The Common Man -- coming soon to a downtown near you.
OK, so we know you’ve been wondering what’s going on at the former Victory restaurant, scheduled to become the new home of the latest in the statewide Common Man chain of restaurants. Believe it or not, I’ve never even been to any of the other Common Man locations, but The Beer Drinker swears by them.
Anyway, after sending a bevy of e-mails their way, we finally made contact with the right person at the Common Man, marketing/PR guru Erica Auciello Murphy. Just as we thought, she said the folks at the Common Man have been busy opening up their new Claremont restaurant. Now that it’s up and running, Erica took a few minutes to answer some of my questions about the forthcoming Portsmouth location.
Though it sounds like the opening date has been bumped back a bit from its original late June/early July timeline, Erica said the restaurant has been busy interviewing, hiring and training staff, as well as planning the menu and participating in community events. For example, she said the Porsmouth team, led by general manager Erika Murphy McAllister, was out and about at Market Square Day earlier this month. And though you might not see anything happening when you look through the windows, she assures us there has been a lot going on behind the scenes.
Here are her responses to the questions we posed to her. As with the River House, we’ll handle it Q&A style:
Mr. X: When do you plan on opening?
Erica: We don’t have an exact date yet, sometime this summer!
X: How will the new Portsmouth Common Man resemble other Common Man establishments, and how will it differ?
E: It will resemble our other Common Man locations in excellent customer service, decor and menu selections like our award-winning Crab Cakes, comfort foods like Prime Rib, Baked Macaroni and Cheese (Mr. X’s stomach is growling), and other dishes we like to call “American fare with flair!” We will be making some modifications to reflect our location on the Seacoast with more local, fresh seafood options as well. Guests can take a look at Common Man menus from other locations at: http://www.thecman.com/restaurants/common-man-merrimack/menu.aspx. We’ll be serving dinner seven days a week starting at 5 p.m. Our Common Man Portsmouth team will also have the same commitment to its local community as our other locations, getting involved with community events and hosting fundraisers for local non-profits.
X: Do you plan to feature any live music?
E: No plans for any live music at this time.
X: What types of beers will you be serving on tap and in bottles?
E: We have our Common Man ale on tap, which is brewed for us by Smuttynose. In bottles, we’ll be offering: Sam Adams, Sam Adams Light, Sam Adams Lager, Sam Adams Summer, Harpoon UFO, Harpoon IPA, Smuttynose Star IslandSingle, Smuttynose Robust Porter, Red Hook Long Hammer, Peak Organic Brown, Budweiser and Coors Light. We’ll also offer other signature drinks, cocktails and wine flights (Editor’s note: I’m not sure what that is, but it sounds like something The Beer Drinker would enjoy), a sample of which can be found here: http://www.thecman.com/uploads/Common%20Man%20Summer%20Drink%20grill%20menu%204_09.pdf
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They were at The Taste of the Nation too so that was great that they participated even though they aren’t open.