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Providence, Rhode Island Restaurants
Maybe it's the presence of the world-renowned cooking and hospitality university, Johnson & Wales, or the artistic energy of the Rhode Island School of Design, but Providence has a well-deserved reputation as a culinary center. Perhaps it's the powerful influence of the city's immigrant community that accounts for the unusually high presence of restaurants, specialty food stores, cafes and coffee houses at prices consistently lower than in my hometown of Boston.
For families, check out:
Olga's Cup and Saucer
103 Point St.
Providence, RI 02903-4715
(401/831-6666)
Located down the block from the Children's Museum. Olga's is an artsy coffee shop with fresh breads, scones and sweets, and the menu changes daily. Sit outside on benches among the tulips, or enjoy some fresh Cinnamon-Pecan sticky buns and Irish Soda Rolls with Apricots inside this small and unique café. Open for breakfast and lunch only; closed Sunday.
Angelo's Civita Farnese
141 Atwells Avenue
Providence, RI 02903
(401/621-8171)
Very popular, located in "Little Italy" (Federal Hill section), somewhat like Boston's North End, only less touristy. This neighborhood has lots of olive oil places, fresh produce shops and real Italian delicacy shops. Known locally as "Angelo's on the Hill," this is as family a place as you'll likely get. Regulars occupy ordinary chairs and tables. One lonely menu hanging on the wall, unchanged in years we assume, tells you what you can order. Very comfortable, informal, and completely unpretentious. Open daily for lunch and dinner; closed Sunday in summer.
Dave and Busters
Providence Place
Providence, RI 02903
(401/270-4555)
A bit of a ride on the wild side. Huge but not chaotic, the restaurant is part casino and part eatery. There are some amazing action games in the "play area" and these aren't the run-of-the-mill video violence games. Typically, these are fun challenges of speed and daring that had me deeply involved, and laughing, especially trying to ford the rapids in a simulated rubber raft. Kids do enjoy the token-run games and Mom and Dad can have pre-dinner drink alone while waiting for diner to be served. The food is good, service friendly and the energy of the game room thankfully removed from most of the eating area. Located in Providence Place, itself a million-plus-square-feet of dining, entertainment and shopping overlooking Waterpark, Dave and Busters is on the fourth floor.
Of course, Providence has many more kinds of restaurants from Pub Fare to Indian, Tex-Mex, American and Caribbean. For more dining recommendations, contact the Providence Convention and Visitors Bureau at 800/233-1636.
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