After writing my “Gifts for Food Lovers” list last month, new ideas keep popping into my head. So, here’s part 2, also Rhode Island-centric.

6. Ripe 2008 Calendar – What better way to get big kids to eat their veggies than a calendar full of tasteful nudes? Brown and RISD students pose artfully among local produce, raising money for the Southside Community Land Trust, Farm Fresh Rhode Island and the Brown student garden.

Available through Farm Fresh RI, the Brown Bookstore, and Farmstead.

7. The Mayor’s Own Marinara Sauce – If you live in Rhode Island you probably know of, have an opinion about, and maybe have even met Providence’s ex-Mayor Buddy Cianci. He returned to the city this year after a stint in prison, but his pasta sauce has been on store shelves all along. Profits from sauce sales go towards scholarships. I’ve never tried it, but I’ve always wanted to pick up a jar for a gift.

Check out this Chowhound discussion for ideas on where to find it.

8. A teapot and tea from Basically British Tearoom – Besides being a great gift, this is a good excuse to go check out the tearoom’s new digs in Warren’s Cutler Mills. While you’re there, have a pot of tea and a scone with clotted cream (these are the best scones I’ve ever had). If you like the decor, you can bring it home – the tearoom is also an antique store.

http://www.basicallybritishtearoom.com/

9. A growler of Trinity beer - I often pick up a growler from Trinity Brewhouse for the holidays. The brown glass jugs are printed with a RI license plate, so they are a neat souvenir as well. The beer menu changes often and usually includes 6 brews.

http://www.trinitybrewhouse.com/

10. Local gift certificates - So many Starbucks gift cards change hands over the holidays. Why not support local businesses by seeing if your favorite cafes, restaurants or food shops sell gift certificates? Not only will you be giving the recipient a chance to pick out their own gift, but you’ll also allow them to discover a place they might not have otherwise found.

If you live in the area and know of some local eateries and food shops that sell gift certificates, please leave a comment.

Happy holidays!

Last night we trudged through the slush for an event I’ve been looking forward to for a long time – a chocolate dinner at La Laiterie ( 186 Wayland Ave). Jeremy and I have long been planning a large dinner featuring chocolate in all the courses, so when I saw the event on their newsletter, I knew we had to see how the creative and talented folks at La Laiterie did it.

La Laiterie has received a lot of press, national and local, so you might have already heard of it. It’s a small restaurant attached to Farmstead, an artisanal cheese shop in Providence’s Wayland Square. About four years ago, when I used to live less than a block away, Kate and Matt Jennings took over a little shop called “The Cheese Shop” (which seemed to sell more condiments than cheese) and transformed it into one of the best cheese stores in the northeast. It’s definitely a must-see if you’re visiting Providence.

This dinner was held in conjunction with Taza Chocolate, a Boston-area chocolate producer. We heard about Taza over a year ago, when we went to one of their “chocolate lounge” evenings in Cambridge. In their Somerville factory, they grind the beans using a Mexican stone grinder, producing delicious organic bars.

I had to sneak a picture – this is the seared tuna with chevre-stuffed dates and yankee grits

After a reception in the cheese shop, we sat down to a delicious – and educational – 5 course dinner. I won’t go into every course in detail, but here are some highlights: (click to read more)

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Wednesday may be the perfect weekday to meet a friend for a glass of wine.

Or six.

If you think I’m suggesting a mid-week drunken rampage, you’re wrong. I’m recommending an exercise that will challenge your palate and your mind – wine tasting.

Providence has two regular tastings every Wednesday. Many people are intimidated by wine, but these events are both accessible and affordable.

