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Providence Dining Experiences and Reviews

Garris

By Garris
in Providence

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Garris Town

Garris

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Great list, but hasnt Kaplan's closed? I read this list the first time on CHowhound and went looking for Kaplan's when I moved to Providence. Never found it and was told it closed a couple of years ago/.

Ack! You found an error in my list. I meant to list "Davis Deli" Hope Street... I have no idea what made me type Kaplan's, as it closed before I ever arrived in Providence.

- Garris

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KBagley Whistle-Stop

KBagley

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According to Carpionato Properties' website, Cilantro Grill will replace the former D'Angelo in Douglas Crossings (corner of Rts. 7 & 15 in No. Providence).

http://www.carpionatoproperties.com/Brochu...asCrossings.pdf

Anyone know if this is the same owner/restuarant as Cilantro Mexican Grill on Weybosset?

Interesting... the owners of Cilantro live on the 3rd floor of the house my apartment is in, I had no idea he was thinking of opening another location... will try to ask him soon.

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spanishboy Whistle-Stop

spanishboy

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Interesting... the owners of Cilantro live on the 3rd floor of the house my apartment is in, I had no idea he was thinking of opening another location... will try to ask him soon.

Can you try to ask him why on earth does he close early on weybosset... we needs restaurants like this to stay open late

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LMWW Unincorporated Area

LMWW

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Returning to the pizza discussion, I'm surprised that nobody has anything to say about Bob & Timmy's. Love their mushrooms...

I think the question for Providence is less about the "best pizza" but more about the "best [particular type] of pizza." Fellini is great for a slice, Casserta is great for some solid sicilian, and Bob & Timmy's has great grilled pizza. We pretty much rotate between those three, with an occasional trip to Antonio's.

Oh, and I strongly dislike pizza pie-er - we once ordered a pizza with sundried tomatoes, and it looked like they dumped 4 bags of tomatoes on the pie!

And changing the topic to burritos... Cilantro is good enough, but they could take some serious lessons from the burrito joints out West. They need a bit more flavor and options... like a good solid fish burrito. Yum.

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Liamlunchtray Burg

Liamlunchtray

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Agreed. I haven't been anywhere in Boston I'd want to return to... Would Fellini's be your "best of" choice?

I'm surprised no one mentioned Nice Slice. I pretty much stopped going to Fellinis since they remodeled and took out the cafe 10 or 12 years back. Nice Slice is owened by old Fellini's employees and brings back the atmosphere and pizza that I loved. My only complaint is that due to the mighty thin crust I can eat a LOT of slices without getting full.

I must admit that I actually like Antonios an awful lot too. I know it's not the best pizza, but they have a lot of options by the slice and I think its very decent and extremely consistant. I also like that I can go with the wife and kids and everyone ends up happy with the selection.

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Liamlunchtray Burg

Liamlunchtray

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This is quite irrelevant, but, I just went to the "Dunkin Donuts Concept Store" (yes, only in RI...) on Cottage Street in Pawtucket. Anyone who loves DD as much as I do, YOU MUST GO THERE. They have warm muffins, cookies, etc. etc. etc., tons of amazing crap that almost seems as though its comin from a genuine bakery.

I took the kids to a cartoon yesterday at the Patriot and figured I would check out the Dunkin Donuts concept store. I was very amused by the whole thing. My 5 year old son was endlessly impressed with the warm muffin he shared with his sister. "But Poppa, it's WARM!" "Yes it is." "Why is it WARM?" "I think they have them under warming lights" "Why?" "I dont really know" etc etc etc. I actually liked the store concept and the stuff we got seemed slightly better than an average DD. I was at least soothed by the fact that the staff of 5 teenage girls where way to busy comparing camera phones to wait on me, so at least some of what I expect from a DD was still there.

Liam

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Recchia Town

Recchia

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^ I really wish they had picked a better place for this store. It's real isolated in the middle of that damn parking lot. I wish it was on Central or Cottage BUILT TO THE STREET. Pawtucket seems to be weird with this, some places are built right up to the sidewalk with nice entrances and stuff, while others are just tossed into a sea of surface parking (i.e. Tim Hortons at Newport and Central).... why why why??? The Pawtucket Credit Union on Central is a great example of what I would like.

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Garris Town

Garris

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I'm surprised no one mentioned Nice Slice.

I must admit that I actually like Antonios an awful lot too. I know it's not the best pizza...

I've never tried Nice Slice... I'll get a pie tonight!

I like Antonios too... They've on the next tier down, I'd say. Odd their chains are Amhert, MA; Providence; and like College Station, TX?

- Garris

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Garris Town

Garris

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antonio's is a chain??

Well, I don't know when something becomes a "chain." The owners have two other stores, I believe. I was driving through Amherst, MA and saw their Antonio's there, and someone I know in Providence originally from Amherst occasionally gets pizza from there for "nostalgia" reasons. When I was once in Antonio's here I think they have something on the wall listing their other stores...

- Garris

PS: I got Nice Slice by the way, this evening. Not bad... Nice, thin, crispy crust. Their sauce is tasty, but unfortunately used sparingly. I still prefer Antonio's as my "second tier" pizza, but this certainly isn't bad... $11 for a very large sized pie...

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runawayjim Metropolis

runawayjim

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Well, I don't know when something becomes a "chain." The owners have two other stores, I believe. I was driving through Amherst, MA and saw their Antonio's there, and someone I know in Providence originally from Amherst occasionally gets pizza from there for "nostalgia" reasons. When I was once in Antonio's here I think they have something on the wall listing their other stores...

