Tomato Soup

Spice

The journey through Rhode Island's Thai Restaurants continues with...Spice Authentic Thai Bistro off Thayer Street.

It was a nice day to sit outside, but be warned that the tables and the outdoor patio are really, really dirty. Nevertheless, we stayed and ordered our usuals, Chicken Red Curry:

and Pad Thai:

The red curry was nice, although not spicy enough for me. I really like to feel it at the back of my throat. But it was overflowing with yummy vegetables and bamboo (my favorite part) and the sauce was a nice milky consistency.

The pad thai was very average. It was very, very gooey and while noodles in a pad thai dish always tend to be a little sticky and clump together, this was one big mass of noodle. Because there was too much sauce, the after taste wasn't entirely pleasant. It was much too sweet and left a sort of residue on my tongue. We were also the only people in the place and it still took 30 minutes for us to get our meal. I don't think I'll be going back, except maybe to check out East Side Perks, the coffee shop that occupies the front half of the store space.

Spice
110 Waterman Street
Providence, RI 02906


**NOTE- I'll be absent from Tomato Soup until September 10th because I will be in California on vacation gathering tasty materials to post!**

Olga's Cup and Saucer

Olga's Cup and Saucer is one of those restaurants that, when people find out I'm a foodie and they ask about places I've been, is usually on the list. And it's one of the places that every time they ask, I'm embarrassed to say that no, I've never been, not even to stop in, check out the garden, and grab a coffee. But, like most places that people recommend to me, eventually I make it there. And yesterday, I had an eye appointment at the Coro Building (right up the street) right around lunch time and when it was over, I knew my chance for Olga's had come.

It was a beautiful day outside and after I ordered I sat myself in a bench nearest to the street right under a nice shady tree. While waiting for my sandwich, I sipped the iced tea of the day:

Even though it was just yesterday, I honestly can't remember what kind it was. I'm pretty sure it had peach and ginger in it, but none of the flavors were too strong. It tasted most like the lemon I squeezed into it, but it was still refreshing.

To eat, I had the chili lime brined chicken sandwich with coleslaw:

The sandwich was supposed to come on roasted garlic bread, but this bread basically tasted like artisan white bread. It was also much too soaked with chipotle mayonnaise. The chicken itself was tender, and I loved the roasted tomatillos, but other than that the sandwich didn't thrill me. I saw a corn, tomato, and pesto pizza pass by me and cursed myself for not ordering it. In fact, everything else I saw ordered looked absolutely fantastic, so I think I may have just made the wrong choice. Does anyone have favorites that never fail them? I may go back and indulge in the baked goods instead- there was a brownie in the dessert case that was making my mouth water! I really enjoyed the experience of Olga's, and I am definitely up for returning. I think it is a great unique spot that maybe needs to spice up their chili lime chicken sandwich a bit!

Olga's Cup and Saucer
103 Point Avenue
Providence, RI 02903
401-831-6666

Supper Club #3

I'm not entirely sure that this Saturday's Supper Club meeting was an official one- one couple realized they couldn't make it at the last minute, and the other were MIA (we were later to find out that MIA couple, C and L, were stuck in a 14 hour journey back from a vacation in France and had no way to contact us to tell us they wouldn't make it!). Therefore, it was just Andy and I, and L and A for our "Breakfast from Around the World". Since we didn't have enough couples to make up a whole meal, we had to change things up a bit.

I brought both the appetizer, side dish, and a drink to compliment my appetizer. To start, I made a tomato and ricotta galette- a completely improvised recipe based on my desire to make a galette and the things I found at that mornings farmer's market:

