It’s time for a history lesson: Cinco de Mayo is not the date of the independence of Mexico. Is that going to stop people from getting friendly with José Cuervo and donning sombreros? Probably not. If you still haven’t planned your noche, here’s something to consider: In-Downcity Providence is closing down Westminster Street from 4 to 8 p.m. on the fifth of May for a full-blown fiesta. With appearances from food truck legend Mijos Tacos and our very own Mariachi de Brown, the Cinco de Mayo Block Party is as authentic as it gets in New England. (FYI: It’s not very authentic. But it’s a pretty good attempt.) If mariachi music is not your cup of té, the people from Craftland will be making piñatas for you to take out your finals week anger on smash. ¡Feliz Cinco de Mayo, everyone!

Image via. 

It’s not often that dining forays off College Hill actually deepen my appreciation for the stuff available to us through good ol’ BuDS, but a recent jaunt did the near impossible. I wanted so badly for Blount Clam Shack, the quintessentially New England outpost of fried seafood and 1950s kitsch, to be great. Unfortunately, these expectations proved lofty. Blount’s not awful; it’s just not worth it.

You may recognize the name: Blount is, after all, the supplier of those soups they serve at Jo’s and The Gate. Each year the locally owned franchise goes through some 800,000 pounds of clams, harvested fresh from New England waters, which make for an abundance of hush puppy-esque clam cakes, old-school fried clam rolls and whole belly clam platters. In addition to creamy New England clam chowder and its red Manhattan counterpart, Blount makes a Rhode Island specialty called the clam bake, which tastes like a beachfront cookout poured into a giant stewpot: potatoes, corn, chorizo and clams in a clear, salty broth. Don’t be mistaken; there’s other seafood, too — haddock here and there, scallops and a guest appearance from the lobster roll. They’ve even got a burger section, which is incredibly bewildering since 1) you’re at a clam shack and 2) you’re across the street from Rick’s Roadhouse.

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I can't believe it's not dairy!

This week at Amuse-Bouche, we’re shaking things up a little. A recent jaunt up Hope Street returned not one but two great finds in the grab-lunch-and-chill-out category. Three Sisters and its neighbor Wildflour are like Tia and Tamara or Mary Kate and Ashley (only a lot less annoying than either set of twins): They share the best things in common, probably have overlapping crowds, and seem the same on the surface, but deep down they’re like yin and yang. Three Sisters, a way-casual café, is known for its home-churned ice cream; Wildflour is vegan. Three Sisters is aggressively no-frills; Wildflour is bougie. Both sell themselves with that beautiful combination of freshly made foodstuffs, coffee and smoothies, free WiFi, and plenty of space for camping out. Only one problem: HOW TO CHOOSE?! Here’s the lowdown on both to help you decide. [Read more →]

The interior designer of Rick’s Roadhouse has done his her phe’s job. Taking in the surroundings as we waited for our food, my Puerto Rican dinner companion sighed, “This is what I thought America would be like.” It’s basically a glorified dive: walls decorated with miscellaneous Americana trinkets — taxidermied deer; a painting of the Phillips 66 logo; huge f*ckin’ American flag behind the bar — and waitresses wearing shirts that say “Wanna see a nice rack?” There are no windows(!) and plenty of room (including a 16-top table). It’s self-consciously kitschy, tapping into a strange lowbrow nostalgia that might as well be written into the U.S. Constitution.

The roadhouse theme comes through in the menu, too, which boasts sections like “Start Your Engines!” for appetizers and “Hit the Highway” for catering. It’s also reflected in an aggressive disdain for health food: the veggie burger is named “Burger for Bad Hunters,” and of the five salad options, two contain bacon, one contains steak and “fizzled corn tortillas,” and another is made up of iceberg lettuce. Do not order a salad here. It doesn’t make sense and everyone will probably laugh at you. Stick to what Rick’s knows best and we’ll all be happy. [Read more →]

Ambience complete with giant metal pole.

With the proliferation of websites that bring restaurant reviews into the sphere of social networking (Yelp! Chowhound! Urban Spoon! Amuse-Bouche! food blogs everywhere!), bougies and trolls alike are mere keystrokes away becoming the next great food critic. Unadulterated praise is boring, and we at Blog will be the first to say that it’s fun to be snarky when snark is due. So a restaurant named Pakarang Exquisite Thai seems almost to be a challenge, a dare with two possible outcomes: either a truly exquisite meal or the easiest prey imaginable. (Full disclosure: it’s very easy prey.) Investigation was due.

