The first Restaurant Week was created by Tim Zagat and Joe Baum as a lunch-only promotion to coincide with the Democratic National Convention being held in New York City in 1992.
The prospect of many new guests seemed appealing until it was learned the traditional “visitors” were staying away due to the influx of convention delegates who were staying close to the convention site at Madison Square Garden. As it turned out, there were mostly reporters looking for dining bargains.
Baum, who recently passed away, was a top restaurateur at the time. Zagat, with his wife, Nina, started the Zagat Restaurant Guide, the first consumer-driven restaurant review platform. The guide was ubiquitous during the restaurant boom of the ’90s, although a Rhode Island edition never came to pass. On my radio show in the late ’90s, Zagat insisted there “weren’t enough restaurants in the state to create a critical mass.”
The weeklong New York event has not only grown to a four-week event but it has also become a nationwide phenomenon. The original idea was to spotlight a listing of restaurants offering a predetermined menu at a matching price point for each participating location. For several years, the price point was “the price of the year,” such as $19.92 in 1992. That was the standard for many years in Providence, Newport and most locales.
Nowadays, Restaurant Week can last up to a month, and takes place multiple times a year in some cities. Traditionally held in early winter, and then in summer for most cities that lose tourist dollars to resort areas, the phenomenon is still looked upon as one of the most successful marketing programs a restaurant or a restaurant row can put on.
Providence Restaurant Weeks has been produced and supported for the past several years by the
Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau and sponsored by
Navigant Credit Union. Held July 10-23 this year, participating restaurants featured deals and specials for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or even all three. They also served signature cocktails, family-sized entrees, specialty products and more.
[caption id="attachment_412485" align="alignright" width="240"]
IN THE MIX: A bartender at Rooftop at the Providence G in downtown Providence pours a cocktail. The dining spot was one of more than 40 eateries participating in the recent Providence Restaurant Weeks.
COURTESY ROOFTOP AT THE PROVIDENCE G[/caption]
Calamari, Rhode Island’s official state appetizer, was a “go-to” on several of the restaurants’ offerings, including polenta-crusted calamari with onions, curry leaves, masala spices and tamarind chutney. Masala is a blend of spices that is dependent upon the chef’s palate and whim. The word translates to “mix,” which can be mild, medium or hot. Of all the spices used in the Indian chef’s kitchen, only one is “hot,” as in chili peppers, led by the bhut jolokia, or the “ghost pepper,” which is many times hotter than other chilies.
Federal Hill mainstay
Cassarino’s offered calamari “Federal Hill style,” with the traditional pepper rings.
A place that is often talked about and on the list of Providence theatergoers is
Circe, which went all out with no fewer than 25 different appetizer items, with just about as many entree selections and combinations, including Point Judith calamari, the “gold standard” on restaurant menus coast to coast.
Although the theme of this year’s edition was to let the creativity of the restauranteurs and chefs at the more than 40 participating eateries throughout the state come up with their own “take” on what was offered to guests, a substantial number of places did not have a specific menu or “Restaurant Week special” until the last minute of opening weekend. According to Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau staffers, waiting until the final seconds to commit to menu selections has been the routine the past several years.
Whether it was to get a well-deserved break from the kitchen or simply showing support for Rhode Island’s restaurants, reservations were fast and furious in early and mid-July statewide.
“Dining Out With Bruce Newbury” is broadcast locally on WADK 101.1 FM and 1540 AM and on radio throughout New England. Contact Bruce at bruce@brucenewbury.com.