I used a pre-made sheet of puff pastry dough and layered it with all sorts of goodies. For the first layer, I spread a mixture of garlic, parmesan cheese, pine nuts, salt, some dried herbs (basil, oregano, etc) and olive oil- that had all been ground into a thick paste in the food processor. Then a layer of ricotta cheese (enough to cover the whole surface so a medium layer of thickness). Then a layer of red onions that I had caramelized before spreading them onto the dough. Then a layer of absolutely beautiful baby heirloom tomatoes, halved (used a whole pint of them). I baked this all in the oven at 425 degrees for 30 minutes. When it came out of the oven, I let it cool for about 10-15 minutes then added a generous sprinkling of fleur de sel and lots of fresh torn purple basil. The combination of fresh, summer flavors in this galette was perfect. I wish I had cooked it for about 10 minutes longer so that the bottom of the pastry was firmer (the ricotta prevented it from crisping enough in the 30 minutes I allotted). I also loved the purple basil in this dish because it has a milder flavor than sweet basil and it adds a unique punch of color.

For a drink to serve with my French breakfast item, I headed to Jamaica for inspiration- that is, I went to Tina's Caribbean and bought two bottles of her phenomenal homemade fruit punch and mixed it with some spiced rum:

Tina's punch gets all the credit for this drink. It wasn't too sweet and tasted nothing like those bright red "fruit" punches of childhood. It was smooth and creamy and packed with tropical fruit flavors. More like a smoothie than a punch, it was the perfect compliment to spiced rum.

Unfortunately, I didn't get any good pictures of either my side dish, which was just very simple turkey sausage patties, or L and A's creative and fun créme bruleé French toast (which they served with the appropriate mimosa). The French toast really acted like the dessert of the meal because it had a crispy sugared top and they served it with South Carolina pecans and pure maple syrup. Here is a picture of Andy's final bite of French toast:

It's too bad the rest of the Supper Club missed out on this meal because you don't get to have breakfast for dinner very often!

Basil Butter

I had a lot of summer food goodies sitting in my apartment that needed to be used. I had three tomatoes and a handful of basil from the garden at my preschool, two small yellow onions and a couple of cloves of garlic from the farmers market, and some shrimp. So I whipped this up:

I boiled some wheat pasta, cooked the tomatoes, onions, garlic, and shrimp in some olive oil, salt and pepper, and then made some basil butter to toss the hot pasta in. The basil butter was the best thing to come out of this dish, because it added the most flavor. Instead of just throwing some torn basil on top of the pasta, making basil butter is a great way to really infuse the flavor of the herb into the dish. Butter melts perfectly into hot pasta and clings to the spirals (I think using spirals is best in this sort of dish because then the basil butter can gather in the crevices of the noodles).

To make basil butter for two servings of pasta you need:

1 large handful of basil
2-3 tablespoons of butter (depending on how coated you like your pasta)
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Salt to taste (optional)

Process all ingredients in a food processor until smooth.

Make sure that right after the pasta is drained you add the herb-infused butter for best results. Any herb-infused butters (try cilantro and parsley) can be used on fish, chicken, and as a condiment for a sandwich as well!

A New Veggie

First of all, I love the Bon Appetit cookbook. Everything I have made from that cookbook has been delicious, and even better, none of it was really very difficult. Yes, there are recipes that take hours and some that take thirty minutes, but they are all achievable feats. I like to think that everything I make has some sort of grandeur and flourish, but this cookbook really helps me achieve that, without feeling overwhelmed in the kitchen. And secondly, I really like discovering new vegetables. In this case, I cooked bok choy for the first time. I've eaten it before but never knew how to prepare it in my own kitchen, and I'm happy to say that it was easy.

Last Saturday night Andy and I ate dinner at home (eating home during a weekend is a novelty- we usually savor weekends and their opportunities for dining out). I didn't want something too expensive, too messy, or too confusing. But I did want it to be one of those meals where we sit down, take a bite and say "now you couldn't get something this good in a restaurant!" And it was:

I made the Asian-Grilled salmon and the garlic baby bok choy (both found online at www.epicurious.com) from the Bon Appetit cookbook, and added my own favorite basil and tomato salad to the mix. The salmon was so easy. The marinade took about 3 minutes to whip up, and the salmon marinated for 15 minutes while I chopped up the garlic and the ingredients for the tomato salad. Once it was done marinating, I stuck it on the grill for 10 minutes and meanwhile cooked the bok choy. And that total of 25 minutes produced an incredible, healthy Saturday night meal that made me forget all about dining out and made me remember why it feels so good to be in the kitchen.