From its post down on South Main, Pakarang attracts lots of people in suits. It’s got a similarly corporate-looking dining room: sprawling, with nondescript furniture, a vast unmanned bar, and strange aquarium-like wall decorations. In these ways, it’s the polar opposite of Sawaddee, the Thai place on the other side of College Hill, whose dining room is roughly the size of an Escalade. What they have in common is that they both fill up at lunchtime — all that space serves Pakarang well. Service is conducive to business lunches: attentive and quick but not all that personable, the waitstaff make it easy to chow down, go over the latest numbers, and GTFO (to your cubicle… or your 1:00 class). [Read more →]

"I'm from Rhode Island."

If you weren’t one of the 2.9 million viewers watching Rhode Island’s very own Pauly D on The Pauly D Project last Thursday when it premiered, don’t worry, we got you covered. After all, Pauly D is one of BlogDH’s favorite local celebs.

The Jersey Shore spinoff has a simple premise: following the adventures of Pauly D and his friends Biggie, Jerry, Ryan, and JROC. This season, as MTV says,

Viewers will get to see Pauly D chase his dream as he signs a recording contract with rap icon 50 Cent’s G-Note Records, accompanies pop icon Britney Spears on her international “Femme Fatale” tour and tries to balance it all with the array of photo shoots, public appearances and media interviews that are now a part of his everyday life.

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OPEN SESAME

Having just come back from Paris, the land of American-loathing (and self-loathing), I’m well acquainted with negative stereotypes surrounding the land of the free and home of the brave. Unabashedly greasy foods are at the top of the list, so Ugly American‘s name, while marvelously apt, doesn’t leave much to the imagination.

The menu contains renditions of nearly everything in the canon of lowbrow American nosh. The sandwich category is duly represented by the likes of pulled pork melts, BLTs, and beer-battered fish. There’s also a handful of hot dogs — including one, The Godzilla, that combines chili, caramelized jalapeños, and pepper rings in one overwhelmed bun — that are good but not great, with too much bun and not enough dog. Prices are incredibly fair, with sandwiches cheaper than those at the Blue Room (a grilled three-cheese is $3!) and the priciest hot dog weighing in at $2.75. But let’s not joke around. If you go to Ugly American, you must get a burger. [Read more →]

It’s easy to get cozily complacent in the bubble that is College Hill, and for good reason — we have pretty much everything we need, from hip/creepy coffee shops to multiple Irish pubs to the GCB. But Blue Room muffins can only satisfy a sweet tooth for so long, and those cake pops at Starbucks are freaking weird. That’s where Pastiche comes in. Tucked away on a back street of Federal Hill, it’s a whole new world from our collegiate haven… Evidently, a world filled with fancy cake.

The chipper yellow awning and blue-trimmed storefront are reminiscent of cafés on the cobblestone streets of quaint European villages. A dining room that seats about 25 is flanked on one side by a working fireplace and mural of the Italian countryside, on the other by dessert crazytown. A big glass display case contains made-in-house cakes, which are sold whole or by the slice; trays and shelves and towers spill with more treats. Welcome to your dream. [Read more →]

Daylight Savings got you down? Stop mourning that lost hour of sleep and celebrate the good things, like state-wide food competitions! In case you needed another reason to love Rhode Island, head downtown to The Spot Underground right now for The Great Cupcake Championship. Some of our favorite food trucks will be there reppin’ Thayer Street. According to Flour Girls Baking, tickets for today’s cupcake showdown are sold out (boo!), but it’s worth jotting down and following the event’s Facebook page to find out when the next face-off will take place. After all, if $10 gets you all-you-can-eat cupcakes with milk and coffee, imagine what the Mijo’s/Taco Truck duel will get you…

So. Much. Butter.

It’s hard to think of a less informative name for a restaurant than “Not Just Snacks” (a few ideas: “Cuisine”; “Sustenance”; “Eat Here So We Don’t Go Bankrupt”), but that’s exactly what one restaurant up Hope Street calls itself. A few more pertinent details: it’s Indian, BYOB and open everyday for dine-in or take-out. And, no, it’s not just snacks, although there’s a big display case of ready-made samosas and such right when you walk in the front door; the restaurant also offers a full lunch and dinner menu. An annex market across the street, Not Just Spices, sells specialty Indian groceries.

Clearly these guys want us to know that they’re more than meets the eye… but how much more, exactly? Perhaps more pressingly, what makes this place stand out from Kabob & Curry and Taste of India, both of which provide much more convenient ways to satisfy our masala cravings? For starters, it’s cozier, with a distinctly no-frills, mom-and-pop feel. The brightly lit dining room is more classroom-y than it is ambient, with hilariously kitschy murals of India on the walls to set the mood. [Read more →]