The sun was shining on the late afternoon of Friday, June 22, and temperatures hovered in the mid 80s. The nice weather inspired Portsmouth residents Jack and Kelly Ornelle to sit at the sidewalk café at Popovers on the Square, where they sipped drinks during a casual business meeting with George Carlisle.

“It made sense given the nice weather to do that outside,” Jack Ornelle said. “Why not enjoy a drink outside on a beautiful day?”

The three were taking advantage of a new policy in Portsmouth that has allowed five downtown restaurants to open outdoor cafés on public property this summer, increasing the local options for outdoor wining and dining.

“I think it’s a great idea having this kind of space available,” Ornelle said, musing that Popovers’ patio has a “Paris feel.”

“I think it’s fantastic,” Carlisle added.

Portsmouth’s new sidewalk cafés add to the area’s existing stock of bars and restaurants with outdoor decks, patios and courtyards. Another new addition to the outdoor dining scene is The Station, a beer garden-style restaurant that opened on June 26 outside a former gas station between State and Daniel streets.

Beer gardens and alfresco dining have long been popular, but up until last year, Portsmouth did not allow alcohol service on any city-owned property, including sidewalks.

The city’s first flirtation with sidewalk cafés came in the summer of 2011. According to city manager John Bohenko, several downtown businesses had requested permission to open outdoor service areas on city land.

“Over time, people wanted to start serving alcohol outside,” Bohenko said. “Across New Hampshire, you’re seeing more and more of that right now. So last year the city decided to do a pilot program.”

The program allowed two downtown restaurants—Popovers and The District, both on Congress Street—to serve food and alcohol on city space. In addition to its front patio, The District opened a side patio in the Vaughan Mall pedestrian area.

“I always wondered why there was no seating in Vaughan Mall. The spot is just perfect for it,” said District owner David Takis.

Takis said the gated outdoor areas have drawn a strong lunch crowd and often fill up in the evenings, especially on weekends.

“As long as the weather’s good, it’s been beautiful,” he said.

The pilot program went smoothly enough to convince the City Council to expand the service this year, offering up to six licenses for outdoor cafés. Only five restaurants applied by the May 1 deadline, and all of them received licenses. In addition to The District and Popovers, those businesses include Surf Restaurant on Bow Street, Ri Rá Irish Pub in Market Square, and State Street Saloon on State Street.   

These outdoor cafés can only stay open from April through October, and they must close by 10:30 p.m. each night. There are no specific limitations on their size, but they must leave enough room for pedestrians to safely navigate the sidewalk. The City Council grants licenses based on the location and accessibility of the proposed site. There is a licensing fee of $10 per square foot of space. 

Of course, there are other downtown Portsmouth businesses that offer outdoor alcohol service on private property. The area known as “the decks”—Poco’s Bow Street Cantina, Old Ferry Landing, River House Restaurant, Harpoon Willy’s and The Oar House Dock—sits on the edge of the Piscataqua River, overlooking Portsmouth’s busy tugboats and the Port of New Hampshire. On sunny days, the decks are always packed with locals and tourists alike, all soaking up rays as they sip beers, sangrias or margaritas (or Old Ferry Landing’s popular Jimmy Juice rum drinks).

Other downtown locales have outdoor courtyards, patios or porches. The Blue Mermaid has a back deck off High Street. Cava Tapas and Wine Bar has a patio open for lunch on Commercial Alley. The Portsmouth Brewery on Market Street and Four Restaurant on State Street each have courtyards for dining, and the Portsmouth Gas Light Co. on Market Street has a large back patio that often hosts live music.

The One Hundred Club, located five stories above the corner of Market and Hanover streets, has a wrap-around deck that offers sweeping views of downtown Portsmouth—though you have to be a member of the private club to take advantage.

A little farther from downtown, the Redhook Brewery in Pease Tradeport and Margaritas on Lafayette Road each offer back patios. The Kitchen and Street, both on Islington Street, now offer outdoor seating, as well.

There are numerous other options for outdoor dining and drinking in neighboring communities, including Hampton Beach and the other seaside towns of New Hampshire and southern Maine.

But Portsmouth is the only local community offering licenses to serve alcohol on public property. The city is walking a bit of a tightrope: Even as local law enforcement is cracking down on drunk driving and public intoxication, holding regular sobriety checkpoints and prosecuting bars that over-serve customers, the city is now offering opportunities for people to legally drink in public.

Bohenko noted that police have been involved in the planning process throughout. Businesses with outdoor cafés are still subject to local and state liquor laws, and customers are not allowed to bring drinks outside the gated areas. He said the city has not discussed the idea of allowing alcohol in public parks.

Of course, the idea of sidewalk cafés is nothing new. John Tinios, owner of Popovers on the Square, noted such cafés have been popular in Europe for centuries and have gradually spread to bigger cities in the United States.

“Outdoor dining has become huge. There are decks going up everywhere,” Tinios said. “I think we’re finally starting to get the fact that this is what people want.”

In fact, Tinios thinks the city should expand the program further and allow businesses to keep their sidewalk cafés open later than 10:30.

David Nyhand, general manager of Ri Ra Irish Pub, thinks sidewalk cafés will benefit all of downtown Portsmouth, spreading the market for outdoor dining to areas outside the often crowded decks.

“It just adds a little something extra to town, especially this side of town,” Nyhan said. “It’s an extra option for people to sit outside instead of having to go down to the decks by the water as the only option.”

Ri Rá’s new sidewalk café opened in late May with about 30 seats, right next to Breaking New Grounds’ outdoor seating in Market Square. “It’s probably one of the best people-watching spots downtown,” Nyhan said.

People watching is part of the appeal around the corner at Popovers, too. Tinios noted that downtown Portsmouth is bustling with pedestrian traffic during the summer months, and visitors like to be in the middle of the action.

“People like alfresco dining. It’s the city atmosphere. People like watching people. It’s interesting,” Tinios said.“It creates a new ambiance for that part of the year that I think people have embraced.”

State Street Saloon’s 20-seat outdoor café was in direct afternoon sunlight during the sweltering heat wave last week, and yet some customers still opted to eat lunch outside, according to owner Eli Sokorelis.

“I think it’s a nice addition to this town and a nice addition to our business, and people seem to enjoy it,” he said.

Even when the weather is unfavorable, sidewalk cafés have the added perk of increasing visibility. Surf Restaurant already had a balcony to the rear of the building, but its new café draws attention to the front.

“The big inspiration for us was we were looking to get more exposure on the street and create some interest,” said general manager John Dunn. “It’s really visible as people are coming down the street.”

Passersby may also notice a new outdoor eatery across the street from the former location of The Rosa Restaurant. That’s where Street owners Michelle Lozuaway and Josh Lanahan have opened The Station, a small restaurant with a kitchen and bar in two garage bays and an outdoor beer garden.

Lozuaway said the concept was “in keeping with the idea of a beer garden as a communal feeding and drinking experience in the outdoors.” An outdoor area with windows to the bar and kitchen has several long tables with bench seating, cordoned off by kegs and cinder blocks that have been transformed into garden planters.

The Station has 12 beers on draft and several others in bottles, along with wine and cocktails, as well as a variety of “picnicking foods.”

Plans call for The Station to stay open through mid November. The property owner has plans for future development, so The Station will only be a one- or two-year endeavor. “Our slogan is, ‘beer today, gone tomorrow,’” Lozuaway said.