the Lyons' Den, Gilford
 

:liplick: I had the pleasure of dining on my birthday at the Lyons Den recently. What a fabulous meal! I had Steak au poivre..not for the faint of heart, as the menu states..and it was so tender I literally could cut it with my fork. It was accompanied by roasted red bliss potatoes (other choices were rice pilaf or baked potato) and butternut squash which had just the right amount of sweetness. My companions all had beef...steak tips, prime rib and rib eye steak. The portions were generous and all meat melted in our mouths.My only wish was that salad should be included in the price of the meal.

Dessert was to die for. Our party had cheesecake, tiramisu and the very decadent volcano cake..with one scoop of french vanilla and one scoop of coffee ice cream drizzled with dark chocolate syrup. The "lava" was actually chocolate sauce, just enough, not too much.

The ambiance and decor is very nice. We sat next to the gas fireplace which sent a comfy warmth to our table.
The owner ,Lauren was very friendly.
I do hope you will take the time to visit Lyon's Den. Off the beaten path, well worth the trip. The Phantom Gourmet must hear about this place!:liplick:

Lyons' Den is wonderful
 

Glad you found this "hidden gem".

The boss and I have been to Lyon's Den many times, and found the food. the service and staff to be great.

Try them sometime at lunch... great prices!

We're not alone liking this place... check them out in the restaurant review posts.:)

Best
 

Hi SteveA:

Where is the Lyon's Den located in Gilford? I missed it when I was up a few weeks ago.

Bill

Mar-06 - A Locke's Island resident has informed Bizer that The Lyons Den restaurant has opened at the former location of Townsend's Tavern (which was formerly Gilford Tavern which was formerly Gretchen's Restaurant).

Located at the Glendale Docks…

From a prior forum thread:
http://www.winnipesaukee.com/forums/...hp/t-2982.html

Website from prior named establishment:
http://mysite.verizon.net/vze3nm2c/townsendstavern/

Picture of Townsend's Tavern to give idea of appearance:

http://mysite.verizon.net/vze3nm2c/s...g.w560h365.jpg

Right next door to the Marine Patrol at the Glendale town docks.

Yum!
 

Always yum at the Lyon's Den! Great service, staff, atmosphere!
Chicken Nicole is great!! The crabcakes are awesome, too!

More on Lyon's Den
 

Went for lunch Saturday and it was GREAT. They have a really good Cuban sandwich, which is unusual for the northeast, if not unheard of. The Ceasar salad was excellent as was the onion soup. Folks behind us had the crabcakes and raved, so that will be my next choice! Excellent and the owners are very nice.

Cuban sandwiches
 

Cuban sandwich
 

It's not as good as some I've had (like at El Siboney in Key West), but it's roast pork, ham, melted cheese, pickle on soft, grilled roll that is as close to Cuban bread as you can get up here in the boonies!!! It was quite good. Could have used some Chipotle mayo on it!!

Cubans
 

Lunch
 

We decided to try the Lyon's Den for lunch today. The restaurant is right next to the Marine Patrol in Gilford. They have a nicely appointed dining room and wonderful views. My wife tried the fish & chips and I went exotic (a burger). Everything was well prepared and the service was friendly. Nice Place!

Jetskier:cool:

Thank You
 

I just wanted to say "thank you" for all of the kind words. We appreciate your input and we truly take all of your comments to heart. Thanks again for the warm welcome to Gilford - We hope to become your favorite restaurant for many years to come.

Lauren Lyons
The Lyons' Den Restaurant & Tavern

Lyon's Den today
 

We had the family at Lyon's Den today for lunch. Great service and great food.

If you haven't tried it.. try it!

Lauren... you and your husband have done a wonderful job at creating a great place and a great menu! (Glad you added the Duck to the dinner menu.. it's fantastic)

Great touch putting the binoculars next to the windows so customers can look out across the lake!

Hang in through the "slow times" .. I'm sure you two will make it!


And NO... Before anyone asks, I'm just a customer that thinks this is a great place for you to try. :)

Lyon's Den
 

Funny you should mention it...I had some communication with Lauren, and she tells me they are still open Wed through Sun for Lunch and Dinner. Would be a great place for a Christmas party, or just a get together.

