If you can’t get to the food, than the food will come to you. While this is the mentality of most food trucks, it is the spirit of giving that will separate Food4Good’s food truck apart. The plan is simple really. Besides just providing a delicious array of options like flavored wings to the people of Providence, this food truck will really be a cover for an even cleverer model – a mobile soup kitchen. For every $5 spent from the food truck, Food4Good can provide two meals for those in need. According to Food4Good, “nearly 14% of Rhode Islanders have cut meal sizes, skipped meals or run out of food.” Food4Good food truck can translate one quick bite into a meal for those with a little less change to spare, making it quite a worthy cause. Conducting a fundraiser on the site Food Start, this non-profit organization is open to donations until November 1, and is already gaining momentum. To support this endeavor, visit their website.
The eternal rivalry between the macaroon and macaron hit the streets of Providence last month, as Ellie’s Bakery rolled out its Macaron Ice Cream Sandwich Food Cart. Although the buttercream-filled delight of a macaron needs no more reasons to outshine its extra-O pastry cousin, Ellie’s somehow managed to improve the treat by turning it into an ice cream sandwich.
“Flavors change seasonally,” says Melissa Denmark, pastry chef for Ellie’s, “and some of the ones we’ve showcased are espresso, pistachio, chocolate and cherry, and even a lemon basil.” While lemon basil-flavored ice cream may seem adventurous, Denmark assures the “dried basil is incorporated into the cookie, so the cookie is basil and the ice cream is lemon.”
Anyone interested in showing their support for Team Macaron can find the new food cart outside Ellie’s or driving around downtown while the nice weather holds out from 12-5pm, Monday to Saturday, or at Thursday’s Movies on the Block from 8-10pm. Small ice cream sandwiches go for $2 while the extra large are $6. It might be September, but you can still savor one last, gourmet bite of summer. 61 Washington Street. 228-8118.
Some may decry this unfounded, but whatever the opinion may be, in my house, ice cream and gelato are year-round celebratory desserts. With the opening of Dolce Gelateria (270 Wickenden St.) in early May, city-dwellers can now enjoy some homemade ice cream and gelato all year long, with flavors like sea salt caramel cannoli gelato and ice cream favor- ite, death by chocolate. Here’s a little tip: log on to Twitter and check out their page (@Dolce_Gelateria). You might just catch a rainy day deal of ice cream/gelato freebies or a discounted day pass for students and military members. What’s more exciting than the words “free” and “gelato” in the same sentence? Open Mon-Thurs 12- 10pm; Fri-Sat 12-11pm. More
Remember Marley’s on the Beach in Warwick? Well, while they’ve kept the name we’ve all come to know, thanks to the transformative efforts of Spike TV’s Bar Rescue it’s under gone a major overhaul. Bar Rescue features world-renowned food and drink industry consultant Jon Taffer, who has in his career flipped or owned over 800 nightclubs and bar establishments. A hulking man with jet black hair, Taffer exudes the authority and know-how to kick failing establishments from the depths of bankruptcy despair to the models of profitable success, with the help of updated industry technology and experienced chefs and mixologists. With new food items like Grilled Swordfish Kebobs and specialty cocktails like The Beachcomber, which features Smirnoff Watermelon, blue Curacao, cranberry and lime juice, with an orange garnish, it seems “out with the old and in with the new” is just what this place needed. Episode airs Sept. 15.
Rocco’s Pub and Grub, the small jewel of a pub, is also enjoying a bit of a change now, with new Chef Matt and Bar Manager Bruce Livingston, who are sure to bring an innovative twist to the loved pub. And while no mention of menu changes are in the works, surprises are sure to be just around the corner.
