Restaurants in Providence

Parent Cafe
1

<p>I am visiting Providence this weekend with some friends from out of the US. Can anyone recommend some really GREAT restaurants?
Thanks!</p>

2

<p>If you like Portuguese food, you might want to try Madeira in East Providence. I have been a number of times and it has great food in a relaxed family setting.
<a href=“http://www.madeirarestaurant.com/[/url]”>http://www.madeirarestaurant.com/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

3

<p>You can always go to the Cheesecake Factory in the Providence Place Mall. It has great food!!</p>

4

<p>We <em>love</em> this one, in a nice funky neighborhood - not too far from Brown. We tend to be down that way once a year for a couple of nights. We go here both nights - having also tried one of the “top” restaurants at way higher cost and found it inferior, we have since decided there’s no reason to try any place else. Note: we are foodies, so YMMV.

</p>

<p>We love the patio, but we are always there around Labor Day, so it probably wouldn’t be too comfortable this weekend ;).</p>

5

<p>Where to start? Here are some restaurants near Brown by area:
On Hope St. not too far away, Il Pizzico has excellent Italian food and La France has (what else?) great French. Blaze is another restaurant on Hope (also has a branch on Thayer) with an interesting menu and generally terrific food.
<em>Many</em> restaurants on Federal Hill fit the “excellent” bill; our most recent favorite is Pane e Vino.
The “famous” Providence favorite is Al Forno, which is pricy but very good.
A personal favorite is Twist, which is in the Wayland Square part of the East Side. There’s also a very good Japanese restaurant, Haruki, and another restaurant with many fans, Red Stripe, in the same few blocks. People also rave about La Laiterie, although I personally have found it disappointing.
On Wickenden St., I’d second the recommendation of Z Bar.
Downtown, Gracie’s is worth the splurge; Trinity Brewhouse is a great moderate priced option with lots of interesting suds to sample.
That should at least get you started…</p>

6

<p>Heard an excellent review of Local 121. It is a fairly new restaurant that specializes in local resources to create its menu. It is located in the Dreyfus Hotel which has been turned into artist studios (live/work).</p>

7

<p>Atwells Avenue (Federal Hill) ‘little italy’ of Providence. Great Italian restaurants.</p>

8

<p>Mill’s Tavern, which is on College Hill, about a block down from RISD, is fabulous. I think you can Google them and see the menu, etc.</p>

9

<p>I second Al Forno, delicious.</p>

<p>Casual: rue de l’Espoir (on Hope Street)</p>

10

<p>Re: Local 121 (post #6), my family made reservations there for my birthday dinner last fall based on the wonderful reviews we had read but ended up walking out (something we’d normally NEVER do) before sampling the food. Despite our reservations and the fact that the place had few customers the particular weeknight we were there, we sat at our table without so much as being asked if we’d like water for over 10 minutes. No one even approached us when we got up to leave or stood outside the door waiting to retrieve our car from the valet.
Another restaurant with a superb reputation where we had a similar experience with awful service is Ten, a steak and sushi place. I have friends who swear by it, but our one meal there was characterized by not even receiving everything we’d ordered after an extraordinarily long wait for our food.
These experiences may have been anomalous and YMMV, but we felt disappointed enough to never return.</p>

11

<p>No one has mentioned any seafood restaurant yet, so here is a suggestion: Hemenway’s Seafood Grill and Oyster Bar on South Main Street (not too far from Brown and RISD) is great. They also have other menu options, but the local seafood is their specialty. </p>

<p>BTW - I may be a bit biased, but my cousin is the Managing Partner - LOL! But, honestly - it is a great place with a wonderful view of the river if you request a seat by the windows. </p>

<p>Their website is: [Hemenway’s</a> Seafood Grill & Oyster Bar](<a href=“http://www.hemenwaysrestaurant.com/]Hemenway’s”>http://www.hemenwaysrestaurant.com/)</p>

<p>If you decide to go and want to PM me for more information, feel free to do so! Providence is a wonderful city that has come a long, long way the past few years. Enjoy your visit!</p>

12

<p>Bob and Timmy’s , Spruce Street
Grilled Pizza—fabulous!</p>

13

<p>Third vote for Al Forno.</p>

<p>There’s also a Capital Grille (pricey steak house).</p>

14

<p>If I had to go with one restaurant in Providence, I would have to go with Mill’s Tavern. It is not exceptional, but it is definitely good.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.millstavernrestaurant.com/[/url]”>http://www.millstavernrestaurant.com/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

15

<p>Thanks to all the CC foodies. This is great! I’ll let you know how we make out.</p>

16

<p>Send samples.</p>

17

<p>OMG. Run do not walk to Rue D’Espoir on Hope Street (get it --rue d"espoir). About a 2 minute drive from the Brown campus. The most delicious food ever. They are even open for breakfast, and lines form early. Simply the best. We spent 4 wonderful years visiting D up at Brown and never missed a chance to eat there. Just thinking about it…</p>

18

<p>OK. So we took the advice of a current Brown student and went to Red Stripe. Lovely bistro - perfect for a long-ish lunch. Everyone was supremely happy with quiches, steaks, and salads and the very nice wine list. I would certainly want to try the recommendations posted here but many of the were closed on Sunday or had late openings. Again thanks for all the advice.</p>