone up recently but everything was more than I remember it being from last time I was here (yay inflation). I was a little disappointed with the amount of food I got, it was a steak and fries dish. I got literally 7 fries. They were good but seriously, the fries are the cheapest part of the meal. I asked for some more. No problem another basket of fries arrived. I was charged $7 for the additional 7 fries. WTH, $1 a fry? I can get wings for that price.

Fresh food, great tasting steak frites and pasta. Just wished portion were alittle bit bigger.

After trying several restaurants in the area and unfortunately finding out they were closed I am sure glad this place was open for business. We stopped in on a Sunday for brunch and it was delicious. I started brunch with a latte which was great followed by an avocado toast with grilled chicken on the side. My girlfriend had a bagel and lox which she loved. My avocado toast was served with arugula, feta cheese and tomato. Personally I always order a side of grilled chicken because I always need a little extra protein. The grilled chicken was seasoned perfectly, and was packed with so much flavor. My toast came with some fruit (cantaloupe, honey dew, pineapple and strawberry) which was a perfect way to finish off my meal, very refreshing. The service was quick and attentive, we really enjoyed our meal and time there.

The food and drinks never disappoint. I had an awesome waitress whom shared her story about being a single mom in recovery. I will choose this place over and over again.

Great atmosphere, great food-neither are disappointing. My wife and I had a 6:15 reservation Friday night and were seated promptly. The restaurant hadn't quite filled in yet. The server (Dani) was super friendly and genuinely pleasant-we shared with her it was our date night and had a show at 7:30. She assured us that we'd have no problems time wise. It took a full hour for us to get our food. No special requests, two meals that should be pretty quick to turn around: grilled cheese and soup (his), and Salmon (hers). We had to ask for the check and to-go boxes as she placed our meals. We literally had 10 minutes to enjoy our meals. We don't get out much...is this the norm? Should our expectations be that out of whack? The show was great, it saved an otherwise poor start to the evening. -2 stars for the lacking timelines for the food. Apparently they know how to cook it...not just getting to the table in under an hour.

Four of us for dinner, each with a different entree. All four plates cleaned. And Natasha, our server, was wonderful.

Went for dinner with a couple friends and the service and food were amazing. The atmosphere is the perfect mix of fine dining and casual. Ashley was our server and honestly one of the best I have ever had. I recommend this place highly.

We were there for lunch, so we had simple sandwiches (burger and chicken). Flavors were perfect. Service was fast and we loved the brick-walled ambiance. Definitely recommend.

I went on a Saturday with a friend and found we were able to seated without a reservation at bout the last table available at 5:00 pm. We ordered the calamari as a starter which was nice and tender inside with a light batter coating. It was a very good start to our meal. We ordered the Boneless Beef Short Rib with root vegetables and the Bourbon Street Fettuccine as entrees. My short ribs were tender and flavorful with a nice gravy over the root vegetables. The risotto was decent but not very flavorful. It could have used more seasoning. A bit more of the root vegetables would have been nice as well. My friend said the Bourbon Street Fettuccine was good but only had one small piece of crawfish in the whole dish. The Andouille sausage was quite spicy even for somone used to spice. The overall sausage flavor of the dish slightly overpowered the rest of the seafood in the dish. Some people do prefer it that way though. For dessert we ordered the Pear and Apple Crisp with vanilla ice cream and a Creme Brulle. Both were excellent and a nice ending to our meal. The atmosphere was warm and cozy, especially on the rainy day we were there. The service was very good as well. We did not have to wait for anything and she did check up on us more than once during our meal which was great. Overall we would certainly go back to Firefly Bar & Bistro and would try different entrees but keep the same appetizer and desserts.

The entrance to the place is quirky (read the sign on the front door and look to the parking lot to your right to enter). We had a reservation and were seated right away. Moderate to loud bar area (a bit difficult to hear other guests at first). Go-go bread dipping sauce was very good! I had the boneless beef short rib entree, which was very good. Others at the table had Steak Frites and some Curry Shrimp dishes, which were enjoyable. Cheesecake and Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie slices were also very good. I recommend this place to friends for certain.

We have been to this restaurant many,many times... the food and service are always excellent..this time we had the Calamari which was outstanding, lightly bread with great sauces. We couldn't decide which sauce we liked. marinara had a little kick and the Thai sweet and spicy was great as well. I had the beef stroganoff which was good but not great too much noodles and little beef. Husband had the chicken farfella which was delicious.. service was excellent We will return!!

Ordered a Kale Salad, a burger, and the mac and cheese. The salad was wilted and old, the burger was fine, and the mac and cheese was absolutely inedible. It was a watery cream sauce with a soap taste and noodles with crakers over it, tased like somebody obviously didn' t clean the plate well. I politely let the bartender know she could take it, she asked was it OK, I let her know it was very bad. Check comes, nothing taken off. That plate had $.75 cents worth of food on it and they decided to keep my $15 for it. The waitress even stooped to giving me the wrong itemized check to hide the fact that it was still on. DON"T GO HERE DIRTY DISHES BAD FOOD!!!!!!