Somewhere around the first week of November, the question starts. At the post office, in line at the hardware store, from the person who cuts your hair. So…are you cooking this year? I’m not cooking this year and it got me thinking about all of the different ways that people spend Thanksgiving.
If the answer to that question is yes, and it always is, you’ve had a plan since October. You know where the good turkey comes from. There are also turkey raffles all over the region this month, so you may be set before you’ve bought a single potato. For many years, I cooked for a crowd and while my family and friends made fun of the spreadsheet I started in September each year with cooking times and oven temps, no one complained that their favorite side was never forgotten.
If the answer is “I’m not sure yet,” that’s a different kind of Thursday. A guest list changes, or someone’s flight does. The people you counted on are somewhere else now. There are more options than you’d think, and some of them take orders until the last minute.
And if the answer is a long pause, because the table is complicated this year or the empty chair is the loud one, there’s room for that too. The holidays aren’t all hallmark storylines and this time of year can be hard for people for lots of different reasons. Check on your friends and neighbors, and whatever your day looks like, know that you matter, and that there’s nothing wrong with taking a quiet day off or with reaching out for help if you need it.
Whatever Thursday looks like, there’s a choice below that fits it. Thanksgiving this year is Nov. 26.
If you want someone else to do the cooking
Sitting down. In Wolfeboro, The Barn at Pickering House serves Thanksgiving dinner from 4 to 7 p.m. for $75 per person, with reservations through Resy. Four o’clock is a gift if your morning doesn’t go to plan.
In Meredith, Lakehouse Grille at Church Landing serves from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Reservations are required at 603-279-5221.
In Sanbornton, Hilltop Restaurant at Steele Hill Resort runs a buffet from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., carving stations included. A buffet has one real advantage if you’re not feeling social: you can take your plate and be left alone with it.
In Holderness, Van Horn Estate serves from noon to 3 p.m. The menu leans toward elevated holiday classics, which suits the day if you’d like it to feel less like your aunt’s dining room.
Just over the Maine line, The Carriage House Bistro & Tavern at Province Lake Resort in Parsonsfield has its annual buffet back. Reserve at 207-793-9612.
Taking it home. Tumbledown Farms Restaurant in Sanbornville is taking Thanksgiving preorders through Nov. 19, with pickup by Nov. 25. A half turkey is $55 and a whole turkey that serves 8 to 10 is $110. You build the rest from sides priced small (serves 4 to 6) or large (serves 8 to 12): mashed potatoes, sausage or vegetable stuffing, green bean almondine, pearl onions and peas, a yam casserole, mac and cheese, gravy, and rolls by the dozen.
Farm to Table Market in Ossipee sells a ready-to-heat individual dinner for $29.99: roasted turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, glazed carrots, cranberry sauce, and cornbread. A whole herb-roasted turkey dinner that feeds 6 to 8 is $159.99. Preorder by Monday, Nov. 23, and pick up Wednesday, Nov. 25 between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Call 603-539-2266.
Hart’s Turkey Farm in Meredith closes its dining room on Thanksgiving Day, the one day of the year it does (ironic, right?) But it sells whole roasted family meals and individual turkey dinners for pickup, and Hart’s Market in the lobby stays open for last-minute fixings and bakery. Order family meals by Nov. 20. The number is 603-279-6212, and they don’t take calls before 9 a.m. Thanksgiving Day pickup runs until about 4 p.m. Last I checked, the windows are half filled, so don’t wait on this one!
The deadlines come early. Tumbledown closes orders Nov. 19, Hart’s whole meals close the 20th, and Farm to Table closes the 23rd. If you’re reading this and still undecided, today is a good day to decide.
A turkey dinner in a box has a quiet appeal. You can eat it at your own counter, or in the truck at the lake, or in front of whatever’s on. Nobody asks you what you’re thankful for.
If you’d rather be around people who ask nothing of you
Meredith has been doing this since 1988. The Mae Hart Thanksgiving Dinner at the Meredith Community Center started with the matriarch of the family behind Hart’s, who believed nobody should eat alone on Thanksgiving. Hart’s still cooks it, and it’s free. Last year it was open to people in need from Meredith, Center Harbor, and New Hampton, with delivery for anyone who couldn’t leave home. Registration had closed by the time the paper ran the story, and the host said they would get a hot dinner to whoever needed one. Call Meredith Parks and Recreation for this year’s details.
In Laconia, the Congregational Church at 18 Veterans Square has served a free takeout dinner to anyone who comes to the door for decades. In Ashland, the Ashland Community Church holds a free Thanksgiving Day feast that’s open to everyone, with reservations requested ahead. In Laconia, VFW Post 1670 hosts veterans and their families, with doors open at noon and dinner at 2.
Each of these ran last year, so call to confirm the 2026 details before you go. Showing up to one of them is a gift that community offers to each other. Besides, there will be pie.
If you’d rather be outside
The trails haven’t changed. The Cotton Valley Rail Trail between Wolfeboro and Wakefield is flat and easy. Mt. Major in Alton gives you lake views if you go early. Red Hill in Center Harbor is moderate, with a fire tower at the top. West Rattlesnake in Holderness is short for the size of the view. Lake Chocorua in Ossipee has a shoreline trail that looks its best in late November. Daylight is short this time of year, so bring a headlamp and expect mud and ice.
This year, we’re making the winding drive to Manchester to have a family Thanksgiving. But I’m still planning on having pie for breakfast here at home Friday morning, and I’ll probably need a good walk, so reach out if you want to explore one of the trails above.
However you spend the day, I hope it’s something you choose and not something you endure. If this made you think of someone who’s weighing their options, send it their way.
Here’s to getting through it your way.
🧭 Jenn
Keys to the Lakes
