The Inn at Jaffrey Center, while not in the center of town, is a traditional American inn. The rooms are spacious and fulfill the "quaintness" criteria: if you close one eye or one side of the brain, you can pretend to be in an earlier century or in the household of an eccentric but ultimately loving grand-aunt. The dining room closes early and there is no AC. However, our dinner was lovely, if a little overpriced. On a screened-in porch, we had, among other dishes, wonderful lamb, tomato salad, and fresh bread. The staff at the Jaffrey Center Inn were friendly, spirited, and relatively young. The pub seemed lively and there are many options for rocking-away a few hours on the porch.

This 100-year-old inn was quaint and seemed like it was out of a storybook. At night I was afraid of walking up the other guests because the floors creaked. Be sure to request a room on the 3rd floor! The room I stayed in (Bonnie Room) had the most comfortable bed and the heaters, while old, worked very well. It's a laid-back atmosphere so don't be in a rush if you need to check in or out in a hurry. The innkeepers are usually tending to other tasks (such as making breakfast when I wanted to check out) before they can help you. I would go back and stay at the inn though for a real taste of New England life.

My wife and I did not stay at the Inn, but ate dinner there. (We stayed at the Benjamin Prescott Inn) We arrived on a Friday night, without a reservation, so the hostess apparently managed to find us a table. The atmosphere was nice, though a bit loud (because of one party near us). Dress was upscale casual, I think I was wearing jeans and a nice shirt.

Our meal was amazing. You can see a representative sample of the menu at their website: (---)

I had the pan seared breast of duck and my wife had the agrodolce roasted chicken, and both were amazing, well worth the price.

However, I must say that our waitress offered poor service. I noticed 3 wait staff in the room and the other two seemed to be very attentive of their customers. Our waitress, however, came to our table maybe 4 times in the hour, and generally did not seem very cheerful.

We are glad we went there, simply because of the great food quality.

On a recent trip back east, I had the delightful experience of discovering the Inn at Jaffrey Center,in Jaffrey, New Hampshire. It was truly a unique New England experience!!! The rooms were not only adorable, but cozy as can be. The smell of the home cooked breakfast was what got my boys out of bed each morning. After fabulous days of shopping and sightseeing, it was a pleasure to spend some time in the lounge hob-nobbing with the locals and hearing their tales. I loved the convenience of the restaurant on site so that once we were "home" for the day, we could just sit back and relax. An added bonus was Max, one of the owners of the Inn, who was great at entertaining my two boys and made them feel that they too were important guests at the Inn. It is very rare that a child is made to feel so important and one that made my boys feel like a million bucks!!! We all ended our visit very relaxed and were sad to have had the time go by so quickly. I believe that my boys left with a bit of "Davey Crocket" in their blood after a wonderful, country experience.