Restaurant owners and the state’s hospitality industry never take tourism dollars for granted. In Rhode Island, the entire state is a single destination.
As the 2009 vacation season approaches, restaurateurs, proprietors and marketing executives have the welcome mat out and smiles on their faces to welcome vacationers. And despite the economic slowdown, there are some reasons for optimism. Guy Gengarella, chef-owner of Guytanno’s Café in Westerly, notes, “Gas was almost $4 a gallon at this time last year. I think things are looking better.”
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Gengarella’s restaurant is located out on the commercial strip in Westerly where Route 1 changes from Post Road to Franklin Street. He has to get creative to lure diners off the beach and away from his competition, the waterfront eateries in Watch Hill. Guytanno’s plans include evening wine tasting events on early summer weeknights and a menu focus on local ingredients such as Bomster scallops from the docks of nearby Stonington.
According to Kathryn Farrington of the Newport County Convention & Visitors Bureau, the buzzwords around the City by the Sea for this upcoming tourist season are, “a tank of gas away.” She says, “We all use that term, it relates to Newport as a drive market where there are close to 30 million people that are within a 3-hour radius or a tank of gas away.”
One Bellevue at the Hotel Viking, just down the street from the International Tennis Hall of Fame, is tempting vacationers this upcoming season with wine tasting events under the umbrella title, “Wine Down Thursdays.”
In the Garden Room or on the patio of the restaurant, guests will have the opportunity to sample wines from leading vineyards worldwide, paired with appetizers from One Bellevue’s executive chef Kevin Thiele. The series this year includes tastings from Argentina, California and South Africa, as well as local wineries. At the hotel’s rooftop bar and bistro, Top of Newport, a separate series of spirit and cigar tastings with food pairings will be held on warm-weather Wednesdays.
Across the bay, the Village Inn at Narragansett Pier in the refurbished Pier Village Marketplace finds its parking lot already filled with cars bearing license plates from New York, Pennsylvania and Ontario. The inn and its on-premise restaurant Amalfi offer a Dine and Stay package including deluxe room accommodations, full continental breakfast and a prix fixe dinner. Menu choices include grilled salmon Picatta with lemon caper beurre blanc, New York strip steak au Poivre with brandy peppercorn cream and stuffed chicken with spinach and herb ricotta.
Trio, located at 15 Kingstown Road in Narragansett, is hosting wine dinners this season. In conjunction with Colonial Wine & Spirits of North Kingstown, the eatery is presenting a Pacific Northwest Wine Dinner on Tuesday, May 12.
Gracie’s continued its successful series of guest chef appearances with a kickoff luncheon event this past week featuring Food Network personality, cookbook author and James Beard Award-winning pastry chef Gale Gand.
For those of us who live here and are interested in Providence as a dining destination, information on upcoming culinary events is available through local media, including this column and its companion radio program. One local restaurant group is going all out to welcome visitors this season. The Chow Fun group is making over its Citron restaurant into a gourmet burger café to be called Luxe Burger Bar. It is expected to open about Memorial Day. •
Bruce Newbury’s Dining Out radio show can be heard Saturdays at noon on stations throughout New England. He can be reached by e-mail at Bruce@BruceNewbury.com.
