Walter's Basin

Charming lakeside restaurant with great food, service, and atmosphere Walters Restaurant is a true hidden gem in the Squam Lake area. It’s cozy, welcoming, and full of character — and whether you’re stopping in for a full dinner or just a drink at the bar, you’re in for a great experience. The restaurant is split into two areas: a lively bar with TVs showing sports (great energy and a solid crowd), and a quieter dining room with beautiful views overlooking Little Squam Lake. I really appreciated the contrast — the bar is fun and bustling, while the restaurant area feels a bit more upscale and peaceful, but both share the same menu. Speaking of the menu — it’s short and focused, which I love. Everything we ordered was fresh and delicious. I especially recommend the pork dish — it was cooked perfectly and packed with flavor. They also have an impressive selection of beers that pair well with the food. The interior is stylish and thoughtfully decorated, giving off both a rustic and polished vibe. Service was fast, friendly, and attentive from start to finish. Prices are very reasonable for the quality and the setting. Another great touch: there’s a small retail area with cute merchandise and souvenirs, and plenty of on-site parking, which makes things easy. I also love the name — a nod to Walter DePiche from On Golden Pond, filmed in this very area in the ’80s. It gives the place a bit of local history and charm. If you’re in the Squam Lake region, Walters is absolutely worth a stop. Whether for dinner, drinks, or just to take in the lake view, this place has it all. Highly recommended!

Amazing food, great service, very welcoming and attentive to your needs. Fantastic views of the lake.

Absolutely, astoundingly… AMAZING! Went for our anniversary dinner and the food was FABULOUS! Drinks were spot on and the staff… oh please! Our server Summer was astronomical! And, can’t forget Doug the GM! I love Walters! We’ll be back next week!

Phenomenal location with great views of the lake! We wanted to love this place, but the food was bland. I opted for the schnitzel, while my husband ordered the lobster mac and cheese. The sauce was good, but the lobster was not fresh—it was just okay. The schnitzel was huge but also average. The server seemed overwhelmed; she mentioned she would bring us bread but forgot. However, given the views, we would be willing to give this place another try—it could have just been an off night. Also, if you're in town with friends and family, this place is great for large groups!

Two starkly different experiences… 1st time for lunch we had great food, wonderful server, such a great experience we decided to go another day for dinner. We asked the lunch server about reservations & she said we wouldn’t need them until 5:30. We called to verify for our party of 4 adults, 1 child. They said only reservations for 5 or more & hung up. So we came at 5:30. The hostess said we must have reservations. So I asked how long the wait would be. She said laughingly ‘I don’t know’ then shrugged her shoulders. To verify, I asked if she meant all night & she said ‘I guess’. Obviously they didn’t want/need our business so never again. Never been to a restaurant that doesn’t accommodate walk-ins.

Awesome location right on the water with great views and great food! The service was friendly and I was absolutely stuffed by the make-your-own burger - perfect pitstop after a hike!

Amazing food! Beautiful view

My boyfriend and I got a gift card here and we went on a Saturday night at 7:30 in June. The view is beautiful on the lake. We loved the ambiance as well. All the staff was friendly and professional. My boyfriend got the fish tacos, and I got the Sriracha salmon with the Sriracha on the side. It was the most delicious salmon, and I have ever had in my life!!! And I eat salmon a lot out to eat! Even with every table filled it was not obnoxiously loud, which we appreciated. I only write reviews, if I am very pleased with the establishment, you will definitely enjoy the food here! The parking is a little tricky as you have to parallel park on the street, and my boyfriend got two fish tacos with a side of fries, but he ate some of my food as he was a little dissatisfied with the portion. Not sure if the fish tacos were on their”lighter fare” menu! Oh we also got the clam chowder and it was “the best he’s ever had”