Quench Your Thirst
Some say that change is good, but new is better. Nay & Poppy is a new operation that seeks to promote healthy living through its locally made, organic, vegan artisan teas. With tea names like Hibiscus Sunshine, a fruity flavored tea boasting ingredients like hibiscus, rosehips, orange peel, lemongrass, rose petals and spearmint it’s not hard to see how this bunch is popular among tea lovers and newbies alike. They even feature a tea for expectant moms, cleverly named Juicy Goddess, that uses raspberry leaf, alfalfa leaf and fenugreek, packed with vitamins, to promote milk production and anti-inflammatory properties. Items can be found on their website or … More
Makes a six-pack
Equipment: Funnel, glass bottles and caps, at-home capper
1 c gin (preferably something neutral like Beefeater or Plymouth)
1 c grapefruit juice (preferably fresh or not-from-concentrate)
1⁄2 c thyme syrup
1⁄2 c fresh lime juice 6 c soda water
Make the thyme syrup: Boil 1 cup each of sugar and water with five sprigs of fresh thyme until sugar dissolves. Let cool. Store excess syrup in the refrigerator for future use.
Make the sodas: Mix together syrup, gin and juices. Pour into bottles using a funnel, then top off with club soda. Cap immediately per capper’s instructions, then refrigerate. Capping as quickly as possible after adding the soda ensures maximum carbonation. More
Calling all foodies. The Providence Alternative Market is hosting a Food Truck event in partnership with Food Trucks In. In addition to the usual vendors at the open-air market there will be seven local food trucks ranging from tacos (Mijos) to vegetarian options (Sprout) to sandwiches on pretzel bread (Noble Knots). There will even be coffee and dessert trucks. The event is free and includes on-site parking. If your growling stomach isn’t enough motivation to go, this alternative market includes herbs and flower vendors, music and food workshops. Sounds mouth-watering. Saturday July 20 from 11am-2pm. Miriam Hospital Arena Lot, 1111 North Main Street, Providence. More
The first EatDrinkRI Festival kicks off April 19-21, showcasing the best and brightest of the local culinary scene. The Sunday morning Grand Brunch features some of the area's best chefs, including James Mark from north, Jonathan Cambra from Tiverton's Boat House and Melissa Denmark and Danielle Lowe from Ellie's Bakery. Here, they share the recipe for their blue cheese and walnut scone.
1. In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Using a pastry cutter or fork work the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture appears sandy and the pieces of butter are slightly smaller than a pea.
2. Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, mix in the blue cheese and walnuts.
3. Slowly add the heavy cream. Fold everything together until the ingredients are almost fully combined. Be careful not to over mix, as this is what causes tough and chewy scones.
4. Remove the mixture from the bowl and place on a floured surface. Roll the dough into a rectangle (about 10” x 20”). Fold the left side into the center, and then fold the right side on top, like folding a letter to fit in an envelope. This is called a tri-fold.
5. Roll the folded dough out again to the same size rectangle and repeat the folding two more times. This technique is what creates flaky layers.
6. Once you have done three tri-folds, roll the dough to the same size rectangle and place onto a sheet pan and put in the freezer for 1 hour.
7. Once the dough is very cold and stiff, you can cut the scones into desired shapes. Use a knife to cut scones into squares or triangles, or use a circle cutter to make round scones.
8. Place onto a parchment lined sheet pan. Brush each scone with egg wash and a small pinch of sea salt. Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes or until golden brown on the bottom.
This scone from Ellie's Bakery, will be served at the EatDrinkRI Festival's Grand Brunch at the on Sunday, April 21. More
The season looks promising, with several new bars and restaurants in full swing. Probably the biggest news was the late March opening of The Grange, a vegetable restaurant from Garden Grille veteran Jon Dille. Much like its predecessor, The Grange’s plant-based cuisine is intended to appeal beyond the vegan/vegetarian set and attract all diners – even carnivorous ones. The Kyla Coburn-designed restaurant (she’s responsible for Loie Fuller’s, The Avery and several other restaurants that have caused you to comment on how gorgeous they are) occupies the fantastic space on the corner of Broadway and Dean Street that has sadly come and gone in various incarnations over the past few years. But judging by the work they put into it (the new façade is beautiful) and the early buzz, The Grange is here to stay.
