Providence

Date:

Dining Companion: Courtney P.

I've wanted to go to Providence for a while but one bad review from a friend kept me away these long years. Finally, watching head chef Michael Cimarusti on Top Chef: Masters renewed my interest and we set out for dinner.

What a lovely meal. First off, the decor is lovely. Considering that it is a seafood heavy menu you might expect some cheesy nautical theme, but there was none. The decor was beautiful, tasteful, and had some semblance of being related to the ocean in a subtle way.

The service was excellent. Some restaurants sneer at people sharing dishes which I find ridiculous. How else can you try that many things on the menu??? Not only did they not sneer, they split the dishes for us and made them look artistic and beautiful on their own. That was amazing.

We started off the meal with a selection of amuse bouches. Is there a plural for amuse bouche? :) It contained a variety of interesting little nibbles from the chef. I liked all of them.

We shared the King Crab appetizer and the "chowda" for appetizers. The King Crab with fresh peas and crispy soba was phenomenal. Light, fresh, and very tasty. The "chowda" was a bit heavier. It was a rich creamy broth with clams and potato floating around in it.

The halibut entree included one of my "must-order" items- a zucchini flower!! Fried to perfection. Not overly breaded just light and crispy! Halibut can be a bit dry if not cooked right. This was so moist! It was a beautiful perfect clean white and was moist and delicious to eat. The layers flaked off exactly as they should and the sauce and vegetables were a welcome accompaniment.

One dish I wish we would have tried- salt roasted spot prawns. The woman next to us got them and they looked delicious. They are prepared tableside and taken out of the shell so that they are easily eaten. Yum. I asked the woman about the dish and she said she gets it all the time.

For dessert we split an interesting dish that had ice cream made out of a Parisian pastry blended up- a canele. It was amazing.

The menu is seasonal and they focus on using what is fresh so the menu will vary from time to time but everything we had was amazing so I would expect that to carry over from season to season.

Michael Cimarusti didn't win Top Chef. Who cares? He got a Michelin rating!!!

www.providencela.com

5955 Melrose Avenue