Temple Downtown


Temple
106 Francis Street
Providence, RI 02903
401.919.505
0


I took the opportunity offered during Providence's Restaurant Weeks to sample a prix fixe menu at Temple. I would have loved to have sampled many of the other fine restaurants who were participating, but time is a limited resource. I decided therefore that a friend and I would visit one of the swankier places in downtown.

Located directly across from the state capital in the uncompleted RI Masonic Temple. After sitting abandoned for 80 years, it has been converted to the Renaissance Hotel with Temple restaurant occupying space downstairs. The space is very open and hip leaving me to wonder if I was dressed appropriately, in my business casual clothing to fit in. No worries, business casual never really goes out of style, just the colors and patterns change. The space is beautifully finished with a large lounge and bar at the bottom of the steps from the entrance. The main dining room is also very open, surrounded by semi-private booths and open and closely spaced tables.

Our waiter for the evening, Gustavo, was extremely good, many times quite surreptitiously filling a water glass without being noticed and offering second glasses of wine and yet not hovering over the table. Dinner pace was comfortable, with a three course meal spread nicely over a little more than an hour.

As to the food, all excellent. I opted to use the Prix Fixe menu and ordered the Roasted Beet Salad, Tri-Tips steak with tamarind sauce and a finish of one of the few restaurant desserts I'll eat, cheesecake. My companion also had the beet salad and the Twice Truffled Farfalle. The beet salad had a nice combination of flavors, the sweetness of the chopped roasted golden beets with the tart saltiness of bleu cheese and bacon made for an interesting and refreshing start to the meal. I didn't particularly taste the vinaigrette with the strong flavors of the beets and cheese, but also didn't feel that the salad lacked in flavor.

Our entrees were also both excellent. The medium-rare was perfectly done, seared on the outside and pink throughout without running juices. The tamarind sauce served to the side was a very good complement of tart and sweet with just a hint of spice. Served on the side were very lightly fried mini-fingerling potatoes. The potatoes could have used a little something to bring out their flavor. The bite that I had of the farfalle dish was also quite good, though I didn't have enough to study its flavors, she assured me that it was excellent.

For dessert, the mini-cheesecake, heavily tasting of vanilla, was more moist and less heavy than a traditional New York style cheesecake. At about 5 inches across the round, it was easily enough for two, though I didn't have much difficulty eating all but a couple of bites. My dining companion wasn't as enamored of the cheesecake, not being as big a fan of vanilla flavors as I. She did steal all of the fruit off the top though. A fine conclusion to the meal. Also on offer were fresh fruit flavored sorbet's as well as chocolate and vanilla gelato.

The menu is varied and defies categorization, ranging from flatbreads, traditional salads, steak, fish, as well as some unique combinations, such as the beet salad.


Price Range: Appetizers/Salads: $7-10, Entrees: $17-28, Valet: $3

Recommended? Yes. A little on the expensive side, but the service was attentive, food was very good and excellently prepared. Midweek, not overly crowded, so noise levels mentioned in other reviews wasn't an issue.

Date of Visit: July 15, 2008
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1 comments:

Malyna said...

Yuck, I hate beets!

But I glad you enjoyed your meal. =)

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