Tasting wine at the Napa Valley Grille (photo by Jeremy May)

1. Wine Tasting Wednesdays at the Napa Valley Grille
When? Wednesdays, 5:30-7:30pm
What? To drink, 3 reds and 3 whites (from California, of course). To eat, an appetizer plate with three small, but satisfying, creations. For your education, cards with tasting notes for each wine.
How much? $2 a pour
Where? 111 Providence Place, Providence (at the mall, street access)

2. Wednesday Wine Flights at Gracie’s
When? Wednesdays, 5-7pm
What? To drink, three wines in the week’s theme (see the schedule on their site). To eat, tasty treats from Gracie’s famous kitchen.
How much? $10 total
Where? 194 Washington St., Providence (downtown)

In my post about the winter farmers’ market, I mentioned Rhode Island’s new cheesemaker Narragansett Creamery. On Tuesday I attended their ceremonial cheese cutting at Eno Fine Wines in downtown Providence, where a large crowd happily munched away at 5 types of cheese and toasted the creamery’s beginnings.

Queso Blanco and Salty Sea feta from Narragansett Creamery

Among the crowd were local food personalities as well as the mayor and secretary of state. The two politicians performed the cheese-cutting together, a true sign of Providence’s food renaissance.

Narragansett Creamery may be a new name, but their cheeses are produced under Providence Specialty Products, a company that has been producing and exporting cheese for almost 20 years. They teamed up with local food activist Louella Hill to turn their focus to Rhode Island, marketing the cheeses inside the state and using milk from within a 50-mile radius (their hope is to one day source milk from inside Rhode Island).

Now onto the cheese! They brought 5 varieties:
Queso Blanco – an non-aged farmers’ cheese
Salty Sea – a feta (Providence Specialty Products’ award-winning recipe)
Renaissance – a delicious ricotta
Divine Providence – raw milk gouda
Atwells Gold – an asiago

If you curd use a piece, head over to Farmstead, the new wintertime farmers’ market, or Venda Ravioli. (Really, did you think I could get through this post without a cheese pun?)

Providence might be a small city, but we’re lucky to have a lot of people who care about good food. That’s what I was thinking on Saturday when I went to the opening of the new wintertime farmers’ market at AS220.

Oysters from Matunuck Oyster Farm

It’s not huge – about 10 vendors – but they brought diverse goods such as produce, coffee, honey, seafood and chocolate. I was planning to cook mussels for dinner so I was thrilled to find some that were fresh, plump, and half the supermarket’s price! I also picked up a dozen oysters from Matunuck Oyster Farm, a pound of coffee from New Harvest coffee roasters, RI-made tortillas (only $2 for a huge package) and my first piece of cheese from RI’s new artisanal cheese maker, Narragansett Creamery.

The holidays are approaching. Are you looking for unique gifts? Here are some of my favorites, with an emphasis on Rhode Island.

1. Chocolates from Garrison Confections. I’ve bought these for birthdays, holidays, and hosts. If it’s hard to choose, pick up a seasonal collection. You might want to buy a piece or two for yourself because they’re so good, nobody will want to share.

http://www.garrisonconfections.com/

Chocolates from Garrison Confections

2. Ice Wine from Newport Vineyards. I once sent a bottle of this excellent dessert wine to my parents, and it was such a hit that they now pick up a few bottles for gifts throughout the year. This is a wine that can be appreciated by wine enthusiasts and novices alike.

http://www.newportvineyards.com
also available at local stores such as http://enofinewines.com

3. The Genesis Center cookbook. Support a good cause – the center’s culinary job training program – while cooking up recipes written by the culinary students and staff. Recipes from 25 cultures are featured alongside short bios of their authors.

Available online at http://foodforthoughtri.org (see bottom left).

4. A subscription to Edible Rhody. I just ordered one for my mother so she can read about Rhode Island food from far away. The quarterly publication covers local food, restaurants and recipes.

http://www.ediblerhody.com

5. Foodie Fight. This one’s not RI related, but I had to include it for the trivia and food freaks on your list. I gave this to my dad for his birthday and we found the questions quite challenging.

Foodie Fight on Amazon.com

Tonight we went local to eat local. Downtown Providence’s Local 121 recently started a Sunday “50 Mile Meal” – three courses with ingredients from a 50 mile radius.

For a starter I had fried green tomatoes, for an entree, a seared tuna salad and for dessert, a pear poached in white wine with caramel and a delicious scoop of ice cream. This, with a glass of wine, was included in the meal’s $29.95 price tag. My boyfriend had beet salad, a delicious pork shank braised in Sakonnet Vineyard’s Vidal Blanc, and a brownie parfait.

