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Restaurant Reviews

Mesa Café and Grill

Imaginative choices, low prices
Usually there's something special about a neighborhood restaurant, which by definition is as much about community as about commerce.

By BILL RODRIGUEZ | November 18, 2009

The Beehive Café

Keep an eye on the pie
When Three Rivers Café closed last year, fans of chef Eli Dunn eagerly awaited his reappearance.

By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | November 11, 2009

Brick Oven Meatballs

Secretly, but deliciously, Italian
You can imagine them arguing about whether to ’fess up before they named the restaurant.

By BILL RODRIGUEZ | November 04, 2009

FRA’s Italian Gourmet

Beyond wonderful
Ever have that kind of day when you need to start your lunch with a chocolate chip cookie?

By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | October 29, 2009

Comforting elegance
The Knightsville section of Cranston is an undeniable haven for Italian home-cooking, where legendary portions (Marchetti's), chic hotspots (Caffe Itri and L'Osteria), and marquee chef/owners (Tony Papa's) have successfully rubbed elbows along a suburban Cranston intersection. But don't forget the little guy on the corner -- Antonio's Trattoria.

By CHRIS CONTI | October 21, 2009

Zooma

Traditional cuisine updated
Being a ristorante on Federal Hill is a lot like being just another olive tree in the grove.

By BILL RODRIGUEZ | November 02, 2009

Kabob and Curry

So many choices! So many flavors!!
You know you've come to the right neighborhood when you can smell Indian spices in the air instead of over-used French fry oil!

By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | October 07, 2009

Spain

Iberia via Narragansett
It's not even 6 pm and the parking lot is packed.

By BILL RODRIGUEZ | September 30, 2009

The Village Restaurant

Savoring the taste of Nigeria
I remember my click of recognition when I first saw a West African recipe for black-eyed-pea fritters with hot sauce, since my family in the South had always doused black-eyed peas with hot pepper sauce.

By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | September 23, 2009

Andrew's Bistro

Posh presentations, reasonable prices
It's not hard for a restaurant to aspire to an upscale experience at downscale prices. What's hard is actually accomplishing it.

By BILL RODRIGUEZ | September 16, 2009

Junction Trattoria and Bistro

Peerless pizza and much more
On a recent rainy Friday evening, we were calling around for a place to eat dinner. One restaurant had no reservations till 9 pm (it's still tourist season); another was farther away than we'd realized, and we might end up eating at that same hour.

By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | September 09, 2009

Christie's

A Thames Street institution
With the same name but new owners, the 60-year restaurant institution Christie's has been back in Newport for about three years, this time with a classy, upscale persona and yet an affordable, downscale menu. It's downstairs from the uber-posh Forty 1 North and certainly can hold its head up, chichi-wise, under that shadow.

By BILL RODRIGUEZ | September 02, 2009

DeWolf Tavern

wholly satisfying experience
Our previous visit to DeWolf Tavern was on a wintry December eve, and I had been yearning to take in the setting in the summer. Thus we recently perched ourselves on a balcony overlooking Bristol Harbor, cooled by the constant sea breeze that set the moored sailboats a-bobbing.

By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | August 25, 2009

The Pirate Girl

Shiver me stuffies!
The economic downturn is such that we may eventually see pirate ships showing off the Jolly Roger around Narragansett Bay. When they do, you can bet that their favorite place to unwind after a long day Yo-ho-ho -ing will be a friendly fisherman's bar and restaurant on a quiet road off the main strip in Galilee.

By BILL RODRIGUEZ | August 18, 2009

Franklin Spa

Friendly and flavorful by the sea
You know how some places just seem like they have a story behind them and you keep meaning to stop over the years but somehow it's never the right time of day (diner-type places mostly close by 2 pm)? That's been my relationship with Franklin Spa until I finally placed it squarely in my sights for a trip to Newport last week.

By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | August 11, 2009

Spice Thai

Exceptional and ridiculously inexpensive
If I tried, I think I could work up a tear recalling the '70s, when there were no Thai restaurants in Rhode Island — a dark age largely devoid of the culinary spice of life. Thank goodness there was Szechuan.

By BILL RODRIGUEZ | August 04, 2009

Matunuck Oyster Bar

Stellar servings from the sea
Oyster and clam farmer Perry Raso, whose harvests have become quite popular over the past three years, has taken his livelihood one step further and opened his own eatery: the Matunuck Oyster Bar. It sits on a beautiful cove just north of East Matunuck State Beach, where many a restaurant has come and gone.

By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | July 29, 2009

Blount Clam Shack

The Taste of Summer in Warren
The scene at Blount Clam Shack on a Sunday summer afternoon is like a well-orchestrated block party: large white tent for keeping out rain or providing shade; long, family-style picnic tables; outside the tent, more picnic tables and beach chairs; a large cooler with bottles of water; and live music from 3-7 pm, often provided by Warren resident Otis Read and friends.

By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | July 22, 2009

Bob & Timmy's

World-class pizza in your own backyard
Okay, technically Bob & Timmy's, but actually Rick & José's. I thought that food writer Alan Richman was joking on MSNBC when he renamed the Providence pizza institution, but nope. José Sanchez and Rick Remeika bought the place two years ago, after having worked there for 15 and 10 years, respectively, starting out as dishwasher and busboy.

By BILL RODRIGUEZ | July 15, 2009

United BBQ

The pull of the pork, and so much more
Reviewing the dishes at a barbecue eatery feels a bit like judging a family dinner. Most of us have specific expectations of what the meats and the sides should taste like — sensory memories that grabbed us the first time we ate pulled pork or collard greens, and they won't let go.

By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | July 08, 2009