THE PRESS ROOM

The Press Room is a bar, restaurant, and live music venue at 77 Daniel Street in downtown Portsmouth, NH, with a total capacity of 188 split between 86 downstairs and 102 upstairs. The downstairs functions as a casual bar and restaurant with live music, while the upstairs is a dedicated performance space equipped with a new sound system and third-floor stage views.

The Press Room hosts live music nearly every night of the week, with programming spanning jazz, blues, folk, rock, and Americana. Longstanding traditions include Hoot Night, the Sunday Jazz Series, Traditional Music Open Session, and the Tuesday Night Jazz Jam. The venue serves a full food and drink menu from lunch through late night, operating Monday through Wednesday from 4 PM to 1 AM and Thursday through Sunday from 11 AM or 12 PM to 1 AM.

The Press Room was founded in November 1976 by Jay Smith, a journalist and folk music enthusiast, to provide local musicians a stage and fans a gathering place. It expanded to a second floor a few years later to accommodate larger audiences. In 1983, music historian Bruce Pingree took over booking for more than two decades. Smith sold the venue in 1995 to Jay Gardner. Following Gardner's sale in late 2016, the venue closed for renovation in June 2017 and reopened on October 31, 2018 under owner Josh Sheets. It is the longest running bar, restaurant, and live entertainment venue in downtown Portsmouth.