For coffee on the go...
Walking up George Street, I found this ultra-clean yellow truck. I didn’t have time to try an espresso, but the Ethiopian Yirgacheffe was smooth and delicious.
Providence Coffee Roasters
http://www.providencecoffeeroasters.com
The latest addition to Providence’s food truck scene.
“It’s the hottest sauce you’ve ever had,” I was informed as I asked for the sauce to be added to my green chile cheeseburger. Whether it is or not, we’ll never know, since it was artfully diluted within the green chiles. The burger was good, the west african sweet potato and peanut soup, better.
Rocket Fine Street Food
near Thayer Street
http://rocketstreetfood.wordpress.com
Yacht Club Soda's January Signature Cocktail...
The company, which has been bottling its own soda in Rhode Island for nearly one hundred years, creates over a dozen flavors — cola, cream soda, sarsaparilla, root beer, black cherry, etc. I’ve liked all of the ones I’ve tried except for the pineapple, which reminded me of a medicine I took as a child. The company makes their own flavored sugar syrups onsite without the use of the dreaded high-fructose corn variety. They also bottle only in glass, and you can return your bottles to the winter farmer’s market for reuse. They even have a factory store that you can visit yourself in North Providence (it’s on my list).
In the meantime, if you fancy yourself a ‘mixologist’, you can enter your favorite mixed cocktail recipe using Yacht Club Soda by February 3 at noon to win some prizes. All entries should be sent to yachtclubbeverages@gmail.com.
Yacht Club Soda
2239 Mineral Spring Avenue
North Providence, RI
www.yachtclubsoda.com
The bento box at Ama's.
There’s only one thing I like more than pictures on the menu (which Ama’s doesn’t have), and that’s an assortment of dishes to taste. As we reviewed the menu, our waitress informed us that their bento boxes take some time to come out since each dish is prepared to order. Consequently, there was no question what I wanted — food worth waiting for.
Tucked on a side street in the West End of Providence, Ama’s is not your ordinary Japanese restaurant — there is no sushi and no maki. What you will find, however, is perfectly prepared chicken yakatori, edamame stuffed yuba, panko-crusted fish with a wasabi ginger mayonnaise, impeccably seasoned udon noodle soup, paper-thin mushroom gyoza, and enough sake to wash it all down.
Ama’s
3 Luongo Memorial Square
Providence, RI 02903
Baby Doll play set available on Etsy in Rhode Island: http://www.etsy.com/listing/46824903/
If you’re doing some last-minute shopping, that’s all the more reason to keep it local. Here are a few ideas (feel free to post others in the comments) for great children’s gifts that are either invented and/or made in Rhode Island.
Handmade local items at Craftland.
Craftland
Located on Westminster Street in Providence, this packed little shop sells jewelry, t-shirts, cards, puppet-making kits, toys, you name it. All the items are hand-crafted by regional artists.
www.craftlandshow.com
Seven Acre Toys
Providence, RI
Wood blocks, rattles, mobiles, teethers and more.
http://sevenacretoys.com
Pockets of Learning
Warren, RI
This children’s toy company makes unique soft toys. We still have the three little pigs set that Madeline got as a gift years ago. I’m not sure they still make that, but they have a soft tea set that I’m sure Lucy would love.
www.pocketsoflearning.com
Etsy
Local searches in RI
On Etsy, you can find local artisans who make dolls, toys, clothes, etc. A quick search for “children” in Rhode Island brought me to this adorable mini baby set (pictured above), owl wall plaque, and toddler aviator hat. See the full list of children’s items in Rhode Island.
Mill Street Puzzle Company
Newport, RI
Located in Newport’s Historic Hill, this company creates American-made jigsaw puzzles that celebrate American heritage.
www.millstreetpuzzles.com
Bananagrams
Providence, RI
Let’s not forget one of my personal favorites — a word game for the Scrabble-obsessed.
http://bananagrams.com
Hasbro
Of course, Hasbro, the maker of Mr. Potato Head, Play-Doh and a plethora of other toys and brands is also located in Rhode Island. In fact, it’s one of the big national public companies located in the state (CVS is another), and as such is a major employer here. Buying Play-Doh doesn’t have the same feel as buying a hand-crafted item. Still, a local job is nothing to scoff at when you’re unemployment rate still exceeds 10 percent…
www.hasbro.com
Who out there has other suggestions?
Madeline found a cello made of legos at the Narrows Gallery exhibit.
When Lucy started to crawl, I moved Madeline’s ten pounds of legos out of the girls’ room and into the living room. I feared that the tiny brightly colored pieces would make too tempting a snack for an infant.
The Narrows Gallery's exhibit "The Art of the Brick" is open through November 19, 2011.
But Madeline seldom went to the living room to play with them. What was once her favorite activity was no longer part of her daily play.
So I decided, it was time to bring back the legos.
Yesterday, we drove to Fall River where the Narrows Gallery is currently hosting a free art exhibit of work by New York artist Nathan Sawaya. The pieces, entirely made of legos, don’t match the intricacy of the displays at Lego World (in Germany we saw a lego stadium with 30,000 lego people fans), but they were inventive — a giant pencil writing the word yes, a yellow man with an open chest pouring out legos (which Madeline said looked like a jack-o-lantern), and a full size cello.
Lego walls down the hall give children the opportunity to build their own lego art.
Of course, it’s hard enough to prevent kids from touching art when it’s not made of legos, so wisely the center set up an accompanying build-your-own exhibit down the hall with logo walls so low even Lucy could try her hand at building.
The exhibit inspired Madeline to build her own at home too — so far she’s made her own lego family, a sewing machine, and a robot. Legos are now strewn all over the kitchen and our bedroom floor. Lucy loves running her hands through the giant bucket of legos. As expected, I have caught her eating one a few times, but so far she hasn’t swallowed any. At least, I don’t think she has.