The dinner runs from 3-9, and if you’re there between 5 and 8, you can also enjoy a live Irish session by the bar. The mood is mellow and cozy, and you’d feel equally comfortable dressed up or down.  Before dinner, I recommend sampling their creative cocktail menu at the beautifully restored bar.

Something’s stirring among the abandoned storefronts on Pawtucket’s Main Street. The Grant Building is an old department store that’s been renovated to house several diverse businesses, including a weaving studio, a furniture store, a print shop, a gallery, designers and architects, a spiritual gift shop, and a cute cafe.

The first thing I noticed on Kafe Lila’s menu this morning was the unusual and delicious ice cream flavors – jasmine orange blossom, vanilla tea, earl grey, sweet basil, bleu cheese w/ almond praline, ginger, cinnamon, coconut (the last three vegan). Too bad it was 8 am and 45 degrees out!

Instead I went for a cappuccino and some vegan banana chocolate walnut bread and took a seat at a pink 50s table. The cafe is really welcoming, filled with comfy vintage sofas and chairs, with a bookshelf of art- and craft- related magazines to keep you occupied.

The cappuccino was the best I’ve had in a long time – the espresso was nutty and almost chocolaty, and beautifully poured as well. I noticed they also offer cold-pressed iced coffee. The enormous slice of banana bread was tasty too. I’ll definitely be back for ice cream.

Kafe Lila
http://www.kafelila.org
250 Main St., Pawtucket RI

Did you know that Rhode Island is one of the few states with strict laws prohibiting happy hour drink promotions? Luckily, those laws don’t say anything about food. Check out these two specials for your happy hour fix.

Oysters at Big Fish (credit: Michael O’Mara), $1.95 burger and cajun fare from M&S

1. Big Fish‘s Oyster Happy Hour
When? Twice a day, once from 4-6pm and again an hour before closing.
What? 49 cent oysters as well as other discounted bites. The oysters were delicious. Rumor has it that regulars have been known to order several dozens.
Where? 370 Richmond St., Providence (in the Jewelry District)

2. McCormick and Schmick’s
When? 3:30 – 6:30pm and 10pm – midnight, weekdays only
What? A cheap but filling appetizer menu at the bar, 2-drink minimum. The star, in my opinion, is the $1.95 half pound cheeseburger (complete with fries and a pickle). On Wednesdays, they offer cajun appetizers.
Where? 11 Dorrance St., Providence (Downtown)

When I moved to Rhode Island five years ago, I felt like a misplaced transplant from the Land of Diners. During my teenage years in northern New Jersey, my friends and I ended countless late nights at 24-hour diners. College in central Jersey meant more late nights and the occasional diner study session. These weren’t “new retro” chains like Denny’s Diners or Johnny Rockets, but family-owned restaurants, each with their own character.

The first Providence-area diner I discovered was the Modern Diner, which deserves a post of its own, but unfortunately isn’t open past 3pm. I still needed a place to share milkshakes with dates and fries with friends. Imagine my excitement when I found Stanley’s, a short drive away in Central Falls. While it’s not open 24 hours, you can grab dinner there until 9 or 10 (and I’m no longer a teenager, so this will suffice). Stanley’s is the real thing – unlike some of the new “retro” diner chains, it’s actually been around since 1932.

Chili fries and poutine (credit: Jeremy May) and the inside of a bacon burger

I first heard about Stanley’s when lapetiteamericaine told me they served an Americanized version of poutine. I tried these and their chili fries, which are excellent. They serve up the perfect diner-burger: flat, tender and topped with caramelized onions. Add a frothy milkshake and you have the classic diner experience.

If you’re a Stanley’s fan, I have great news – they’re busy constructing a second location in Providence’s Jewelry District. If we’re lucky, maybe it’ll have later hours to keep the area nightlife fed.

535 Dexter St., Central Falls, RI
http://www.stanleyshamburgers.com/