The Rusty Hammer

Portsmouth, N.H.
I was in the mood for a good burger the other night and since I have heard so much about the WIMPYS (burgers) that The Rusty Hammer serves up, I figured, what the heck, why not give it a try! I sat with my dining companion in the bar area at one of their high tables so he could watch the NASCAR interviews that were on one of the TVs. The specials board showed that they Crab Pearls (which I had heard where good), but when our waitress came out, she said they didn't have any more of those and hadn't for a couple of days (since they were closed Sun/Mon I guess). We split a side (appetizer) order of Red Hook beer battered shrimp $7.95. Although these little morsels were quite tasty, there were only 9 little ones in the serving so at almost $1.00 each, soooooooooo not worth it. I had a Wimpy with cheddar cheese and mushrooms with a side of seasoned waffle fries. It was good, but nothing to rave about. My dining companion ordered a steak which was exactly what I thought it was going to be, a BAD idea. It came out cooked medium to temp, but was tough and he didn't think anything special. Of course not, it's the Rusty Hammer. The waitress wasn't that friendly from the get go and never returned to our table (she kept hanging out up by the front door, I don't know, looking for love perhaps?) until I asked for the check. I think your best bet with the Rusty Hammer is skip the food and go right for the drinks in the bar. They do run some good Beer Bucket specials right now thanks to the Red Sox.