New Lakeport restaurant offers comfort food with an upscale twist

LAKEPORT — Terrence Burney has been in the restaurant industry since he was a teenager, working in a kitchen in his hometown of Sanibel Island, Florida. Since then, he’s worked for chain restaurants, opening new locations and training staff, then eventually running two of his own restaurants, and owning the Gilford Village Store. Now, he’s opening his first restaurant in the Lakes Region: The Junction, named after the train tracks nearby. It’s an upscale sit-down eatery and market nestled in the 51 Elm Street building.

“It'll be things that people are familiar with, done in an upscale way,” Burney said.

The Junction has yet to open. Burney is aiming for June, after a soft opening for friends and family.

Burney’s wife Heather Lincoln, who co-owned the Gilford Village Store and currently owns Blissful Café and Bakery in Meredith, is also co-owner of The Junction. While her husband will run the day-to-day operations and create the menu, she will provide recipes for baked goods.

“I'm excited, obviously, and I think it's a great opportunity, and I know he's going to do great things there,” she said.

The Junction will feature a variety of cuisines, including food from Burney’s southern roots, classic American, New England seafood, and even Spanish and Asian dishes. Burney wants his restaurant to be inclusive, featuring vegetarian and gluten free options, too.

Burney emphasized most of what the restaurant will offer will be made in-house. He also wants to buy local.

“We have a lot of good ingredients in this area, and I think we should be able to showcase those.”

One local collaboration is with Winni Woods Farm in Alton Bay. Burney has worked with them since 2021, at the Gilford Village Store, and will continue to purchase produce and specialty prepared goods. Aaron Lichtenberg of Winni Woods said those goods are made from vegetables grown on the farm, turned into shelf-stable products like sauces, dressings and salsa. Lichtenberg is excited to continue the work he and Burney began.

“He was a big supporter of introducing some of our specialty prepared goods on his menu, which obviously, as a farm, it gives us a little bit more security in being able to continue to produce these specialty prepared goods,” Lichtenberg said.

In Florida, Burney ran two different restaurants, the Locale Eatery, and Trail Café and Grill. Locale was the most recent, opened in 2019, and was gaining traction until the COVID-19 pandemic hit, cutting in half the seating of the already small 20-top restaurant. And with less people going out to eat, Burney closed it.

Burney and Lincoln moved to the Lakes Region after vacationing in the area to visit Lincoln’s family. In 2021, they purchased the Gilford Village Store, then sold it in 2024. Burney said it was a difficult decision, but wanted a larger space to start another restaurant.

“The community of Gilford welcomed us, and it was a great thing. We really didn't want to sell it. We kind of wrestled with the idea,” he said. “But this is kind of a huge undertaking, so we decided it made the most sense to do it.”

Trying to make his new restaurant a success, he thought back to what worked during the pandemic, realizing convenience stores and small markets could stay open, despite pandemic restrictions. This is when he conceived the idea of including a market inside the next restaurant he owned.

“That was the biggest influence with the market was, with COVID, if we ever have something like that again, I'll still be able to stay open,” he said.

The Junction market will sell prepared meals like breakfast and lunch sandwiches, pastries, beer and wine, and jarred goods, among other things. The Junction market will be open 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., Tuesday to Sunday, and the restaurant the same days, 4 to 9 p.m. for dinner service. Burney hopes to eventually transition to full lunch service as well, and stay open seven days a week.

The restaurant will also have a bar featuring local craft beer and craft cocktails, with happy hour 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.

The Junction is a family business through and through. The market will sell lemonade made by Burney’s 5-year-old daughter Ariella.

“She's the real CEO of the place,” Burney said.

Burney will also feature recipes from his mother, Sebrena Burney, who died two years ago. She was a cook who worked in restaurants and also cooked a lot at home. She left Burney a recipe for her pound cake, and he plans to create a dessert paying homage to her. He remembers standing next to her in the kitchen, watching her cook. She is what set Burney on the journey which eventually led him to opening The Junction.

“She's the true reason why I got into cooking,” Burney said. “She was a great cook, and she taught me a lot.”