Best “cool” cocktails
Experimenting with new flavors has become a signature at the gelato shop COLD FUSION. Though there’s only space for 34, the total number of gelato and sorbet flavors owner Torrance Kopfer has come up with approaches 200. His inventiveness seems endless, with bay leaf and lavender vanilla variations; a dozen coffee flavors, including mocha crunch with bits of coffee beans; dark chocolate mixed with banana and coconut (“monkey business”). Traditional Italian flavors include ricotta, mascarpone, and tiramisu; among the herb and spice options, there are cardamom, lemongrass, or rose petal; and from the almost 40 fruit flavors, the unusual black currant and fig are the tip of the iceberg. But the really “cool” flavors are the sorbets laced with liquor or liqueur: mojito, with lime, rum, and mint; tequila with lime; Calvados and green apple; Campari and pear; limoncello. And don’t forget the mint julep and Bailey’s Irish cream gelatos!
Cold Fusion | 389 Thames Street, Newport | 401.849.6777 |www.coldfusiongelato.com
NOW HE’S COOKIN’ Executive chef Matt Holmes at the Red Stripe. |
Best variations on a mollusk theme
There was a day when mussels could hardly be given away, when most diners thought of them as akin to barnacles, fit to encrust pier pilings but hardly welcome gaping and steaming on a dinner table. Once they came to be appreciated, the default preparation at most restaurants was simply to steam them with white wine so that the resulting broth would be worth dipping bread into. Well, the Wayland Square restaurant RED STRIPE does it that way, but also offers eight other preparations of fat Prince Edward Island mollusks. The Monclade contains curry as well as white wine. The Normande has bacon and mushrooms and is finished with calvados and cream. The Grecque has coriander, fennel, lemon juice, and olive oil. Two sizes are offered, $7.50 and $12.50, the larger with a cone of tasty French fries.Red Stripe | 465 Angell St., Providence | 401.437.6950
Best Post Road pub grub
Owner John Cioli is onto something good with his TAVERN 12 sports pub on Post Road, where the RE-Bar long languished and long before that the surely missed late ’80s madness at Challenges Sports Bar (with the regulation hoop in the corner). Tavern 12 (the walls are covered with #12 jerseys, but we didn’t spot Jerry Sichting) focuses on the televised sports (at least two dozen TVs here) and the food, with an advanced pub menu and stellar service throughout. The $2 stuffies are a must, as is the signature Buffalo Scallops; salads, wraps (the spicy tuna wrap with hot pepper rings and chipotle mayo), grinders (the turkey Reuben), and half-pound burgers are all tempting, along with impressive dinners like the steak and portabello penne, fish and chips ,and Chicken Scampi, to name a few.
Tavern 12 | 2299 Post Road, Warwick | 401.490.2340
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