We were up in the Squam Lake area and happened across Walter's basin. It's a beautiful restaurant with waterfront seating. It's the middle of winter so it was ice front seating, but it was fun to watch all the activity out on the ice. We sat at a high top in the bar. Place is actually quite large, it's kind of deceiving from outside. There's a big bar, an area that looks like a back up bar, and the dining room. Service was great, and the food was even better. They have a great wine list and a cocktail menu with something for everyone. We ordered bloody Mary's and started with poutine with the optional short rib, it was so good! For lunch, I had beet salad and Ahi wontons. Hubby had the chicken Cobb salad. Everything we had was really delicious and I would not have changed a thing. The Ahi tuna was super fresh, as were all the ingredients in the salads. We were originally planning on different entrées, but the poutine was so giant. We ended up getting lighter fare. We will definitely be back next time we're in the area. I imagine the views of the lake are beautiful in the spring, summer, and especially fall.

Loved this place on the lake. Little Squam Lake that is. It's on the road. Parking may be a bit hard to find. They have a dock if you are in a boat. They opened at 11:30 and there were about 10 people waiting to go in. We were welcomed nicely. Given a table at the winds overlooking the lake. Super views. We both had the Lobster roll and it did not disappoint. The menu is broad. Service great. The views cannot be topped. I would come back.

We had an early dinner (late lunch) at Walter's Basin. We were a party of four and as this was our first, visit we went early to avoid the summer crowds. There were plenty of people enjoying the deck bar but seating was a bit limited. We decided to dine inside, were promptly seated, and had a front row view of the lake.The restaurant decor was appealing and relaxing. We were given the Lighter Fare & Appetizer menus, along with Drink and Dessert menus. The selection of Appetizers, entrées and salads was diverse enough to have something for almost anyone. I ordered a Moscato wine as did my friend. Our husbands had Coke (which they said was better than most restaurants). The Moscato was very good. My husband and our friend ordered the Fish and Chips, while my friend and I had the Tuna Melt. We both requested the Green Beans in place of Kettle Chips. Our dinners were served quickly, were very tasty, and just right in portion size. The Tuna Melt had a tomato and melted cheddar cheese on grilled sour dough bread and was loaded with a white tuna salad that tasted home-made (not the pre-made, heavily preserved plastic bucket-o' tuna you get from most delis). The fresh green beans were seasoned and sautéed. The fish was fried Haddock, with a light batter and was a medium sized filet. The fries were warm and crispy. My husband ordered the Mud Pie for dessert (chocolate crumble crust, coffee ice cream and whipped cream sitting on a rich chocolate sauce); our friend ordered the Creme Brulee. I had coffee. The men reported that the desserts were very good. Our server was great; she was friendly, prompt and attentive. The tab, with tax and a 3% surcharge to cover untipped employee benefits came to $70 for each couple. That was two dinners, one glass of wine, one soda, a substitution charge for the green beans and one dessert for both couples. We left a tip on top of that for our server. The untipped employee 3% charge was stated at the bottom of the menu. It only amounted to $1.52. It's not the amount, it's kind of the principle. It's one thing for customers to supplement a server's wages, but now to pay a fee for untipped restaurant employee benefits? We will definitely go back, and I recommend Walter's Basin, as the food, service and atmosphere are worth going again.

A group of us had dinner at Walter's Basin after a boat tour of the lake and hiking West Rattlesnake. I had the seafood paella. It was fabulous. All my friends raved about what they had as well. The atmosphere is lovely with a nice view of the lake, and our server was excellent.

The restaurant is very popular on the weekend, if you do not want to wait, a weeknight would be an easier time to get a table. Parking is mostly limited to street parking. The restaurant has really nice seasonal decorations giving an inviting vibe. If you come before dark, there's a nice view of the lake. The ahi tuna wontons were a good appetizer with a nice wasabi aioli drizzled over with the sweetness of the seaweed salad. The steak tip salad had a really nice dressing and a good portion of steak. There was a little too much gorgonzola cheese that overpowered the flavor for my tastes. The seafood paella was really good with a good amount of seafood overall, it did only come with one shrimp.