Madeline's lego girls.
The Art of the Brick
through November 19, 2011
Narrows Gallery
16 Anawan Street
Fall River, MA
www.ncfta.org
My Cortado
A perfect cortado–a shot of espresso or two with a matching volume of steamed milk–can be found the excellent Flan Y Ajo. Here you can also find a Spanish pinball machine, a quiet place for an excellent lunch, and a worthy replacement for Farmstead Downcity.
Flan y Ajo
225A Westminster St
Providence, RIwww.flanyajo.com
Another perfect Cortado?
Blue State Coffee
300 Thayer St
Providence, RI
At Blue State, if you can, order the cortado to stay–not to go. The glass makes a big difference.
Lucy makes her pick...
In our few years in Rhode Island, apple picking has become one of our fall traditions. We’ve gone to Jaswell’s Farm, which has a great farm stand and pasteurizes their own cider, and Sweet Berry Farm, which I love for their café/farm stand (their pumpkin muffins are addictive). This year, to try something new (and because we heard they still had peaches), we headed to Hill Orchards in Johnston, RI.
At most orchards, they discourage you from sampling the fruit, but at Hill they invited us to try before you buy. And sure enough, they still had peaches and plums in addition to plenty of apples — although not all of them ripe quite yet. This weekend, they recommended picking the macintosh, cortland, gala and macoun, although we also found some ripe golden delicious.
There do have a bare bones “farm stand,” which consists of a folding table where you can buy some cider and pumpkins in a variety of sizes (we got both). And they also offer horse-drawn carriage rides around the farm — we passed on the ride, although Madeline insisted on petting the horses.
As usual, we left with enough fruit to make several pies, except this time, we’ll have to add peach pie to our to do list.
Hill Orchards
86 Winsor Avenue
Johnston, RI
www.hillorchards.com
For other suggestions on where to “pick your own,” visit Farm Fresh RI.
Jerry and Rose take the bus to Foxwoods Casino when they're in Rhode Island.
My step-mother’s parents, Rose and Jerry (aka Bubbie and Zadie), retired to Florida over 17 years ago. Every year, they return to Rhode Island — the state in which they were born, raised their children, and lived most of their lives.
Of course, they come to visit family, but their journey has also become a pilgrimage to their old favorite restaurants and sights. Their carefully culled picks have nothing to do with hot spots that may rise and fall from the Best of Rhode Island lists. Instead, these are the places that have persisted through the generations and have come to represent a moment in time in Rhode Island.
1. At Twin Oaks in Cranston, they always order the baked stuffed shrimp. They say the shrimp are “scrawny” in Florida compared with the five jumbo shrimps at Twin Oaks. But it’s the stuffing they crave. They also like that when you order a cocktail, like a Black Russian, you get “a drink and a half.” Other favorites here include the house salad dressing and the homemade chocolate pudding.
2. Florida may be the “Sunshine State,” but Rhode Island is still the “Ocean State.” Every year, they plan a beach day at either Narragansett Town Beach or Sand Hill Cove (Roger Wheeler). They love the way the land gradually slopes out to the ocean rather than the abrupt way the land drops at the Hollywood and Fort Lauderdale beaches. (Although they admit the Gulf waters on the west coast of Florida are warm, and the beaches have a more gradual dip.) Still, nothing is better than sitting on the sea wall in Narragansett as the sun is rising or setting. Clam cakes and chowder (which they call chowda) are a must at either Aunt Carrie’s, Champlin’s, or George’s of Galilee.
3. At Crow’s Nest in Warwick, they enjoy the lobster salad sandwiches and their sugar-free blueberry pie.
4. Chello’s by the water in Warwick is a must for the Jim Dandy Burger and the banana berry pie, served only in season.
5. Their trip to Rhode Island is not complete without a Conway Bus day trip to Foxwood Casinos in Connecticut. For 24 dollars a ticket, you get bus service to and from the hotel along with food and gambling vouchers. They give you more in vouchers than the price of the ticket expecting that visitors will wind up spending more gambling. But for Rose and Jerry, it’s a deal.
6. They adore the chocolate walnut ice cream from Brickley’s in Narragansett on route 1A. You can also get Brickley’s in Wickford served in the former Ryan’s market.
7. They love to quench their thirst on a hot beach day with a classic Del’s lemonade. Now with locations in over a dozen states, Del’s started in Cranston. Rose still remembers the owner, Mr. Delucia.
8. They love events like the East Greenwich Main Street stroll; concerts in Wickford and Cranston’s Garden City; and tours in Newport, RI and Mystic, Connecticut.
9. They can’t resist the coffee “cabinets” from Newport Creamery.
10. And no trip is complete without some Walt’s roast beef sandwiches.
Twin Oaks (since 1933)
100 Sabra Street
Cranston, RI
www.twinoaksrest.com
Aunt Carrie’s Seafood (since 1920)
1240 Ocean Road
Narragansett, RI
www.auntcarriesri.com
Champlin’s Seafood (since 1932)
See previous post
George’s of Galilee (since 1948)
250 Sand Hill Cove Road
Narragansett, RI
www.georgesofgalilee.com
Crow’s Nest (since 1966)
288 Arnolds Neck Drive
Warwick, RI
www.crowsnestri.com
Chelo’s on the Waterfront (since 1955)
1 Masthead Drive
Warwick, RI
www.chelos.com
Foxwoods Resort Casinos (since 1986)
www.foxwoods.com
Brickley’s (since 1995)
See previous post.
Del’s Lemonade (since 1948)
www.dels.com
Newport Creamery (since 1940)
See previous post.
Walt’s Roast Beef (since 1957)
www.waltsroastbeef.net
The Rhode Less Traveled: A Rhode Island Blog 