Foodie and The Beast
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Reviews by a husband and wife team with very different ideas on what makes for good food. Read about the best and worst Rhode Island has to offer.
Foodie and The Beast
4y ago
Mare Rooftop
229 Waterman St.
Providence, RI 02906
401-336-6273 Website
First things first…this restaurant is absolutely gorgeous. Even in the middle of winter, without the option to dine on one of Mare’s two (TWO!) open decks, it screams sophistication and is clearly a draw for the “see and be seen” crowd. Set in Wayland Square on the roof of a mixed-use commercial building that also houses Verizon and Tropical Smoothie Café, it doesn’t seem like it should be as sleek and opulent as it is; a welcome surprise awaits you as you step off the elevator onto the third floor.
I am beginning ..read more
Foodie and The Beast
4y ago
Fresco
140 Comstock Pkwy
Cranston, RI 02921
(401) 228-3901 Website
Every once in a while, even a Foodie gets stuck for a place to go that is close to home, appeals to a wide variety of tastes, and is more or less family friendly, so I had to do some searching when we unexpectedly had to take Mini Beast along on one of our “date nights”. I wracked my brains for a bit and finally settled on Fresco in Cranston, part of a small chain of Italian restaurants that also includes locations in East Greenwich, West Warwick, and Warwick (under the name DiVine Italian Home Cooking). I had mixed feeling ..read more
Foodie and The Beast
4y ago
Revolution
2190 Broad St.
Cranston, RI 02905
401-780-8700 Website
Ah, Valentine’s Day. The one night (or weekend!) of the year where you are pretty much required to make reservations, no matter WHERE you decide to go. In our case, we waited until the day after, as Saturday is our usual going out night and having been together for so long, we felt no need to mess with what works. To be honest, I had originally made reservations elsewhere, but changed my mind when the restaurant in question announced that they would ONLY be serving a special prix fixe menu (I hate that). Luckily, I was ab ..read more
Foodie and The Beast
4y ago
KG Kitchen Bar
771 Hope St.
Providence, RI 02906
401-331-4100 Website
After a string of disappointing visits to old favorites, I was almost afraid to suggest we visit KG Kitchen Bar. The last time we had been, it was still under the old management and called simply Kitchen Bar. Back then, it was one of those rare places that was family-friendly yet still a “nice” restaurant; even Junior Foodie liked it, and she was notoriously picky as a pre-teen, even more so than she is now. It had a menu that ranged from burgers and pizzas to steak and seafood; a little something for everyone.
Th ..read more
Foodie and The Beast
4y ago
The Grange
166 Broadway
Providence, RI 02903
401-831-0600 Website
Foodie Rating: (out of 5 stars) Food: 4 Ambiance: 3.5 Service: 3.5 Value: 3.5
The Beast Rating: (out of 5 stars) Food: 3 Ambiance: 3.5 Service: 3.5 Value: 3
If there’s one thing the Beast loves, it’s getting something for free (in fact, he has another blog, Al’s Making Cents, alsmakingcents.com, devoted to just that). I will freely admit, I am not above parlaying that fondness into getting him to try some places that otherwise would most certainly NOT be on his radar; all it takes is the magic phrase ..read more
Foodie and The Beast
4y ago
Loie Fuller's
1455 Westminster St
Providence, RI 02909
401-273-4375 Website
Restaurant Week is a big deal here in Rhode Island. Twice a year, over 100 local restaurants offer a selection of 3-course lunches and dinners at a fixed price over a two week period (and this is just in the Providence area; Newport, Narragansett, and Pawtucket also offer their own version, as well as some other towns on a much smaller scale). We try to promote it as much as possible on our social media, offering suggestions on where to go and why, but here’s the honest truth: I virtually never order off of the R ..read more
Foodie and The Beast
4y ago
Dolores
100 Hope St.
Providence, RI 02906
401-409-2075 Website
Foodie Rating: (out of 5 stars) Food: 2.5 Ambiance: 3.5 Service: 3.5 Value: 3
The Beast Rating: (out of 5 stars) Food: 2.5 Ambiance: 3 Service: 3 Value: 2.5
As our readers are well aware, Foodie is not a lover of American-style Mexican food; too much cheese, not enough spice, and usually just the same three ingredients offered in ten different forms (taco, burrito, enchilada, quesadilla, and so on and so forth). However, I am definitely a lover of authentic, fresh Mexican food…or maybe it’s not even auth ..read more
Foodie and The Beast
4y ago
The East End
244 Wickenden St
Providence, RI 02903
401-433-9770 Website
Until we started this blog, I never really noticed how often we go to a restaurant, really like it, and yet, years go by and we never make it back. Part of this is the sheer number of places to dine out in our little state (thousands, literally) and wanting to try them ALL, and part of it is having no real system in place to keep track of places to return to vs. places to avoid like the plague. The East End fell squarely into the former camp; even so, this second visit was a follow up to an initial one made YEARS ag ..read more
Foodie and The Beast
4y ago
Locanda
3009 Tower Hill Rd
Saunderstown, RI 02874
401-661-9380 Website
Foodie Rating: (out of 5 stars) Food: 3.5 Ambiance: 3.5 Service: 3 Value: 3
The Beast Rating: (out of 5 stars) Food: 3.5 Ambiance: 3 Service: 3 Value: 3
Unless I am traveling and truly have no choice, I don’t often “do” hotel restaurants. To be honest, when I initially made our reservation at the newly opened Locanda, in North Kingstown, I didn’t even know that it was a hotel restaurant (fun fact: it’s at the Holiday Inn, although it DOES have its own separate entrance). However, it’s owned by a g ..read more
Foodie and The Beast
4y ago
Perro Salado
19 Charles St.
Newport, RI 02840
401-619-4777 Website
Foodie Rating: (out of 5 stars) Food: 3 Ambiance: 3.5 Service: 3.5 Value: 3.5
The Beast Rating: (out of 5 stars) Food: 3.5 Ambiance: 3 Service: 3 Value: 3.5
One of the things that makes Newport such a draw for tourists, besides the beach, of course, is the great variety of historical buildings and sites of architectural interest; not only the magnificent mansions, but also the old Colonial-style homes that seem almost untouched after hundreds of years; you can almost imagine the horse-drawn carts pass ..read more