I don't often give 5 stars, but this place deserves it. Great water views and great service and great food. All of our dishes had lots of flavor and tasted fresh. The design inside wasn't modern, but it wasn't old. It was a beach/lake house vibe and felt a bit fancier than what we had expected. They had an hour wait on Saturday, but we came in on the following Monday and we're seated right away. I would definitely return if I'm on the area again! Definitely recommend this spot.

Having been going to Walters for over 30 years, was disappointed with last nights dinner. I'm not a big eater, the portions were small . There was not more than a 1/4 C of rice and 7 green beans on my salmon dinner and they were not hot. Others in our party said the French fries with their dinner special were not hot too. The waitress didn't come back after someone else brought the dinner to make sure everything was alright. they have gone down a lot. very sad

We stopped here as part of a large group on a bus trip. Food came out immediately - and it was hot. Restaurant opened early to accomdate our group. I had the French dip minus the cheese- mom had the turkey BLT. I had ice cream for desert , mom had tiramisu. Both were fantastic. I'm not a fan of vanilla but this was by far the best vanilla ice cream I've had in my life. Fries weren't my favorite- would have liked hand cut or natural (these had the crunch batter on the outside). But they were hot. Beautiful views and really nice and friendly wait staff. Defiantly a place to stop on the lake.

Had a wonderful dinner here this evening. I shared the seafood paella and it was wonderful! My husband had the french onion soup ( yummy- i gad a taste and the tenderloin beef salad- he thoroughly enjoyed! The atmosphere is lively and the service is great! Definitely worth a visit!

All food, cocktails, service and the view were all amazing!!! The visit made for a great vacation meal & we even bought tshirts & sweatshirts as souvenirs because we enjoyed it so much!

My wife, daughter, and I visited on a quiet late Sunday afternoon for lunch. We were referred here by someone who worked at our hotel. It is a big establishment that has a bar, lounge, and dining room. The dining room overlooks a lake. Since it was quiet, we scored a table in the dining room by a window which had a nice view. We began our meal with the fried Brussel sprouts. Portion was very generous and the sprouts were tasty. Nice start. Our entrees were the basin burger with sweet potato waffle fries, the cobb salad with chicken, and the Greek salad with salmon. I don't believe my burger contained fresh ground beef and was most likely frozen before cooking. I only know that from having fresh burgers all the time. The waffle fries were bland and needed seasoning. Nice portion. The salmon on the Greek salad was bland. No seasoning. My wife enjoyed her cobb salad and said the chicken was tasty. The prices were very reasonable for the area. The service was excellent and very friendly. One thing we couldn't help noticing was the amount of flies buzzing around inside and landing on the poles and windows. Plenty of on street parking in the area.

Have been here many times and never disappointed. Always great service, good drinks and food no matter what time of day we come or the size of our party. Thank you for always making us feel welcome.

Excellent service, excellent food, ambiance was a treat as well staring out on Little Squam Lake. Don't miss this one! A must for the region.

First - we are local, live here year round. Tonight (Monday) we went to have dinner with 5 people. Arrived at 6pm and told the wait for a table is between 15 minutes and an hour. Ok, no worries, we understand, it's summer. Asked if we can wait in the lobby with a drink from the bar (which was full) - answer is "no", no drinks from the bar allowed in the lobby. What a clown show. Figure out how to accommodate your guests while they wait for a table (because you won't accept reservations). We won't be returning.

Stopped in and had a nice lunch. Food was very good, cocktail was great and the service was good.

Great food, great service and beautiful view! Casual, comfortable atmosphere. We sat in the bar and service was super fast. Dining area was gorgeous!

My wife and I stopped in with friends while we were on vacation. The host was very friendly sat us with a window view of Squam Lake. The food was absolutely delicious!! I had the lobster mac and cheese the portion was very generous I couldn't finish it my wife and friend had curry shrimp again the portion very generous her husband had the duck and had said it was absolutely delicious! From our host to our server Devvin were amazing! If you happen to be in NH in the Holderness area i highly recommend stopping in!

