Gail Ciampa, the Food Editor at the Providence Journal, who has been very supportive of the World of Flavors Competition, recaps the contest:
Events like yesterday’s Rhode Island World of Flavors at the Bank of America Skating Pavilion are great not just for the food, but for all you learn.
Marley’s Restaurant is the newest addition to Oakland Beach’s restaurant row in Warwick and next to Iggy’s. They have regular pig roasts! How fun is that. A smaller version of the restaurant is on Thayer Street in Providence at No. 272.
Rue Bis, Deborah Norman’s breakfast and lunch spot in Providence’s Jewlery district (she owns Rue de L’Espoir), has moved to 95 South St. and is now near the Children’s Museum. Manager Merisa Marcotte-Dominguez is doing more with ethnic lunch dishes including Burrito Tuesdays.
Ebisu is a new spot at 38 Pontiac Ave. in Providence serving sushi and Japanese specialties and what they call bar food.
Los Andes serves Peruvian and Bolivian specialties at 903 Chalkstone Ave. in Providence. They sampled saltena (what they called healthy empanadas), and a wild ceviche with squid and more.
Rosinha’s, a relatively new spot at 999 Main St. Pawtucket, made me want more with Katxupa, a stew with pork, corn, potatoes and amazing Portuguese spices.
This was the first World of Flavors, run by Seth Resler and Jordan Monstrelis, and it attracted more than 25 restaurants who competed according to cuisine. Because the prizes were substantial, with all sorts of promotional awards, the restaurants pulled out all the stops. The stations were nicely designed by each eatery, the food beautifully presented, and the flavors amazing.
For the tasting part: there was lots of salmon, pulled pork and guacamole. One could satisfy with shrimp pizza, sushi and duck confit tacos.
I can’t argue with the any of the winners in each of four categories. But really, there could have been any number of worthy choices.
In the Americana category, Blaze Eastside won for their kicked up shrimp scampi, a beautiful presentation on toasted bread. The station was dramatic with colorful peppers filling up glass columns. They beat out sesame encrusted scallops from Hemenway’s, pulled pork from both United BBQ and Texas Roadhouse, Capital Grille’s tenderloin with wasabi and slaw, DeWolf Tavern’s cumin rubbed shrimp and apple dessert from Cortland Place.
In the South of the Border category, Don Jose Tequila won with a pibil, a roasted pork and a second choice of spinach tamale. They also served chips and guacamole.
In the Mediterranean category, Le Creperie won with their delicate dessert crepes. They served two, a chocolate and strawberry and a lemon and sugar.
In the Asian category, Kabob and Curry won with a lovely tiki masala.
via Projo Food Blog.