Tina's

It takes a brave soul to set up shop on Atwells and not be an Italian restaurant. But I'm glad that there are restaurateurs who work up the courage- I don't think any street or neighborhood should limit itself to one type of cuisine. I want to go to Atwells and know that I have some options available, and I think Tina's Caribbean might be my new non-Italian top choice.

I had the Curried Chicken that is generously served with cabbage, collard greens, rice and peas (red beans), and fried plantains:

The chicken was extremely tender from being slow cooked, and very aromatic. I had never had Jamaican curry before, and I had no idea what to expect. Curry was introduced to the Caribbean with the influx of Indian's who came to Jamaica in the 1830's so the curry powder itself is similar to that of West Indian curry with turmeric, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, and coriander seeds and the rest of the sauce includes coconut milk, onions, and garlic. But a key ingredient to Jamaican cooking is the Scotch Bonnet chili pepper, which gives curries and jerk dishes their distinct flavor.

I think that this dish could have used a little more scotch bonnet chili, because it didn't have enough heat for me. But the mixture of all of the flavors from the bitter collards, sweet plantains, vinegary cabbage, and salty curry was unbelievable. I liked having a plate with so many options that all exposed me to the flavors of Jamaica. And for $10, this meal was also a great deal. While there, we also tried the sweetened cucumber juice with ginger and I highly recommend it. It was refreshing and had a wonderful ginger kick to it that complimented the crispness of the cucumber flavor.

Basically British

If you love a good, warm cup of tea and sensuous baked goods, head to Basically British.

Check out my detailed article about the British tea room for Motif Magazine online, or free in print all around Rhode Island!

Dear Hearts Ice Cream

In a couple of weeks, I am going to do a round up of all of the ice cream places I have tried in Rhode Island, and give them some sort of star rating. I have a couple more I'd like to get to before that, but here is another one to add to the list: Dear Hearts. Andy and I went to Dear Hearts I in Pawtuxet Village. It is quite a little place, with no room to eat your ice cream inside, so when you go make sure that it's either a nice enough day to sit outside, or you're prepared to do takeout (and wait the entire ride home to eat your ice cream!).

When I first walked in all I saw was the huge sign declaring how many soft serve flavors they have. They don't have their menu online, so I can't remember how many flavors there were, but I think it was somewhere around 100! In any case, I didn't need to peruse all of them to figure out which one I wanted. Peanut butter soft serve is one of the greatest treats of all time. I got my peanut butter soft serve with sprinkles, peanut butter cup pieces, and chocolate sauce. And it came in a huge cup, since all of their soft serve is one size only:

In the couple minutes this ice cream traveled from shop to outside bench, it got a little soupy on top but it was still very delicious. Nice and creamy! There is something about soft serve that makes it so much more palatable than hard ice cream, which also makes it easier to eat, and thus makes it gone faster.

Andy had a kids sundae, which was hilariously served in a baseball hat cup. They were out of Cardinals hats, so I forced him (he was not happy about it) to get my team- the Yankees:

He had oreo ice cream in his cup- but you can barely tell under all of that whipped cream! My favorite thing about this picture is not so much the ice cream, but that Andy is holding Yankees memorabilia. I may have just lost some readers here... :). I didn't try any of it, but he seemed to like it and thought that the kids size was the perfect amount.

Red Stripe

Back in March I went to Red Stripe for brunch with my mom. I raved about my blintz and the bustling bistro atmosphere of the place, and noted that I would be back sometime soon for dinner. Alas, "sometime soon" turned into 5 months later when I finally decided to check back at Red Stripe with Andy in tow. We made a reservation for a Friday night because I know that the restaurant is usually packed with local patrons (I believe Red Stripe to be a favorite within Wayland Square residents), and I was right on my assumption. The place was pleasantly crowded but we were seated on time.