Great views, friendly staff and good food. I had the Nashville hot chicken which satisfied my craving since getting back from Nashville. Not like true Nashville hot but good enough for the NE. Beer selection was good.

Walter's Basin has a great location at the edge of Squam Lake. We were lucky to have a table for four looking over the lake. A lovely spot for dinner. Our party enjoyed sharing the roasted brussel sprouts and the kale burrata salad. One order if each was plenty to share among four. Two of us had the scallops, one the veggie paella and one the coconut green curry shrimp. Everything was piping hot and tasty. The paella was a very large serving and that guest took about half home in a readily provided container. Our server, Carol, did a great job. There was a but of a wait between starters and the main course, but that is preferable to having entrees right on top of appetizers. Like most places in this post covid time, Walter's Basin is probably short staffed. The lake offered plenty of entertainment while we waited. We enjoyed the meal and the location. We will be back.

Great atmosphere, friendly staff, and excellent food. This restaurant sits on the edge of Squam Lake overlooking a marina. We only had lunch and drinks but the food was great. The sandwiches came with house made potato chips. Definitely a place we would return to.

Excellent food, often very busy so make a reservation. one of the best locations to have dinner in NH as it overlooks the channel and lake.

This was the best meal and service I've had in a long time, the view is unbelievable Would highly recommend going

Do not miss this restaurant if you are anywhere in the vicinity! They do everything right. When we finished our food we all wanted more...not just more food but more of the entire experience. There were six of us that went for an early dinner after a day of golf. We sat in a room where everyone had a view of the beautiful lake and it's surroundings. And we were very lucky to meet McKenzie. More than just a server. If you have the opportunity to go to Walter's Basin, request McKenzie and tip her well. She is the best!! We started with the Poutine appetizer with added short ribs. Excellent. That helped me in my decision to have the Boneless Short Ribs with mashed potatoes (comes with scallions) and green beans for my entree...amazing! Wish I had some now. Two guests had Seafood Casino. One with rice and one with pasta. One guest was highly allergic to onions and any special requests were met with "we can do that". Very refreshing attitude. Two guests had Wild Mushroom Ravioli Sauté and they cleaned their plates . Someone had the Baby Back Ribs and they were awesome. We also ordered the Fish Tacos and the Crispy Chicken Sandwich only with grilled chicken (which, again, there was no problem to make a substitution). The entire dining experience was the best!!

Good service and very good food. Lots of options and there is a great view of the lake.

They take reservations for 6+. We were two. The hostess said the kitchen was backed up and it might be 45 minutes before we received our food, but we were fine with that and were seated outside on very low seats with a view of the marina, lake, and mountains on the far shore. While having drinks (mine Bailey's and "Da Rum In Da Coconut" my wife's) the round bar table in the corner with stools opened up behind us and the waitress promptly moved us there. Great atmosphere. My wife ordered salmon with a spicy red sauce, yellow rice, and an orange squash. It was a generous portion, all delicious. Same with mine, which was a burger on a bun with cheese, onions, mushrooms, bacon, lettuce and tomato. It came within 15 minutes and service was courteous and much faster than what the hostess had told us.

Great place! Really busy but service was great! Nice location, nice bar with full menu. We got a lot of food. The sprouts were out of this world. Kale salad was very tasty and tasted nothing like kale! Lol. The pot stickers and dipping sauce also yummy. The lamb chop was huge and well prepared. Crab lettuce cups very fresh and plentiful. We loved it!

Very nice restaurant on the lake, with beautiful water views. we've had lunch here twice both times food and service were very good

Super friendly service. The food came out quick and hot, made very well. Our waitress Kayla couldn't have been nicer. This was our first time here. I'm looking forward too going back. PS The key lime pie was one of the best we ever had. I'm lucky i got 2 bites before my son devoured it!