Elsewhere on the West Side, enigmatic restaurateur Mike Sears (Lili Marlene’s, Ama’s) has opened Justine’s, his newest cocktail lounge, in Olneyville Square. The speakeasy style bar is squarely aimed at appealing to women (and by extension, of course, men): you enter it through a curtain in the back of a lingerie shop, and the “ladies’ lounge” (read: bathroom) has its own bar inside. There is a well-curated selection of classic cocktails that are shockingly only $5, and some light snacks. There is, of course, no website and I’m not going to tell you the address because Sears is probably already upset just that this is appearing in print. You’ll have to ask around and find it yourself.
After a long delay, Nami is finally open on Federal Hill, serving sushi and other Japanese fare in a handsomely renovated space. Moving Downtown, Bodega Malasaña is the new wine bar from the … More
Autumn’s New Crop
We always expect the end of summer/ beginning of fall to bring us a bounty from our farms and gardens, but this year the restaurant scene is also providing quite a harvest.
Ama’s, the little shoebox of a restaurant across from the Avery in Luongo Square, abruptly closed over the summer. In its place we have north (3 Luongo Sq.), which brings the considerable talents of Chef James Mark to bear. He was formerly of Nicks on Broadway, but also worked at the Michelin-starred Momofuku Ko in New York City. The opening menu looks impressive and ambitious, freely mixing regional, Latin and Asian influences into things like a Green Curry Lobster Roll or Pork and Clams with coconut milk and fermented shrimp. Check foodbynorth.tumblr.com for updates.
In other “tiny West Side restaurants with one-word names” news, Kitchen is open at 92 Carpenter Street, across from the Public Safety Complex. The recently renovated storefront will be serving breakfast from 7:30am-1pm, Tuesday through Friday, and 7:30am- 4pm on weekends.
Bayal Buffet (50 Ann Mary St., Pawtucket – in the former Shaw’s plaza), offers dishes from around Africa and the Mediterranean, but primarily focused on the cuisine of Senegal. We haven’t had the chance to try it yet, but based on previous experiences with Senegalese food, we expect a lot of rich, well-spiced curry-type dishes, heavy on fish, and bearing the distinct influence of French cookery.
Pawtuxet Village got a welcome addition in the form of the Elephant Room (2170 Broad St., Cranston), a teahouse and creperie. The focus is primarily on serving loose leaf teas from around the world, but there is also coffee, wheatgrass shots and “daily specialty waters.” Those looking for a bite to eat can choose from pastries, salads and crepes both sweet and savory.
The old Mile and a Quarter House at 375 South Main Street has been sadly empty since the beloved Barnsider’s … More
August 15 would have been culinary legend Julia Child’s 100th birthday, and in honor of that centenary her longtime publisher Alfred A. Knopf has organized Julia Child Restaurant Week.
From August 7-15, 100 restaurants around the country will participate by with special menus inspired by the woman who taught so many Americans how to cook. Among those 100 is our own Al Forno; proprietors George Germon and Johanne Killeen were personal friends of Child, and contributed recipes to two of her cookbooks. The a la carte menu will include two starters, two entrees, two desserts and a cocktail. Highlights include George’s Silky Peppers with Burrata, Osso Bucco with Orange and Lemon, and a Triple Citrus Tart.
Check out jc100.tumblr.com for info on the 100th birthday festivities. More
While making an effort to keep cool this summer, you can support a good cause too. Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation is a charity committed to finding a cure as well as making a difference for children with cancer everywhere. The foundation also funds nursing grants in an effort to improve the quality of life and care of children who are living with cancer.
