The Red Arrow Diner

went to the Londonderry one on Saturday night ²⁄₂₀ we had 5 people and a baby we were told it would be 20 minute wait. well that 20min turned into an hour wait as the only booth we could have was at the other end and as we sat there the people in the booth got up went outside for 20 minutes for a cigarette and they held the booth for them then once seated the waitress was slow once she took our order i watched as my food sat in the pick up window for 20 minuets the food was so bad and greasy the waitress came back asked how everything was when i said not good she looked at me smiled and walked away till she brought us the check. put it down and took off. my son had a patty melt plate that since we came home he has had the runs so thanks for the crappy food and service i will not be back and i will not recommend you to any one instead i will say don’t go there unless you want to get sick.

The place was packed, but there were only 2 of us so we got seated quickly at the counter. It was absolutely delicious. I had the French Toast with scrambled eggs and bacon and REAL maple syrup. Was fabulous… Bacon was perfectly cooked. Love it when a restaurant offers real maple syrup. I would go back in a heartbeat, and I don’t mind the wait cause its worth it.

I have been here twice first time was terrible thought maybe it was a fluke tried it again recently and realized this place is terrible. I dont understand what the fuss is about but this place is very bland and boring. I ordered the chicken tenders with fries and mac and cheese. They say they are famous for the chicken tenders. I have to laugh because i got them they were so soggy had absolutely no flavor at all. The fries were frozen the mac and cheese was bland. My mother got the chicken fried steak and onion rings. the chicken fried steak was soggy and tough and her onion rings were frozen as well. We also asked our waitress before ordering if the onion rings were beer battered she looked at us with a blank stare and said im not sure, they come frozen so i dont know. Dont you think she should have went and asked a cook? I was so disappointed with there food and i will not be giving them another chance.

I’ve seen a small handful of bad reviews for this Red Arrow location, I am there every day, I have seen it busy, very busy, and nearly empty, I’ve seen the staff work hard and do their best, if you go to a restaurant while it’s busy, don’t complain about slow service, it’s busy and there are only so many cooks and things to make your food on. If they’re busy and you don’t get your drinks right away, and you seated yourself, maybe they didn’t see you, let them know they’ll resolve it right away.
I have tried a good number of menu items and have yet to be disappointed, there was one thing I didn’t like, a Monte Christo sandwich, the turkey was sliced a little too thick and was a bit dry but not everything can be perfect. To the person who complained about the per egg surcharge, there was a sign at the register area by the entrance forever, I don’t know whether it’s still there or not but it was for quite some time if not, not the staff’s fault if you didn’t see it and they are not the only restaurant that had to do it either.
I have found the staff to be very friendly from the kitchen staff, the waitstaff to the manager and owners. I’ve been to the Manchester location, the food is just as good, but I found the staff less personable, although that particular location is always packed so I certainly can’t blame wait staff who are out straight for not being rays of sunshine every second.

Been wanting to try this place for a while now, wish I hadn’t. The food was the worst I’ve ever had in any establishment. I had the red arrow shaved steak sandwich which was dry overcooked and couple slices of cheese just draped over the sandwich not even melted. My french fries came out and I am not exaggerating whatsoever… Frozen. Yes I said they were frozen. I waited almost 30 minutes for this meal if you can call it that. Very sad because I was really hoping this would be like the one in Manchester. It’s not! I will not be back.

The quality of the food is outstanding. The same offerings as the other two locations, but a MUCH more convenient location (right off 93). The place is new, so is clean and bright. Time hasn’t wreaked itself upon the place as of yet. Where the charm of the primary location in Manchester is more to do with its grunge and sardonic staff. The Londonderry staff is bright, cheery, and friendly.
Over all a MUCH better stop than schlepping into Manchester.

We went here on a Saturday morning with a party of four. There is a long wait (as expected) the hostess seemed not to really have a handle of it. It’s odd because bar seats can open up and if you are a party of two, seating is probably quicker.
The food is amazing. I got the Turkey burger, it was so good. Everybody in our party was happy with the food and the service once we got seated.

I love diners and was excited to try this place out. It does not accommodate a large party very well. There was ten of us and we waited for over an hour because they couldn’t figure out what to do with us.
We finally got seated, the service was good. Very nice and pretty quick all considering.
The food was good. Exactly what you expect from a diner… We all had breakfast and everything was cooked well. Great place for kids, with good options.