We were looking for a family-friendly lunch spot near the water, and were delighted to find Walter's Basin. The entrees we chose included fish tacos, balsamic steak tip salad, fish and chips, and kids servings of pasta and fish and chips. I don't think we left anything on the plates, and the sweet potato fries were a nice touch, too. The atmosphere was bright and delightful. We did not have a window view, but found the decor to be pleasant and aligned with the theme of Walter the fish. We had to regale the younger folks of the significance of Walter, and found "On Golden Pond' available on their Amazon prime account for a future movie night. On-street parking is available (as long as you know how to parallel park) and we were able to seat a party of 7 with no wait on an October Saturday. it was a delightful stop for our group.

We have been frequenting Walter's for over 20 years and they continue to provide quality food and service with a hometown feel. They recently made very nice renovations which show that they value their customers and product.

Great service, food is awesome, views are incredible. Creative entrees, good beer selection and food comes out on time.

I went there with a group of 5 on Tuesday evening 6/28 ! the service was great! My sister and I both ordered the Trout off the menu ! It was disgusting ! It was cooked like shoe leather! It was a very small piece of fish only about 1/4 inch thick and very dry ! Very disapointing for the 2 of us !!!

Great food fast!Fried Scallops were fabulous! Highly recommended! Yum! Reasonably priced as well!

First time trying take out from here, delicious and reasonably priced lobster rolls to take out on your boat!

The food is good, but service deserves 0 stars. We experienced a rude server & even ruder manager. Be sure to look closely at your bill! They charge a fee for kitchen pay. It was explained to us by an employee & the manager that the employees in the kitchen "don't make enough money" & they tack on a service charge they expect customers to pay. Here's a novel idea: pay your employees well & perhaps charge a bit more for the meal instead of making your customers feel ripped off. We are locals - the folks who help keep you in business year round, but after experiencing the attitude of the server & the manager when we asked for an explanation regarding the surcharge, we will not be returning

Nothing short of amazing. When you are the only place in a small town it can be hit or miss as you are in a position where there would be no consequences as there are not any competitors. Walter's food and service is simply fantastic. Our large party had the fish and chips, lobster mac, chicken wings, french onion soup, blueberry trout, schnitzel, baked cod, deviled eggs, bang bang shrimp and numerous desserts. No one had a bad meal and everyone raved about their food. It was so good a bunch of us came back for lunch the next day. Our service was also amazing. Props to Mackenzie who was our waitress. She did a fantastic job. Every food order came out correct. Every drink order was on point. The only downside is the lack parking.

Eat where the locals eat! Walter's has upped their game. Updated menu has good variety, the new deck is a great spot to sit on a warm day, and the renovations to the inside look great.

We were looking forward to our dinner in Walters while on our NH vacation. Rainy day and dinner here was a highlight of the day. Our meals and drinks were served promptly, our server was very polite and caring. We had a great time here and will definitely will be back!

The restaurant is stunning location. I was order appetizers tuna wonton, mussels. clams soups. The entree are road beefs and fish taco. Wonderful lunch for me. Great location and friendly staff.

We stopped in for a Saturday lunch during peak season on a georgeous day. We arrived 5 minutes early in case there was a crowd but surprisingly we were the first people there so we got our pick of a perfect table overlooking Squam Lake. The dining area is large and comfortable. Most of the tables will give you a fantastic wide view of the lake. You can see boats docking right outside the restaurant. Unfortunately, there were a few flies buzzing around which put a slight hamper on the tranquility. The format is table service via wait staff. Our server came over and took our drink order and asked if we saw the specials posted at the door (blackened haddock sandwich and some type of salad entree). I ordered a soda and my wife a water. The server poured my wife some water from a pitcher sitting out on a table but we noticed other groups were served iced water in glasses from the kitchen. I quickly finished my soda and it was never refilled despite the server visiting the table several times. Food: I ordered the blackened haddock sandwich. I asked to leave off the coleslaw and add onions but the server declined the request "because it's a daily special". I was able to not take the coleslaw but they were unwilling to place sliced onions on top of my sandwich or onto my plate. Ok... The sandwich was good and the fish was cooked nicely. The bun was very light and toasted. Unfortunately, the fish portion was very small and covered only half the bun so I basically had half a fish sandwich with a side of an extra half bun. My wife ordered the pulled pork sandwich which was very good. We both took sauteed veggies as our side instead of the various forms of fried potatoes. Overall, the experience was nice for the view and it was relaxing. The food was good too but I left feeling a bit underwhelmed at my meal. I would recommend it for a try-it-once experience but I will probably not return .