- Garris

PS: I got Nice Slice by the way, this evening. Not bad... Nice, thin, crispy crust. Their sauce is tasty, but unfortunately used sparingly. I still prefer Antonio's as my "second tier" pizza, but this certainly isn't bad... $11 for a very large sized pie...

are they a small franchise or actually owned by the same people?

just out of curiosity... something i used to love as a student at uconn (also originating in amherst i believe) was dp dough. cheap calzones, but something like 30 different kinds, and pretty darn good too (for a cheap calzone). there used to be one at URI in the emporium, but i've haerd it's closed. if i had the money, i'd open one up in providence... i have a feeling it'd do pretty good here, considering the amount of cheap pizza the PC students eat from frankly's and golden crust (both of which aren't half bad for really cheap pizza). www.dpdough.com if you're interested.

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Jenkins Whistle-Stop

Jenkins

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are they a small franchise or actually owned by the same people?

just out of curiosity... something i used to love as a student at uconn (also originating in amherst i believe) was dp dough. cheap calzones, but something like 30 different kinds, and pretty darn good too (for a cheap calzone). there used to be one at URI in the emporium, but i've haerd it's closed. if i had the money, i'd open one up in providence... i have a feeling it'd do pretty good here, considering the amount of cheap pizza the PC students eat from frankly's and golden crust (both of which aren't half bad for really cheap pizza). www.dpdough.com if you're interested.

Graduated from UMass Amherst and loved DP dough! They named their calzones after people or weird things, like the coach Cal-zone when coach Callipari was there and the hoop team was actually good. I think DP, or a knock off on it, would do great on Thayer St. And I just love having Antonio's here, some of my favorite pizza for sure.

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runawayjim Metropolis

runawayjim

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question about hemenway's. what sort of dress is appropriate? i'm going there for dinner tonight and can't find anything that gives any sort of idea. some reviews on citysearch call it casual, others say classy (although i guess you can have classy casual). would a shirt and tie be recommended or would that be out of place?

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JimmyGreaves Hamlet

JimmyGreaves

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question about hemenway's. what sort of dress is appropriate? i'm going there for dinner tonight and can't find anything that gives any sort of idea. some reviews on citysearch call it casual, others say classy (although i guess you can have classy casual). would a shirt and tie be recommended or would that be out of place?

Jacket and ties are not required. To play it safe, I would dress business casual (khakis, collared shirt, no tie).

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Garris Town

Garris

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Devastating restaurant news from Jess on Chowhound.com:

"Just a quick note to RI area chowhounds. Barney's Bagels, often noted as the best bagels in RI, has closed suddenly in just this past week. There are rumors as to the reason (fire code violation, etc.) but I have not heard if there is any chance of them opening again. Sad news for those of us who have made a habit of enjoying their exceptional bagels, breads, muffins, and sandwiches."

I just got (wonderful) bagels and lox there this past Saturday!

Their bagels were by far and away the best in the area. Bagel Gourmet Ole is a distant second...

Has anyone else found decent bagels in the area?

- Garris

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runawayjim Metropolis

runawayjim

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i forgot to post this earlier... i went to hemenway's for dinner last friday. made reservations on their website (made things easy). parking was free in the garage next door, practically valet parking too, how convenient. we were seated right away after having our coats checked. it was a special evening (celebrating our engagement) and the staff at hemenway's made sure it was special. our waiter was very nice and very good. after asking us if we were celebrating anything (which i told him why we were there) and askign us if it was our first time there, the manager brought over a free sample of their fried oysters (excellent) and the waiter brought over complimentary champagne for us (which he made sure they removed from the bill afterwards). we started with the clams casino, which was excellent, aside from the asian slaw that they served with it (i didn't get that part). my girlfriend (or fiancee) complained that the clams were a little chewy, but being a long time clam eater, it's not uncommon for them to be that way. for our main courses she got the baked stuff swordfish, which neither of us had ever heard of, but it was excellent. i got the grilled organic salmon and i added $5 to have it oscar style, which added crab meat, asparagus, and some sauce (i don't remember what it was) over the top. that was probably one of the best pieces of salmon i'ev ever had. i ordered mashed potatoes on the side, which were also excellent. they were the kind with the skins incuded. actually tasted like real potatoes, not the powdered stuff. the only complaint i had was the salad that came with our meals. it had a lot of the white part of the lettuce. next time i go there, i think i'll get the ceasar salad rather than the garden salad. i've heard that one's good. i was also unhappy about their lobster prices. they start at $22 for the 1.25 pound lobster, but jump to $44 for a 2 pounder (not really all that uncommon). but if you wanted to get a baked stuffed lobster, you have to get the 2 pound or larger and it also adds $6 to the cost. so a baked stuff lobster would've been $50 for the one meal. i was gonna go for that, but when he told us the price, it just seemed unreasonable to me. all in all, it was a great meal and experience, although they could have waited a little longer between bringing us courses since we got the appetizer in addition to our salads that came with the meal. i would go back there again (once i fill my wallet back up).

on a side note, they were up for the nicest bathroom award or soemthing. the men's room wasn't anything special. the pics on that award site apparently came from the women's room, which, according to my girlfriend, was also nothing special.

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KBagley Whistle-Stop

KBagley

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I went to Cilantro last night and saw notices posted that they are indeed opening the second location at Douglas Crossing on Mineral Spring Avenue. I haven't even seen John (the owner) in weeks because he's been working all the time. I hope he does as well at the new place although I am unsure of who the market is over there as the lunchtime crowd is his best business...

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