Old Navy in the Providence Place Mall will be hosting an Alex's Lemonade Stand next week, starting this Saturday July 21st until next Saturday July 28th. During regular mall hours you can stop in to Old Navy, located off of Francis Street, and grab a refreshing cup of lemonade from Alex's stand. Good lemonade for a good cause, why not? More
One restaurant opening I missed a few months back was Coco Pazzo (165 Angell St.) – probably because I try to avoid Thayer Street while school is still in session. However, now that the college crowds are gone, I recently spent a sunny Friday afternoon enjoying a leisurely lunch there and I’m glad I finally stopped in. The menu is eclectic, but mostly centered around modern Italian fare, with lots of easy-to-share plates like appetizers, tapas and pizzas. It’s the kind of casual, European style dining that relies on simple, fresh preparations that let the ingredients shine through. We sampled several small plates perfect for eating al fresco: a Prosciutto and Burrata Board; Grilled Long Stem Artichokes with Olive Salad and Pesto Crostini; Roasted Beets, Goat Cheese and Watercress with Beet Vinaigrette; Wild Roasted Mushrooms; and Seasonal Vegetable Pizza with spicy tomato puree from the restaurant’s wood fired oven. It’s always refreshing to see a restaurant that respects its vegetables instead of treating them as mere accompaniment to meat and pasta, and the artichokes, mushrooms and beet salad really stood out here. I look forward to going back and trying some things I missed the first time around – in particular the Cantaloupe, Prosciutto and Burrata Salad with Ice Wine Vinaigrette and the Branzino in Cartocio steamed in foil. More
With last summer’s opening of Pinkberry in Garden City qualifying as Probably the Best Thing to Happen in Cranston Ever, the popularity of urban/Asian-style frozen yogurt shops continues to rise. There are already Juniper and Froyo World on Thayer Street, and now the north side of town is getting in on the action with the opening of Hot & Cold at 895 Smith Street, a combination coffee and frozen yogurt shop (hence the name). Open since the spring, Hot & Cold maintains the tradition established by operations like Pinkberry of offering healthier, more thoughtfully sourced treats. In addition to high quality frozen yogurt, a more waistline-friendly alternative to ice cream, they feature fresh fruit toppings that are replenished throughout the day, as well as organic coffee. Co-owners Vicky Fernandez and her brother were inspired by their time living in New York and California respectively, and their goal is to bring a product that is better for you and better for the environment to the neighborhood – which, considering the shop’s proximity to LaSalle Academy and its popularity with the students, qualifies as both a smart plan and an admirable one. More
Abyssinia opened on Wickenden Street last year as the first Ethiopian restaurant in Providence. Despite its popularity elsewhere in New England, particularly in Boston, the East African cuisine hadn’t yet taken hold here – and despite Abyssinia’s popularity, for many people it still hasn’t. (African food in general is sadly scarce in the Providence area. Elea’s in South Providence is a popular neighborhood spot for Liberian food. Village provides some Nigerian specialties in Pawtucket, and the excellent Senegalese restaurant Dakar was unfortunately short lived in Central Falls.) That’s why Ben Thorp, one of the proprietors of Abyssinia, is launching the restaurant’s food cart this month. It’s expanding on the business’ twofold mission: to help popularize the cuisines of Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea in Providence, and to cultivate what Thorp calls a “social entrepreneur business,” which employs refugees and immigrants to use and share the culinary skills developed in their home countries. The modified hot dog cart will make many of the usual food truck rounds – special events, College Hill, farmer’s markets – serving a variety of Ethiopian specialties, with a focus on the wats, or stews, for which the cuisine is best known. The restaurant already has a loyal fan base, and the ability to go mobile will allow Abyssinia to bring what is arguably one of the world’s most underrated food cultures to more people in more places. It’s the first step in what Thorp envisions as a fleet of mobile eateries, all employing refugees to share the foods of their home countries, and he’s trying to secure nonprofit funding to establish training programs. Be on the lookout for it this summer, because if you’re one of the unfortunate souls who still hasn’t tried Ethiopian food, now’s the time to change that. More
Sarah Schumann doesn't fit the stereotypical image of a commercial fisher: she's a woman, first off, with a master’s degree in Environmental Policy. As she explains in this month's So Rhode Island cover story, her goal is to make the ecosystem a more stable and sustainable environment for people and fish to exist co-dependently.
Schumann now has the opportunity to spread her message even further than her base here in Rhode Island, now that she's earned a TogetherGreen Fellowship award from Toyota and the National Audubon Society. The Fellowship was launched in 2008 to encourage diverse environmental leadership and fund innovative conservation projects and ideas. The TogetherGreen Fellowship gives 40 local leaders $10,000 to help engage a wider audience in environmental conservation, which works well with Schuman’s mission to involve and educate fisherman and their customers about the ecosystems from which their seafood is sourced.