Finally had a chance to try out the new location over the weekend and I was glad that it lived up to the Red Arrow standard.
The new location in Londonderry is right off exit 5 and sits between a state liquor store and a gas station. If a strip club were added to the mix, it might be the perfect truck stop. That’s not to say the place is sketchy, because it isn’t, it’s just a lot of hedonism in a confined space.
This new Red Arrow Diner location is much larger than the cramped, little trailer on Lowell St. in Manchester and is much cleaner, too. The place is bright with your typical diner color scheme of red and white, has a nice tile floor, and clean granite tabletops in each booth. There is a counter with stools that you can eat at, as well.
Sporting breakfast, lunch, and dinner all day, the Red Arrow delivers your textbook diner fare, fats and starch covered in delicious, salty sauces. It’s good food, but it’s the sort of restaurant that you walk away from feeling kind of terrible and needing a nap.
TIP: try one of their many pies. They’re excellent.
The Red Arrow is neither amazing nor terrible, it’s just textbook, or baseline, and sometimes that’s not a bad thing. All-​in-​all, I’ll be back.

Food was ok, good value though. I got the chicken fried steak eggs benny and an order of pancakes.
Pancakes were chewy, not light and fluffy. The poached eggs were hard boiled, not sure if I had to order the poached eggs soft boiled or not, I thought when you order eggs benedict they come one way. Hash browns were salty along with the chicken fried steak.
The waitress was nice, and the quantity of food was good.
Probably won’t go out of my way to go there again, and I definitely won’t order the same thing.

I had the pork pie — just like mom used to make!
service was great — restaurant super clean! I’ll be back!

Eaten here many times. Service is almost always slow and inattentive.
Ordered a steak and cheese omelette with sour dough toast and hash browns. The omelette arrived hot but that was the only thing positive to say. Egg portion was way over cooked and rubbery the steak was dry and flavorless. Large omelette with two small slices of American cheese. The sour dough toast was buttered bread that saw no toasting time at all. Hash browns sadly were the only portion of the meal that was remotely executed correctly
Overall a huge disappointment.

Was glad to see the Arrow open here, closer to home. Don’t come for your foo-​foo, uppity New Englanders crap, you’ll be disappointed. Come for decent dinner food, consistent quality, and a great menu. Clean and usually speedy too.
The American Chop Suey is terrific!

I love that they put a Red Arrow in this location. The food is good home cooking and the staff is very friendly and accommodating. I had pork pie and it was delicious! Great breakfast!

I hate to tell anyone who thinks otherwise, but this legendary local status of the incredible Red Arrow diner and its legacy in NH is complete bullshit. The Red Arrow in Manchester has always been awful. This new location we tried on a whim during a late night drive home, hoping it might be like Mary Ann’s, where the diners are owned by the same people, but are night and day from each other. This was not the case.
They did carry a lot of the Red Arrow traditions down to Londonderry though. The awful food, disgusting atmosphere and the atrocious waitstaff. There were a half dozen tables covered in food and trash from previous diners and the one we chose to sit at needed to be wiped down and wasn’t. A couple next to us sat at one of the filthy tables assuming it would be cleared and they weren’t even acknowledged for 15 minutes. When they were, it was to be asked if they had paid yet for food they hadn’t yet ordered.
I will never get the appeal of the Red Arrow name, other than the lard lads and last call drunks who rave about it. They get an extra star because of the fact that unlike Manchester, you can sit here and not have waiting customers breathing and coughing down your neck and the great location, which will hopefully be used by a better place than this someday soon.

A great place to unwind when life gets you down.
Friendly service, excellent food, friendly atmosphere.
Perfect place to bring a family!

