Over the past few months we’ve been trying to squeeze in a bunch of trips that we’ve been meaning to do since the pandemic hit – and this one was our latest.  For a hot summer weekend this August we traveled by train and then ferry to Newport, Rhode Island.  This town is very popular in the summer because it sits on the Atlantic Ocean – in fact, it’s been a seasonal resort town for almost two hundred years, and there’s a section of Newport that’s lined with huge, historic mansions overlooking the coast.  So we went up to visit the beach, check out the town, and of course try some food.  We’ll highlight here some of the places we liked, but be aware that we will show some images of meat here.

One of the things we were excited about when we went to Newport was taking a food tour, which was offered through Rhode Island Red Food Tours.  Our awesome guide, Morgan, took us to six different spots, all within walking distance of each other, where we got to sample a very interesting variety of foods and restaurants.  Our favorite was The Nitro Bar, where we got a simple and tasty sourdough toast topped with mozzarella, tomato, balsamic vinegar, and homemade pesto.

We also got to visit the Vanderbilt Hotel, which is housed in one of Newport’s most famous mansions, and there Miriam sampled a mini samosa …

… and Cyril got an oyster, served with homemade cocktail sauce.

Then we stopped by Perro Salado, where Miriam was able to try the famous avocado fries, with a chipotle mayo on the side.

And Cyril had some sticky ribs.

Next up were two restaurants that showcase the diversity of food on offer in Newport:  at Humming Bird, which serves up Carribbean fare, Miriam got a plantain with cabbage salad.

And Cyril tried a jerk chicken wing, also with some plantains.

We also got to check out Leo’s Market, which is a convenience store in the front and a Salvadoran quick-service restaurant in the back.  Miriam had their bean taco …

… and Cyril got a steak taco.

And for a sweet ending, we had these mini coconut cake shooters at Stoneacre Garden.

Since Newport is a summer town, Cyril also wanted to get his hands on some seafood, so he searched out some good spots that also had vegetarian options.  One such place was Flo’s Clam Shack, which is near Easton’s Beach (one of the most popular beaches in town) and has been around for almost 90 years.  Here’s what we got there:  for Cyril it was a platter of clam cakes (on the top middle), clam strips (on the bottom left), and a stuffed quahog (on the top right).  Miriam had some Jersey shore onion rings, made with red onions, and a lunch hot cheese (on the top left), which is a Rhode Island specialty of American cheese melted inside a hamburger bun.

We also stopped by Benjamin’s Raw Bar so Cyril could get a lobster roll – specifically, their lobster salad roll, which also comes with fries.

And Miriam snacked on their huge plate of nachos.

We also couldn’t resist stopping at The Cookie Jar, where we tried three of their cookies:  an oatmeal raisin (on the right), an oatmeal butterscotch (on the bottom left), and a ginger snap (on the top left).

But we’re also going to add in some food we got not in Newport but in Providence, Rhode Island’s largest city.  We got to Newport via a boat from Providence, and then we had to go back to Providence in order to come home, so we figured we’d try a few things while we were there.  Specifically, we’d heard about two good pizza places in the city – the first was Providence Coal Fired Pizza, where we got the Rocket – a pie topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella, pecorino, and arugula.

And the second was Caserta, an old-school pizzeria that sells just a few types of square pizzas, cut into strips – this one is a plain with cheese.

Cyril also tried their Wimpy Skippy, which is a baked dough pocket stuffed with spinach, olives, pepperoni and cheese.

This was really a great variety of food we got to sample in one weekend:  seafood, of course, plus we got to continue on our journey to try a bunch of different pizzas, but we also had the chance to get several small bites from different places around Newport.  We enjoyed all this food – plus the chance to get out to the beach and sail around the state of Rhode Island – and we would recommend Newport to anyone who wants to sample some regional fare.  We had fun, and if you’re looking to travel we hope we inspire you.