Thanks for the info. I will try to schedule something ove the weekend before Christmas.

Lyon's Den 2007
 

It was 2 below outside but warm and yummy inside. After reading all the really great opinions of this restaurant, Mrs. Hermit Cover and I stopped in tonite and found out for ourselves why people like this place. This is surely a dining experience you want to take your friends, relatives, and for sure, out of town guests to relax without worrying about the food, ambience, and the (outstanding) service.

Oh....the duck was perfect...the prime rib was as good as it gets. A freeeeezing Friday nite in January, a full dining room and lounge. Can't wait to show off this Lyon's Den.....what a WONDERFUL find. (Don'tcha just love it when a bunch of non-professional reviewers get it right???)

Couldn't Agree More
 

We eat at Lyon's Den often..... food is great and the people are wonderful.

Really glad to hear that the place was busy.

SteveA

Great Lunch
 

My wife and I stopped by Saturday for lunch, our first time there. We had calamari for an appetizer and lobster bisque and a toasted kielbasa sandwich. We enjoyed it very much and plan to stop again even though its a bit out of our way. The lounge was full. We were there mid afternoon so the dining room was (not surprisingly) very quiet.

Updated On-Line Menu
 

Lauren was kind enough to pass along an updated menu and some photos so I've posted them on line. They may be found here....

LYONS' DEN MENU

http://mysite.verizon.net/vze3nm2c/s...g.w560h204.jpg
:liplick: :liplick:
:liplick:
:liplick:

Check out the website
 

Click on the picture of Glendale bay to get into the website. If you have been there, sign the guest book for Lauren...We need to fill it up for her.

The Lyon's Den
 

Back in the late 1960's the same restaurant was called "Dorothy's".
I have fond memories visting back then on Friday nights when we would drive up from Mass. to our cottage on Varney Point.

This was a great little place in it's time, food and service was always excellent! We were very sad to see it go out of business ?

I'll have to check out the "Lyon's Den" very soon, looks GREAT !

Thanks!

Back in those days, we had a trailer across the street in two pines trailer park (4th one in back in those days). Nice family style restaurant, simple fare, and really cute waitresses...at least to a wide-eyed high school kid:laugh: . Dorothy was something else, always giving us the dickens for hanging out, and then out of the blue on some days, asking us if we would like a small cone on her. (thanks Dorothy).

Lyon's Den is very nice, and you won't be disappointed.

OK, I'm going to date myself here. I use to work at Dorothy's; summer of '69. I was the "soda jerk" when Dorothy had a back room counter area. I actually interviewed for the job with Dorothy herself. I was living in Gilford, too young to drive a car but was able to "commute" to work via a mahogany Correct Craft that I would dock at the Glendale docks while I worked. Had to be at work at 6am and boating over to work was so cool on usually "glass" water conditions Great memories!

Another great meal
 

Had to go to Laconia late this afternoon, and decided to eat out as neither my wife or I were going to feel like cooking once we got home. As we were going to be driving right past the Lyon's Den, we decided to stop and have supper there. As usual, no disappointment here.

I sampled a micro brewery stout, whose name escapes me, but I was surprised by the list of micro suds...not huge, but intriguing.

My wife and I both started with a cup of soup, which was a corn chowder with italian sausage...could have made a meal out of it by itself. She had Chicken Nicole, a chicken breast with artichoke hearts and mushrooms, roasted red potatoes, and some of those orange thingees (she hates carrots, but these were glazed and she actually ate half of them:eek: ...surprise, surprise, surprise!) I would like to tell you how the chicken was, but all I got off her plate was one mushroom (don't touch the chicken or artichokes) and a couple pieces of potato.

