Stanley's Famous Hamburgers
371 Richmond Street
Providence, RI
I received a tip many months ago that Stanley's had a really good hamburger that was worth making an effort to try. Lucky for me, my new coworkers have a standing lunch out every Friday. This should to lead to an uptick in local reviews, at least of places that serve a reasonably quick lunch.
I ate at Stanley's newer location in Providence's Jewelry District. Upon walking in, I immediately experienced the delightful smell of onion rings. The place resembles a diner or burger stand, similar to Johnny Rockets. The walls are decorated in cartoons, which of course one can't help think of Wimpy from the Popeye cartoon, or the characters that adorn Monopoly games.
We were seated quickly and perused the menus. My coworkers reminded each other and tipped me off that the single patty burgers were wimpy. While the menu describes the double-patty burgers as quarter pounders, I felt that it too, was wimpy. All burgers are served with grilled onions and pickles. Lettuce, tomato and cheese are extra at 69 cents for each pair. Burger combinations are traditional with offerings such as mushroom cheese, bacon cheese, peppers, etc.
We shared an extremely good plate of fries with cheese and bacon, fries with gravy and cheese and onion rings. I was disappointed in the mushroom cheeseburger (no extras) that I ordered. I felt that the patties were flavorless and as I mentioned above, wimpy. Without the toppings, I could have been eating a double-burger from McDonalds.
Price Range: $2-$6 burgers, most expensive item on menu - $7.50.
Recommended? Go for the fries and diner atmosphere or the cheapness, don't bother with the burgers.
Napa Valley Grille
111 Providence Place
Providence, RI 02903
Phone: 401.270.6272
This review is likely to become dated very quickly, as this restaurant changes its menu seasonally to reflect currently available produce. Also featured is a weekly Prix Fixe three course dinner menu composed mostly of items not found on the menu, except for the desserts, though the dessert selection also varies.
Located in Providence Place mall, this is probably the most upscale restaurant in that facility. The food is very good, though possibly not quite as good as the prices would indicate. The atmosphere is pleasant as well, mostly quiet, but tables are too closely placed for an intimate dinner. When a friend and I were first seated, I felt as though I was participating in the conversation of the table adjacent. And later in the evening, an acquaintance of my dining companions sat at the same table. It was easy to have a conversation with her and her companion without even slightly raising our voices.
Both my companion and I found the salads to be lackluster. Hers was a simple organic greens salad sprinkled with a few sunflower seeds and a maple vinaigrette. Mine was a similar salad, but served with candied pecans and a quarter of grilled and chilled radicchio. For my case, I found that mostly the greens were of the bitter variety, without much variation in flavor. The candied nuts were a nice contrast, but easily were overwhelmed by the greens, as was the very mild Atwells Gold cheese.
For entrees, we had the Grilled Chicken Penne off the main menu and a Lamb Sausage and White Bean dish from the weekly menu. The first comment that my friend made about her dish was that it was comfort food. An assessment that I agreed with for my dish as well. Mine reminded me of a French cassoulet in look and flavors, and combined with the excellent lamb sausage, made for a very satisfying meal. I only sampled a small bite of the Penne, but the sauce was delicious, the pasta perfectly cooked, and an extremely generous portion, easily enough for two meals.
Initially I thought the portion size on the cassoulet looked small, and I found myself wanting a few more bites, but really it was the right sized serving for the three course menu.
We shared the dessert from my selections, the Strawberry Shortbread Cheesecake. I am typically a cheesecake "purist", not choosing flavored or topped cheesecakes, but in this case, I was happy with the amendments. A white chocolate cheesecake topped with whipped cream served on a thick shortbread cookie and a strawberry coulis on the plate instead of the cake itself. The cheesecake was very light (a friend of mine would probably call it a Jell-o cheesecake), and very flavorful. The thick, airy and not too-dry shortbread was a nice twist over the traditional graham cracker crust.
At $36 for a three course meal, and featuring items not on the menu, it was a good choice, and the most economical. Combined with an inexpensive glass of Chardonay (I know, bad pairing decision), my portion of the bill was $45.
Price Range: $8-10 appetizers/salads, $20-35 entrees, $5-15 desserts.
Recommended? Yes, the food is excellent, atmosphere a little crowded for a romantic evening, though the food quality is up to par. Excellent variety of wines by the glass.
Sometimes it really is a pain to have a craving that you just can't find the right restaurant to satisfy. Soft Serve Ice Cream (ideally, a Peanut Buster Parfait or similar). Unfortunately, on the East Side of Providence, I don't have anything very close that I can find to fulfill this one. But don't worry, I'll be sure to let you know when I do.
