Summer Guide – Day Trips

Warren, Bristol and Tiverton: Hidden Gems in the East Bay

Get your summer fix of small town charm

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Tiverton Four Corners
Tiverton Four Corners, the historic village that’s been around longer than America has, looks like it could be on a Hollywood backlot. The pristine area is home to tons of artists, who show their work in studios and artist collectives like Gallery 4 and The Sakonnet Collective. Tiffany Peay makes fine jewelry attuned to the energies of the body, and Katherine Lovell is a painter who often works with metal leaf. Other shops, like Courtyards and The Cottage at Four Corners offer gifts and home goods. When you visit, make sure to stop by Four Corners Arts Center: the barn is a popular spot for weddings, and the property has sculptures and poetry throughout. Main Road and East Road, Tiverton. TivertonFourCorners.com

If you’d rather explore nature than shop, head to the nearby Pardon Gray Preserve. Part of the Tiverton Land Trust, which protects the historic town’s green spaces, Pardon Gray has miles of beautiful hiking trails. An app (download it at SakonnetHistorical.com) offers an interactive guide to the preserve, delving into its history, grasslands, vernal pool, coastal oak forest and historic cemetery. Route 77, Tiverton. TivertonLandTrust.org

Lunch in Style

If the weather is on your side, treat yourself for lunch. The Boat House is seasonal fine dining, offering local meats and seafood. Their outdoor decks – there are two of them – are the place to be in the summer. Sit, relax, and watch boats glide past. The restaurant even offers free dockage for customers arriving by water. Don’t get dessert, though: save room for Gray’s Ice Cream in Four Corners, which serves frozen treats so delicious that they’re in demand 365 days a year. Boat House: 227 Schooner Drive, Tiverton. 401-624-6300, BoatHouseTiverton.com. Gray’s: 16 East Road, Tiverton. 401-624-4500, GraysIceCream.com

Coastal Charm
For the afternoon, cross over the Mount Hope Bridge and spend some time exploring Bristol. Best known as the home to the country’s oldest Fourth of July parade (which, if you’ve never attended, you need to), Bristol takes historic pride to a new level. Blithewold Mansion, Gardens and Arboretum and Linden Place are both house museums dedicated to preserving Bristol’s illustrious past. Mount Hope Farm, home to a year-round farmer’s market, and Coggeshall Farm, which raises heirloom livestock and offers colonial cooking lessons, do the same for agriculture. The Herreshoff Marine Museum celebrates Bristol’s sailing traditions. Blithewold: 101 Ferry Road. 401-253-2707, Blithewold.org. Linden: 500 Hope Street. 401-253-0390, LindenPlace.org. Mount Hope: 250 Metacom Avenue. 401-254-1745, MountHopeFarm.org. Coggeshall: 1 Colt Drive. 401-253-9062, CoggeshallFarm.org. Herreshoff: 1 Burnside Street. 401-253-5000, Herreshoff.org

Dine Well
For the evening, head north into Warren – and make sure you’re hungry. Warren is increasingly becoming the Brooklyn to Providence’s Manhattan: more and more creativity and great music are coming from the town all the time. One way in which Warren already rivals Providence is in its food scene. For fine dining, Simone’s serves simple and elegant locavore cuisine like Wood Grilled Lobster with spiked olive oil, and Metacom Kitchen preps nearly everything in house, including house-made charcuterie. At Eli’s Kitchen, the seating is limited, but the wait is worth it, especially for brunch: think Carnitas con Huevos, Biscuits and Gravy and Buttermilk Pancakes with house-churned butter. Simone’s: 275 Child Street. 401-247-1200, SimonesRI.com. Metacom: 322 Metacom Avenue. 401-245-1193, MetacomKitchen.com. Eli’s: 40 Market Street. 401-245-1809, ElisKitchenWarren.com

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