Weirs Beach After Dark

Admittedly, when I actually lived in the Lakes Region I was in high school and it was the 1980s, so night life consisted of going to some bonfire in the middle of the woods with a six-pack of warm beer or going to some kid’s house whose parents were out of town, so I may not have a lot to offer on this topic. However, one fun thing I always did each summer was go to the Weirs Drive in, which has been in operation since the 1950s and still shows first-run double features. Now, the last movie I saw there was “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure,” so it’s been a while, but it’s an old-fashioned drive in with two screens, a radio channel you locate to get the sound, and a snack bar. They also let people watch movies if they show up on foot, but I don’t know what they charge for that and how those people actually hear what’s going on.

I would like to warn you that the bars in the Weirs are not great. Now, we will have missed motorcycle weekend by one week, which will mean fewer bikers (whom all of my friends and co-workers at the Pancake House used to think were great, but I used to secretly detest. Now I can tell the truth: no, the bikers were not “really nice,” and no, they did not tip well.) As for bars in the Weirs, there’s the sleazy Paradise Beach Club, the skanky Mexican restaurant/bar Crazy Gringo, and the even sleazier “Loony Bin”. To be fair, I have not been near any of these places for 20 years or so, so maybe something has changed, but I wouldn’t have high hopes.

Some good places to go: there are two outdoor bars on the beach. My favorite is the Tiki bar at the Town Docks in Meredith bay. The picture you see on the side was taken by C.H. at the Town Docks, when C & C visited us a few years ago. They also have very good food (seafood—both steamers and an all-you-can-eat fish fry, full meals or appetizers) and they often serve drinks in pineapples or coconuts or other large fruits with thick rinds. It is expensive, but one of those will go a long way. Just don’t give any food or alcohol to the ducks; the management really frowns on that.

The other beach bar is at the Naswa Motel, not too far from the Weirs. The Naswa is both trashier and cheaper than the Town Docks, but it often has live music and is supposed to be quite lively. There is also an ice cream place that serves beer and wine by the lake called Liliokulani’s. They were closed last summer so I’m not sure if they will reopen again. It does seem a little strange for an ice cream place to serve liquor, particularly since they also boast of a small swimming beach (that’s just asking for problems) but maybe that’s why they’ve been closed.

One decent place to go for a beer is Patrick’s Pub in Gilford. They have outdoor tables and they also serve food. It has a definite “pub” feel to it and it’s not fancy but I like the tall booths; it feels like a college bar, but in a good way. I usually run into someone I knew a long time ago and need time to recognize. Plus, I can finally say I’m getting married, so I hope I do see some of them!

Another local bar/restaurant is Giuseppe’s in the Mills Falls Marketplace in Meredith. My dad really, really loves the food at Giuseppe’s, but I think it’s because they accept his special dietary requests (everything on the side, and so forth) with patience. I think it’s an OK place, especially if you bring kids (good brick oven pizza), but it has a pretty nice bar. They usually have live performers there, sometimes really annoying (it’s more of a piano bar) and they are often quite loud.

One option, too, is the tavern at Funspot. Yes, they serve drinks at Funspot, in the bowling alley/bingo area. It all comes back to Funspot. If you think about it, there’s something for a person at every age: fun games for children, arcade games for teenagers, bowling for adults, and bingo for the over-50 set: it’s the circle of life!