Update: There's a DQ in Providence Place Mall!
While lost on a bike ride, I was talking with a fellow cyclist about the area, since we had time to kill while riding our "bonus" 20 miles. He recommended Fellini's Pizzeria on Wickenden for thin crust pizza, Cassarino's in Federal Hill for Sicilian style pizza, and Venda Ravioli for fresh pasta and sauces to stock up for home cooking.
Read more...
Rick's Roadhouse
370 Richmond Street
Providence, RI 02903
As a lover of BBQ (and Asian and Indian and ... ) I'm shocked that I hadn't even thought to try to find a good place to get a pork sandwich, ribs or chicken. And thanks to a good friend having a birthday, and loving NC style Q, I've now been educated to one of the offerings in Providence for this fine and distinctly American cuisine.
First off, I don't think I've ever been to a restaurant that offered tasting flights of Bourbon, Whiskey and Tequilas on their drink menu. A great idea, and well received by the birthday boy who is deeply into Whiskey and its various styles. The rest of the drink menu is nothing to be ignored, with a draft list not typical of most local places.
The menu ranges from $5 dollar burgers and sandwiches up to a $19 combo plate. One highlight is a reinterpretation of a Cuban sandwich with pulled pork. The menu is presented with tongue firmly in cheek section headings and item names. Reports from my fellow diners is that the beef brisket is excellent as either a sandwich or entree. The quantity of food served is reasonable and easily eaten in a single sitting without feeling stuffed.
As is typical of any quality BBQ place, sauces were on the table in unmarked squeeze bottles. In Rick's case, there are only two sauces, a sweet-spicy and a sweet sauce. Both were very good, though I could have wished for a little wider variety, such as a vinegary sauce.
I opted to go to the expensive end of the menu and ordered the chicken and baby back ribs combo platter. Accompanied with excellent BBQ beans, which seemed to be about equal parts beans and pulled pork and a somewhat sweet cabbage and carrot slaw, the dish was great. The chicken thigh and leg meat nearly fell of the bone on its own, tasted good on its own and went well with the table sauces. The ribs seemed to me to be a bit on the dry side, but tasted excellent and worked equally well plain or with the table sauces, with a slight preference for the sauces to kick up the moisture.
A table companion ordered a side of Mac and Cheese for the table and none were disappointed with this heavy, creamy, cheesy dish. Large elbows, abundant, creamy yet thick cheese sauce made this tastes like a well prepared version of a stove top Mac and Cheese. Way better than a boxed mix, not quite as good as a slightly dryer and crisp top baked, but still superb.
After a hearty meal, a couple of handfuls of fresh peanuts and a large beer for me, we skipped dessert.
Price Range: $6 - $20
Recommended? Great BBQ and Staff, Go!
Date of Visit: July 29, 2008
Temple
106 Francis Street
Providence, RI 02903
401.919.5050
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
Fatty McGee's
55 Union Street
Providence, RI 02903
Unfortunately for this review, the menu is in the process of being changed, so this review may be outdated very quickly. The owner told me that due to low sales volumes, many of the seafood items (stuffies, crab, clams) on the menu are not available, and new menus haven't been printed yet. This left the standard pub fair of sandwiches, burgers, nachos, cheese sticks, wings, etc.
I had a very disappointing Reuben. The meat was overcooked, dried out and tough and the sandwich didn't have enough sauce on it, in general, it didn't taste like much. Probably the first Reuben I've had that wasn't good. In contrast, a dining companion had a the Mac and Cheese, according to the owner, one of the best items on the menu. Given the reaction and rampant sampling by everyone at the table, this is not an overblown assessment.
I found the wings and sauce to be unexciting, the buffalo sauce seemed to be just a cup of red hot without much butter or other spice to it. The wings are served plain and the sauce is provided on the side for dipping. The nachos were okay, but not great, certainly not as good as the ones at Spats. The quesadilla was decent, nothing fantastic, but reasonably tasty.
Friends I've dined with here have either loved or hated the grilled cheese sandwich. The decisive ingredient appears to be the inclusion of a thinly sliced tomato, which isn't mentioned on the menu, for the tomato hater, not a good sandwich. The burgers have been reported to be good, but I haven't had a sample of one.
Our waitress Christina was great, handling the 11 of us quite jovially and genuinely helpful, making recommendations to folks. One of her favorites was the Reuben, so I can only assume that I had a poorly prepared example. The owner was also about and quite friendly and talkative.
Price Range: $8 - 15
Recommended? Great staff, very friendly and helpful. But most of the food is only okay, go for the atmosphere, to watch sports or for one of their weeknight events like Karaoke or Trivia.
Date of Visit: July 14, 2008
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