Eating out in Bangor, Maine

Friday night at Woodman's Grill for burgers:

Susie playing pool at Woodman's in Orono

The Stout Berger - beer-braised beef with bacon

Saturday the four of us opted for a return engagement to Green Tea, located in the maze of the Bangor Mall complex:

Al Forno

We met up with Andrea for an early dinner at Al Forno in Providence. Located just over the Point Street Bridge from where we work at Davol Square, it was certainly an easy drive. The restaurant doesn't participate in Restaurant Weeks, now underway in Providence, but that didn't seem to slow business in the least. By the time we left the place was packed with hungry eyes searching here and there for a spot to land.

We decided to skip going indoors for dinner, choosing instead to sit amidst the warmth of a green arbor that seemed to nearly envelop everyone as they walked inside. Notwithstanding the rush of traffic on nearby I-195 it was a real treat to sit outside and relax over what would be a very tasty meal indeed.

An aperitif followed by a bottle of Gavi helped speed things along and make the warm evening air seem just a tiny bit cooler. First things first, as they say, and kicked the evening off by sharing the corn fritter app. . .

. . . and while Susie and Andrea split a Caesar salad  I had zucchini blossoms:

While several things on the menu looked tempting, we gravitated toward their classic grilled pizzas: Andrea and Susie each had the fresh corn pizza and I had the calamari with arrabiata sauce.

Frankly, the squid was some of the best I've eaten eaten, the breading was just about perfect I thought and the arrabiata sauce deliciously piccante, sparking each mouthful of food.

The service was quite good, the table bread scrumptious although they seemed reluctant to provide more than a drip or two of olive oil in a tiny pitcher. Odd.  And the prices are a bit steep we thought, hovering around Gracie's and Bacaro's, but the food was wonderful, with nothing but glowing reports from all quarters.  There you have it.

Life is full of tradeoffs.

The Boat House in Tiverton

The question has often been asked at our dining table: why are there so many restaurants along the water serving so much mediocre food? Here we are, living smack in the middle of a state largely on the water and yet you'd be hard pressed to find decent local fish let alone fish that was well-prepared at most of the waterfront restaurants. (But then this is not a phenomenon unique to RI but we've seen this over and over again: Maine, Vermont, Virginia, Michigan, the list seems endless.)

To New England foodies it's no secret that the Newport Restaurant Group has the lock on picking gorgeous locations to site their eateries tempered by uninspiring menus. Every time we get the urge to sit by the water, sipping an aperitif while spending a relaxing evening dining out we find ourselves at either Waterman Grille (the "e" at the end is a giveaway) in Providence or the Boat House in Tiverton (both NRG properties). And every time we remark afterward that the best thing about the dinner was the water.

Our latest outing to the Boat House was a case in point.

It was a gorgeously warm evening this past Monday when we headed east to Tiverton and the Boat House for waterfront dining. We had been here once before a couple of years back for brunch and were impressed by the location -- and the food as we recall was not bad then either. But this was to be a much more challenging experience.

The wine -- a vinho verde -- was crisp and nicely chilled. The Point Judith calamari app was delicious to be sure but my fish and chips bordered on appalling: a piece of cod trapped inside an enormous rock-hard shell of something that had probably once been bread or some flour-base derivative. The cole slaw was warm, in fact nearly hot, the tartar sauce was so thin it would've made a tartar switch to beef and the fries were heavy, soggy and pretty much devoid of flavor. Susan's salad was thin and the quinoa was sparse although her crab cake was OK, yet still unremarkable.

The wine prices we thought about average here but the selections seemed weighted in favor of those jug wines that would be familiar to people not generally familiar with wines in the first place. In all fairness, we had two glasses of the vinho verde and I almost sprang for the bottle: the price was a very good value at $26. Otherwise be careful about your choices and don't count on the staff to be of any more help than the nearest marketing department.