My fiancé and I went to the Red Arrow today for lunch. I ordered an omelet. About 5 minutes after I started eating the omelet, the waiter came over to the table and told me that he forgot to inform me that there is now a 20 cent per egg surcharge and my omelet would cost me 60 cents more than the menu states. I thought he was joking at first because it is so absurd but he insisted it was true. He explained it was because of bird flu making the cost of eggs higher.
Two points on this. First, if your costs go up as a business, you should raise the cost of your product, not tack on a per ingredient surcharge onto the product. Otherwise, deal with the market price being what it is, absorb the cost and move on. Charging a surcharge on my omelet for eggs is like if a taxi charged me for gas in addition to my fare. I know it used gas, that why I’m paying you your fare!
Second point; if you are going to assess a surcharge then at least make it reasonable. 20 cents per egg? Even with the increased cost of eggs that is still basically the entire cost of the egg. So, when I pay the $ 8.79 for the omelet what am I paying for if you are also charging me the cost of the eggs? The pleasure of your company?
This is absurd! I grew up two blocks from the original Red Arrow. I’ve been going there my whole life. This kind of asinine bad business practice is exactly the sort of thing that would make me swear a place off for good!

I’ve been coming to the Red Arrow for many years. I’ve been to each location; Manchester, Milford and the new Londonderry location, and I can say each spot has its own charm and characteristics.
Londonderry, when it comes to convenience for location and parking, it can’t be beat here. It’s right off the highway, huge parking lot, and it being attached to other establishments makes it the perfect rest stop for anyone passing through or looking for a fantastic meal.
The service is always friendly, bringing that New Hampshirite charm you can’t find anywhere else. And yes, sometimes the service can be slow, but that’s because this is one of the most popular cheap eats comfort food restaurants in the entire state. If the meal is taking a little while, don’t worry, it’s always worth the wait.
In closing, The Red Arrow Diner is perfect for locals or anyone passing through looking to refill the gas tank.
Don’t take my word for it, try it out!
Happy eating.

I also stopped here for an early Wednesday evening dinner to take advantage of the Spaghetti & Meatballs Blue Plate Special ($ 7.99-$ 2.00 early bird discount 4PM-​6PM).
I sat up at the counter, but the initial service got off to a rough start. The older waitress I had from the previous visit saw me and greeted me as I sat at the same stool, but IGNORED me on purpose and took care of 2 parties who arrived after me, but they sat on the RMZ store side of the diner. I may assume certain sections/​seats of the diner were assigned to different servers. BUT, THIS WAS UNACCEPTABLE BEHAVIOR IMHO (this never happened at the Manchester location), but things were fine afterwards. (Carol S. needs to look into this.)
After about 7 minutes, I finally got the attention of another waitress (younger) who was making a drink for another table. After she was done serving food to the other table, I immediately placed my order for Beans Toast & A Cup ‘O Moe ($ 3.99) and the Spaghetti & Meatballs Early Bird Blue Plate Special ($ 5.99), 10 minutes after arriving here.
The younger waitress promptly set up the silverware and I get my hot coffee immediately. The older waitress returns and serves my food of beans and toast and the blue plate special and also gave me a refill on the coffee, similar to the acceptable good service I received on the previous visit. The food I had was very good overall.
Also, another waitress came over to check on me and I gave her some old Red Arrow gift cards to check the balances. With the assistance of a manager, it took a few moments to check the card balances (I was given a new gift card since one card was very old). I also enjoyed another refill on the hot coffee after dinner, but no dessert on this visit.
I want this Londonderry location to make it and do very well, and be as great as the original Red Arrow Diner in Manchester. However, as others have mentioned, the service, management, and attitudes (first come/​first served and be friendly and prompt too) here need major improvement to make this important «around the clock» restaurant operation be a success.
For now, the Original Red Arrow Diner in Downtown Manchester is STILL THE BEST BET for good eats and great people (slogan borrowed from Tucker’s of Hooksett), even if I have to drive an extra 12 minutes and find parking downtown. Over time, I will stop at this location when things hopefully get better.

What a disappointment from the legendary Red Arrow Diner!
This place really disappointed us both and many other diners on a busy Sundays morning.
The service was bad. Very bad. Staff just standing around, chatting it up with each other, and walking by empty coffee cups and just really trained not very well.
The kitchen was in the weeds and the diners were waiting 30+ minutes to get their food. The manager was in the kitchen trying to give direction.
The food was just eh. I had the most awful hash browns I think I have ever had. They were overcooked, greasy, and not seasoned. The omelet was also unseasoned.
I expect more from this place. I hope they can get it together. I will give it another shot sometime but not for a long while.