The Red Door

Cresta is not only extremely hot but she can mix a drink with the best of them!
Very creative and different… A true mixologist!
Did I mention she is cute?

AWESOME drinks. Probably the best in town. I had the Ted Kennedy, which was amazing. Super friendly and patient bartender. Good music, good vibes. Portsmouth could use more bars like this!

Besides the super-​hot bouncer checking IDs (George Clooney lookalike!) I would never return. The place was so packed I felt like a sardine. It felt unsafe with the amount of people up such a narrow staircase. Couldn’t even see the bar and would never have made it over to it.

This place is great. Small. Usually terrific music. At least one of the Monday night acts is always terrific – and noone knows about it.

Awesome little bar in Portsmouth. Has a kind of speak-​easy entrance — not really ‘advertised’ from the street. Before midnight is usually active but ‘quieter’ cocktail crowd — after the clock strikes twelve it gets packed, younger, louder and a little crazy [in a good way]…be prepared ;)

Wait, so you’re telling me there’s a dance club somewhere where:
–The bouncers aren’t entitled dicks?
–The bartenders are cool and patient?
–They actually play dance music in a dance club? House music that doesn’t make it impossible for conversation to happen? A place where I can dance to something other that Top 40 drivel I can hear on the radio at any time?
5 stars.

Fun Place. Little cramped and dark but unique crowd and the Dragon Martini drink is amazing !

I’ve been coming here since it opened and haven’t done a review yet? Hmm… that’s odd.
Anyway, if you like Martini’s and want to feel like you are in someone’s living room in LA or NYC this is the place for you.
It’s cozy, casual, and there’s something different going on every night of the week ranging from acoustic music (Monday Nights), to punk music (Thursday Nights) to dance club music (Wednesday, Friday, Saturday nights) reggae music (Sunday nights) and they sometimes host comedy events, literary events, and other various entertainment. It’s worth checking out.

Interesting idea: lounge setting, candlelit, martini menu, dance music, and exclusive, underground feel.
Positives: doorman was pleasant and welcoming, nice arrangement of seating, exposed brick, plenty of candles to give a glow.
Negatives: Dirty, smelly, and needs a facelift. The carpet leading upstairs to the lounge needs to be replaced, as you’re greeted with its stench upon entry and it follows you into the bar. The leather ottomans are stained, torn, and it makes you not want to take advantage of the abundant seating. The baseboard paint is chipped and needs to be retouched. Lighting behind the bar is limited and should be increased, as a customer can’t exactly see what is being made, make a determination on cleanliness, etcetera – makes me only want to order bottled beer for obvious reasons. Overall, the unpleasant smell of the room is the major drawback – smells like a musty, mildewy basement despite being on the second floor.
If the owners are serious about creating an upscale feel appropriate for Portsmouth, it’s time to sink some money into the lounge, clean it up, and differentiate it from a frat basement. That way, they could perhaps get a crowd earlier than super late night (when everyone is too far gone to notice these details).

Very cool atmosphere above Dos Amigos.
Great staff as far as I can tell.
Music is hit or miss, but you can go online before hand and see who is DJ and listen to some of their tracks.
Only complaint is the drink variety. If you aren’t in for martinis, then you may want to go somewhere else, as the beer list is very limited. All they have is Martini’s and a few beers.

Went here the other night for a friends birthday. «Nightlife» in Portsmouth seems to be about brewpubs, which is not my scene. I don’t go out at night to hang out with a bunch of other guys. This place is dark, fairly decent music, strong drinks if you get the blonde girl to make them. Fairly decent crowd, but the place closes just as things get going– must be the Puritan influence, hey it’s New England, right? Kind of looks like someone took a trip to the City, went to PDT and Raine’s Law Room and came back to NH and opened this place. They pretty much got it right. In the big scheme of things, not really spectacular– but for a town like Portsmouth it’s pretty damn good. Interesting things can happen in places like this. I had a good time, and I’d go back.

Went here for the first time a couple nights ago and have to say I was pleasantly surprised. Great atmosphere with comfy seating, intimate lighting and fantastic drinks! Live music makes it a perfect date night spot. I had a lot of fun and will certainly return.

