Linear in Grand Rapids

We joined two friends for dinner at Linear along the Grand River on August 6. 

We've eaten here a number of times over the past few years. In fact, it has the distinction of being the last place we ate right before the pandemic hit. 

The food is always good, the service spot on and ambience less noisy that most restaurants these days.

One thing to bear in mind is the parking situation. Being close to downtown it suffers from a absence of dedicated parking although there is some parking allocated to the restaurant a short walk away near the public works building along Monroe Street.

My wife had the grilled salmon and I had a very tasty pasta with Bolognese (pork and tomato). The wines were reasonably priced as was the food. 

 

Bayberry Garden in Providence, Rhode Island

The Bayberry Garden offers pitchers of Mimosas for brunch (choice of juice) and they leave the bottle at the table along with carafes of juice. Very nice.

Dyer Street entrance

 

the Caesar consisted of grilled Romaine wedges with a healthy layer of cheese

shakshuka was incredible

Matunuck Oyster Bar in Matunuck, Rhode Island

 The Matunuck Oyster Bar in Matunuck, RI, suffered as serious fire back in May of 2025. But they have bounced back and are serving up great food once again under a bog tent across the road as they work on rebuilding.

good food always makes for smiling faces

the blackened chicken sandwich was authentic low-country style and very good

Yama Ramen in Killington

 The Yama Ramen is a funky place with outstanding Asian food -- the chicken veggie rolls are lovely and any of the Ramen bowls will please your palate.

view from the front porch

Lazy Hound in Bangor

Located in the heart of downtown Bangor the Lazy Hound's menu is innovative and yet full of comfort food selections. 

The wraps are HUGE and the smashburgers delicious. Service was harried but friendly and attentive.

 

Batavia, New York, Brantford, Ontario, Providence and Warren, Rhode Island

OK, so on a recent pair of trips out to New England from the Midwest and back I can safely say:

1. Batavia, New York: Skip the Applebees; it's way too loud with watered-down drinks, mediocre food and sketchy service.
2. Providence, RI: Nami's on Atwell's Avenue is still a great place for terrific Chinese food.
3. Warren, RI: Metacom Kitchen has a pretty mean burger and a great wine list. Oh, and their fish is superb.
4. Brantford, Ontario, Canada: Gus and Guido's is just OK. Touted as a "Greek Italian Food Experience," it was a bit on the noisy side and the wines were lame but the food was not bad. The service was very friendly, though.

The Gold Eagle Inn in Brookville, Pennsylvania

When it comes to food there's not much available in Brookville it seems. After trying a place in the heart of the village -- where no one was around and the smell was terrible -- we settled for the Gold Eagle Inn near our motel.

Service was nice but the restaurant itself was tired in appearance and even more so in its menu. When was the last time you can remember a relish tray being put out, and with ingredients straight out of a can (or jar presumably)?

The real failure of the evening though was the main course. My wife and I both ordered the cod -- pan-fried with a a crumb crust the menu claimed -- but when it came out it was inedible: wet, mushy, spongy, and no crust. Clearly their efforts at thawing the fish failed but the lack of awareness of that failure was appalling. We sent it back and ordered fish and chips. Basic, but OK.

If our experiences are any indication, there is little to recommend dining at the Gold Eagle.