Her project, Eating With the Ecosystem, is a culinary tour of the native species from the fishing areas around New England, with a marine scientist and local fisherman explaining the ecological context behind each item on the plate. The next part of this dinner series will take place at Cook & Brown Public House in Providence on September 10, with a focus on the seafood native to Southern New England. Buy tickets here. More
Jennfier Luxmoore of Sin Desserts – sort of like Providence’s version of Charm City Cakes from Food Network fame – has won our hearts over the years by making creative, delicious sweets like oatmeal cream pies with maple buttercream and bacon or chili pepper peanut butter cookies – and then periodically surprising us with a tray of them at our office. However, up until now, her business was almost exclusively special order out of her kitchen space on Allens Avenue. Well, she’s finally opened a proper retail/ café space on the street level of the Conley’s Wharf building (200 Allens Ave.) where she’ll be open daily selling more than just the custom cakes on which she made her reputation. The new café features coffee, cupcakes and “cupcake shots” (mini-cupcakes), bacon and cheddar scones and more. More
Aspire at the Hotel Providence, which recently underwent an overhaul to become As- pire Seasonal Kitchen, just announced that it will be reviving the now closed Downcity’s popular Drag Brunch, which combines mimosas and late morning fare with men in eyeliner and wigs for a fabulous time. It was one of the most lamented things about Downcity closing, and we’re happy to see it return. Check the web site for updates. More
In an industry as fickle as restaurants, longevity is a rare prize. Most restaurants don’t last more than a couple of years – meanwhile, Mills Tavern is celebrating a full decade. Starting this month, the restaurant will mark this milestone with its new Spring Anniversary Menu, reintroducing some of the signature favorites from the past 10 years. Highlights include the “Mills Sandwich,” Hudson Valley foie gras with a black currant buttermilk biscuit and tea braised figs; Open Faced Braised Rabbit Ravioli with wild mushroom truffle cream sauce; and Beef Tartare Over Bulgur Wheat Salad with cornichon emulsion and sunny-side up quail egg.
Be sure to check Mills Taverns’ website for the date of its special anniversary dinner. In the last week of April the restaurant will host a special six-course tasting with wine pairings. Chef Ed Bolus will be in the kitchen with guest chef Jules Ramos of Eleven Forty Nine; Ramos was the first executive chef at Mills. Tickets are $150 per person, with $25 benefiting Festival Ballet. More
The semifinalists for the 2012 James Beard Foundation Awards (sort of like the Oscars of the food world) have been announced and three Providence restaurants are in the running. The Dorrance is up for Best New Restaurant, following on the heels of Cook & Brown Public House, which was nominated for that award last year. This year, Cook & Brown takes a nomination for outstanding bar program. Meanwhile, The Dorrance takes a second nod for Chef Benjamin Sukle in the Rising Star Chef of the Year category. Husand and wife duo Matt and Kate Jennings of La Laiterie are up for Best Chef: Northeast, a category in which they're seemingly perennial contenders. Finalists will be announced on March 19, and the awards ceremony takes place on May 7. Congratulations to all the contenders, and best of luck to the home team. More
The West Side's new community grocery, Fertile Underground, celebrates its "Soft-Boiled Opening Celebration" this Friday, January 6. The event marks the start of regular store hours and the unveiling of a new mural.
The store was established at 1577 Westminster Street as a worker cooperative that will run a traditional grocery store and cafe, both with a focus on local, healthy, sustainable foods. Fertile Underground was established by a group of artists concerned about access to healthy food in urban communities and connection to nature.
One of the founding artists, Dauna Jean Noble, painted the mural in the store's interior, which depicts the growth of agriculture in Providence and pays tribute to the Kickstarter supporters who helped Fertile Underground raise the money necessary to open the store.
The grocery and cafe, which had previously both been open limited hours, will now operate seven days a week: 8am-7pm, Monday through Friday and 8am-3pm on Sunday. A larger grand opening celebration is being planned for February. More