Where are the 3.5 out of 5 options? Very cool vibe. For a Saturday night was a bit surprised to see the crowd lacking. Comfy chairs, well executed drinks and a chill DJ greet you upon entry. Would like to see them keep closed the upstairs entry door to create a more intimate, exclusive feel.

A very pleasant little bar that wouldn’t notice if you weren’t looking for it. The ambience and lighting are very intimate and the seating comfortable, if not beautiful. The bartender was very nice and made very tasty drinks for us, but the highlight was the music, which was excellent. Three performers played about 10′ from us, and everyone was there to listen to the music. The musicians were all very talented, and it was one of the better singer/​songwriter shows I’ve attended. In all, a very good night out (and it was only $ 5 to get in!).

I’ve never had a bad, or even relatively mediocre, drink here. Of course, I can only afford one per trip, but they’re stiff and will keep you satisfied for most of the night.
The Hush Hush music series is well worth the $ 5 cover charge, with a well varied roster (extremely tough to come by in New Hampshire) and an atmosphere that focuses all of its attention to the bands playing. They will literally «hush» you if you’re talking too loud during the music, which some people are offended by, but some of us are here to see the bands, and it’s impossible to go to a show anywhere else without at least one idiot shouting drunken nonsense at people or trying to start fights.
The cramped interior, low lights, nondescript (nearly «secret») front entrance, and polite staff and clientele are what make this place «totally my kinda thing.»
The steep drink prices would be the only thing keeping this from a 5-​star review, but everything else is so spectacular I feel no need to split hairs. I hope they stay in business for a long time.

I DJed here recently so maybe I’m biased, but I think this place is rad. It’s a small room with a really good sound system and on weekends they have real DJs playing house music. I can’t imagine there’s another spot like this in the area. The staff is awesome and they have good drinks. Can’t go wrong.

A nondescript Red Door is the entrance into this dance club.
Even paid a $ 5 cover to get in on a cold and rainy Wednesday nite… really?..
All I can say is that its not much of a club. Its a tiny club about 900sq feet, the dance floor is smaller than my patio and the bar is smaller than 2 two by fours put together. Trust me when I say this… this whole place is the size of a two car garage.
The music is decent, the crowd is upper 20ish. I think it gets packed much later, around 11 or 12 maybe.
I guess if you like standing shoulder to shoulder in a club and just inching your way to the bar, you may enjoy this place… For me. I felt like a sardine and I just needed to get out of there.

This is one of my all time favorite places to visit when I lived in Portsmouth and when I come back to visit. It’s a great place hidden from the tourists and yuppies that have increased in the years.
Chill house music fills the small, yet semi upscale place filled with professionals of all ages looking to savor a nice martini or cocktail. If you can appreciate the upscale cocktails and creations of mixologists you find in bigger cities, you’ll like this place.
This place is also a great place to take a date early in the night or weekend for it’s intimate and classy feel.

Maybe I came in on an odd night, or maybe this place is just a weird place. It was pretty crowded in there for a tuesday night, decent live music, and the drinks were good. But, I found the mixture of 20 – 30 year olds with an abundance of 60 – 70 year olds a bit strange.
The couches are comfortable but set up in a movie theatre like rows and are completely random. the sound level for the music was perfect, so props to the friendly sound man.
If you like mojitos I had an delicious one here. But if you have a few drinks be careful not to fall on your face as you head out on the wobbly uneven stairs.

The Red Door is both at the same time awesome/​hip and tragically ridiculous.
I love the underground feel of the spot; very exclusive and chic, with inviting plush chairs and grown up martinis. The music doesn’t totally inhibit conversation, a rare benefit at a place that features dancing.
Place can get remarkably wierd in a hurry, though. I’ve been here a half dozen times, and every single visit, something goes down. I’ll keep it PG-​13, but suffice it to say… an ecclectic crowd comes here.
This would likely be a favorite spot if I enjoyed house music; as it stands, it’s fun, sexy, and great for a cocktail. Make sure you’re on your toes for the adventures, though.