A glance at the menu left me pleased- all the entrees were well priced and interesting. We started with the sweet potato latke with applesauce and horseradish (just the way a latke is meant to be served!):

These were phenomenal. The sweet potatoes had been shoestringed before being assembled into patties which gave the latke a great texture. The cinnamon essence was strong and the horseradish complimented the sweetness. They were also done fairly "al dente" so the sweet potato wasn't mushy, it was still slightly firm in the middle and sandwiched by the nice crispy layers on the top and bottom from the frying pan. This is one of those dishes that you can't wait to go home and try out yourself, and if you fail, one of those dishes that you can't wait to go back for.

For my entree, I had the Friday night special, the Red Stripe Seafood Paella, that comes with a green salad (for only $17.95!):

Mixed Green Salad


Seafood Paella

The paella was filled to the brim with seafood goodies- clams, mussels, shrimp, and salmon. There was also some spicy sausage, lots of thinly sliced vegetables, and tasty rice that had been simmered in an absolutely savory saffron broth. This dish was fantastic. It was quite a huge portion for the reasonable price, and Red Stripe definitely did not skimp on the seafood for this, one of their signature dishes. Even though it was a warm summer night, this really hit the spot.

Andy went with the Red Stripe 10oz Black Angus Burger:

Which came juicy and cooked to his liking (medium) and piled high with havarti cheese, avocado, and grilled red onion. On the side was a garlic aioli that paired well with the fries I kept sneaking off his plate! This burger and massive pile of fries was only $8.50. At most restaurants, $8.50 will get you the bare minimum burger but this came with lots of yummy extras. Definitely another star on the menu.

For dessert (I couldn't resist) we shared the coconut cheesecake:

Simple, but good. There were a lot of other dessert options on the menu, and I would probably try those before going back to this cheesecake, but all in all the main meals were just so memorable that the dessert had a lot to live up to. I think it will be less than 5 months before I return to Red Stripe to enjoy a great dinner!

The New Nick's

Before I had a blog, only a couple of weeks after Andy and I moved to Providence, we stumbled upon a small breakfast joint, Nick's on Broadway, on our way to go the the B Sharp music store. There was a line out the door and a great hustle and bustle inside that we couldn't resist. We put our name in and were luckily seated promptly at the counter- the best seat in the house for entertainment purposes. We watched the cooks scramble in the back and flip and grill some of the best brunch food I had ever tasted.

Time went by and we pledged to return to Nick's and then some more time went by and we found out it moved several blocks down the street to a new, bigger location. Andy and I were intrigued and even more determined to make it back. Well, we finally did make it back on Saturday. Beware that the Nick's link above has their old menu on it. Their new menu still has the same classic breakfast and omelette choices, but also has a couple more artisan options, and their prices have gone way up.

For example, I had the Maine smoked salmon platter which used to be $8.00, but which is now $12.95:

I had an everything bagel which was toasted with pesto and then topped with cream cheese. I couldn't taste the pesto as much as I would have liked- there was only a subtle garlic taste to each bite I took. The salmon was silky and delicious and I love the rosebud presentation! The tomatoes were also perfectly ripe and sweet and complimented the Maine salmon very well. However, I still do not think this dish is worth $12.95.

Andy had a ham, broccoli, and cheddar omelette:

He opted for a fruit cup in place of the homefries and I told him he was crazy because the homefries have both russet potatoes AND sweet potatoes and I consider them one of the best things Nick's makes. I didn't try the omelette but Andy wasn't impressed. He said it wasn't very big or particularly flavorful and not even close to the wonderful memory we have of the asparagus omelette we tried at the old Nick's. I did run into a friend there  who had the pancakes with peach compote and said they were heavenly- so maybe the sweet things are the right choice to make.

I also thought it odd dining in such a new, sleek space. I did really like the design and thought it gave Nick's a cleaner, hipper vibe, but I think something may have been lost in translation. I think Nick's may be meant to be a little greasier and a little less expensive!