Incredible fish tacos!!! The flavor is fantastic with a little kick to it. The fries are also fantastic. One member of our party even said they were the best fries she's ever had. the Buffalo chicken egg rolls were fantastic. We also got the pork dumplings which were good but not as spectacular as the rest of the meal. Greta restaurant!

The food and service was great! I had the grilled chicken Cobb Salad - the vinaigrette was delicious. Will def be back!

The food & drink were amazing. Not to mention the view of Squam Lake is breathtaking. Strongly recommend.

Have you watched the movie 'On Golden Pond'? If you haven't watch it and if you have watched it watch it again. The reason that this restaurant has this name is because of the name of the fish 'Walter' that was caught in the movie 'On Golden Pond'. The other great thing about this movie is that it was filmed on Squam Lake. Now back to the restaurant. This restaurant was recommended to us from our waitress, Amanda, from Common Man. Her husband is a chef at Walter's Basin. It is on Squam Lake. If you can, ask for a table near the water. The food is delicious. They have something for everyone. The minute you walk in you feel very welcomed. Our waiter, Troy, was great!!! This is a must restaurant!!!

This place feels like a country club on a lake, but so welcoming and inviting. The service is wonderful! Their food delicious and hearty. Loved their beer selection too.

Walter's Basin is conveniently located 2 min from Squam Lake science center. There are beautiful views as it's right on the lake. At first glance the restaurant seemed like it was too nice for young children. However, they are very family friendly. There are high chairs available, changing tables in both bathrooms and a kids menu. Our food came out quickly and was very good. The portion sizes were also very generous, especially for the kids. The kids had grilled cheese and pasta with butter sauce and Parmesan cheese. I had the steak salad and my husband had the pastrami sandwich special with fries. My only complaint is that some of the pieces of the steak on my salad were cooked more than I had requested.

Came here with a part of nine last night, the service and food were good the only problem is every single one of us got sick afterwards. Not one person did not have an extremely upset stomach and multiple trips to the bathroom for the next 16 hours.. like I said, food wasn't even bad but i have a strong suspicion something is going on in the kitchen rn so I do not recommend.

Hit or Miss lately . Portions have gotten much smaller this summer . Seven greasy fried scallops doesn't make a meal worth eating . This resturant for years was always consistantly good , last two trips 1/2 of the meals have not been good . Go to the Canoe if you want a good meal

Last evening we ate at Walter's Basin. The restaurant was not full, no waiting. We were greeted and sat promptly. Our waitress came and took our drink orders quickly. So far so good. 30 minutes later our food came out. Still no beer or wine arrived at our table. Our waitress never came back during the 30 minutes, however, she delivered drinks to her other tables in her section. We asked the food runner where our drinks were and she said "I will check and have a manager come over." No manager ever came over. Our waitress seeing that our food arrived came and asked, "Can I get you anything?" To this I said our drinks. She brought the wine and the wrong brand of beer. But the restaurant did comp the drinks. Which is positive. Now for the food. We were never asked how it was. Rice=dry/tasteless Prices=way too high for food quality for what you get. Never offered bread, salad, etc. Of note, we have eaten here several times in the past few years since we are "locals". Not impressed. The manager and front of house staff didn't even have the courtesy to say, "Thank you or Come again" as we walked right past them to depart. This place had turned into a SUMMER TOURIST TRAP. Not recommended