Service was hit or miss -- again, in all fairness the volume these kids have to handle is quite overwhelming so you should have to take that into consideration. Still, our server never asked us about the food nor did the other server comment when she removed my largely uneaten plate of food.

When going to either the Waterman Grille or the Boat House, the important thing is to focus on salads (generally OK) or, an even smarter move, the burgers.

Dessert at Gracie's for New Year's Eve

December 31, 2009, late -- Gracie's was hoppin' -- better late than not at all, eh?

For the special NYE dinner menu, two dessert setups were prepared, but I only got a chance to snap this one:



Happy New Year! That's the catchphrase of the day. Make it the focus of the whole year and we'll be all set.

Some great dinners out in Providence but beware of the high-priced drinks

This past spring we've returned to Ama's, Cook and Brown, Broadway Bistro and, just last week, Chez Pascal where we both enjoyed the bistro menu. Any of these will serve delectable food just about any day of the week, with fairly consistently good service. But I suppose if we had to rank them would be BB, Ama's, Chez Pascal and C & B, in that order -- the best value in our mind still is BB with Ama's following a close second (although their menus are radically different). Also, the last time we at C & B we felt the aperitifs were a bit steep (comparatively speaking.

And speaking of steep, it would appear that the local "cocktail culture" here in greater Providence is sliding out of control. We recently had an aperitif at Loie Fuller, right across the street from our condo. We like to pop over there from time-to-time, mainly for an early evening drink, saving their menu for Sunday Brunch (incredible food).

Anyway, we ordered what was a custom drink consisting of Campari and dry Vermouth topped off with a splash of prosecco, in a champagne flute for $14 apiece! The better cocktail value is still to be found at The Avery -- also in our neighborhood -- with the added benefit of letting you walk 30m across the street for dinner at Ama's.

Now THAT's value.

Olga's Cup and Saucer

A dining fixture in Providence for more than a quarter of a century, Olga's Cup and Saucer, known locally as simply "Olga's," has become an icon (along with Seven Stars) for those seeking fresh bread and a tasty sandwich.

But I draw the line at their soup.

Over the past several months I've tried three of their soups, the last one just yesterday: a disappointing Navy Bean. Basically a mediocre tomato vegetable, the beans, less navy than coast guard, were smallish, a bit too firm to the bite and not worth the time or trouble it took to prepare, order or eat it.

So stick with the panini's, the tuna melt, the salads or whatever, but steer clear of the soups.

Cook and Brown in Providence

It's been too long since I've updated this blog -- primarily because we tend to eat at the same wonderful places right here in Providence, and you've heard most of those details all before. But I wanted to share our latest dining adventure: a very nice new restaurant opened about 8 months ago on the East Side, right across the street from one of our favorite places, Chez Pascal.

Called Cook and Brown (no, I don't know why), you can skip Atwell's Avenue,  this place needs to go right to the top of your list of places to eat next.

We had an early dinner and were probably the second table seated for the evening. By the time we left, at nearly 8pm, the bar was shoulder to shoulder and the restaurant was packed, each table full to capacity.

Ambience -- a magical word in today's dining experience -- was cozy, and the small dining space had a comfortable neighborhood feel. and indeed, one senses that lots of the folks dining that evening were locals.

Service (Kandace with a "K") was friendly,  straightforward, and attentive without being invasive, striking just the right balance we thought.

Food was delicious, filling and creative without being contrived. I had Hubbard squash soup with chicken confit and pumpkin seed and Susie had the swordfish salad. Yes, we thought it sounded strange, too, but the flavor was so good you couldn't wait for the next bite. For our entree (or plat in French) Susie had the John Dory (not him personally just his fish), on a bed of small white beans and veggies, and I had the Cuban sandwich with a side of their home frites. Outstanding in every way. Portions were just right and so our second meal at Cook & Brown proved just as wonderful experience as our first.

We can't wait to try their Sunday dinner, one seating. . .  See ya there!