I on the other hand went for the Tenderloin Tips Teriyaki, cooked to perfection, good sized serving, with rice pilaf and glazed carrots. As the waiter took the plate when I was done, I said it wasn't very good, I could even finish it...of course it was empty, and because there were some other diners there, I couldn't with good concience like the plate clean.:rolleye1: Of course it was excellent. Felt like I was on a roll, so I had the chocolate bomb for dessert, which was chocolate cake, with chocolate mousse on top, rolled in chocolate sliver type chips, and I think with a chocolate sauce, and vanilla ice cream next to it. :liplick: :liplick: :liplick:

Not wanting to leave without meeting Lauren (Neural721 here on the forum), I asked the waiter to let her know the UTS was there, and she graciously came over and spoke with Jane & I. Nice talking to you Lauren, continued good luck with restaurant, and can't wait to get the boat in the water, docked at Smith's cove, within easy walking distance of the restaurant. See you again, and I hope soon.

Great Meal!
 

Hi all,

I had to run up to the lake today and stopped in for an early dinner. The food was terrific (as usual). I tried the duck (an acid test for any good restaurant) and it was prepared wonderfully.

Business has been a bit slow for the restaurant, especially in April. So, I would urge everyone out there to drop in for a meal. Their prices are reasonable, the food is terrific and the view is great!

Jetskier:cool:

The meeting with the condo association...don't ask:D

I had another fine meal at the Lyon's Den. I am very happy to see that they now have a blue state sign on Rt 11. We celebrated our anniversary and found out that Lauren was about to celebrate hers! Happy Anniversary to Lauren and hubby...here's to a great summer season!

I ate ther last saturday with my girlfriend and we both had a fantastic meal! Lauren was actually the one who waited on us. We had been meaning to try it for quite sometime and finally got around to it. We will definitely be back.

Adding to the Kudos, we enjoyed a fine meal a couple weekends ago and had a wonderful time. The tenderloin tips were perfect and everyone enjoyed it. We'll go back again.

Finally got to the Den
 

We finally made it to the Lyons Den last night for the first time. Our ritual and of vacation dinner. We were a party of five and between us we had the roast duck, veal Marsala, Prime Rib and Fliet Mignon with appetizers including artichoke hearts, crab cakes,and chicken tenders. EVERYthing was outstanding. Prime rib and Filet were cooked perfectly, the ducks were crispy outside and moist and tender inside, the Veal was the best that person has had in years. We have been by there so many times getting to the docks but never stopped. This will now go to the top of our list.

Another Great Meal
 

Last Friday we had a group of 4 at Lyon's Den. Everyone had a great meal. They had a hugh "wedding rehearsal" party.. but still managed to take great care with our meals... Salmon, Veal , all perfect. Great place.

4 Stars.

Is it accessible by boat?
 

Are there public docks at or near the Lyon's den?
Thanks.

Another Great Meal
 

I've attempted to try the Lyon's Den 3 times in the past year and every time they've had a special function going on, so no tables available to the general public. I guess I'll have to call ahead next time so as not to waste the trip.

Public Docks
 

They are right at the marine patrol and Gilford town docks. (Smith Cove). I'd call the resturant to check on "Public Docking'

According to the signs, the middle dock is the general public dock with a three hour limit.

You can absolutely use the middle docks for general docking for the restaurant.Actually,I was there yesterday and all the docks were empty.With the lake down 18 inches though,the dock is getting pretty high.

Gift Certificates
 

I have been getting a lot of inquiries lately about gift certificates. We stopped selling our own gift certificates at the end of November because we are having some financial issues and I just don't want to sell them if I cannot honor them. We are however members of Restaurant.Com where you can get $25 certificates for $12.50 and we are also allowing 15% off your entire bill for any Willows gift certificates presented. Happy Holidays!!:)

Hope your financial issues work out in your favor. I look forward to getting over there in the next week or so.

Twice in two days!
 

With all the favorable comments here, we tried Lyon's Den on Sunday night for a birthday celebration. The food was exceptional, atmosphere cozy and staff very friendly. I had the veal marsala and my boyfriend the duck. The glazed carrots were an especial treat. My boyfriend said he never had carrots so good and he does not particularly care for carrots.

Since we enjoyed it so much, we returned New Year's Eve with my father who is visiting. Even though we did not have reservations, they had one more table and we had another fabulous meal before going on to Wolfeboro for First Night.

We will be back. Normally, we do not get to the Gilford area since there are so many good restaurants on the north side of the lake but Lyon's Den is worth a trip.