Keeping it Rhody
Chefs and brewers are paying homage to Rhode Island’s culinary classics.
Food trends come and go, but nostalgia always seems to be in fashion. That’s certainly true in Rhode Island, where industry professionals are embracing local classics—honoring the past and updating dishes and drinks for modern tastes. Like many areas of the country, Lil’ Rhody has its own quirky culinary culture full of historical foods that are feverishly loved by locals, but can raise eyebrows beyond state lines.
ILLUSTRATIONS: MIRI ROONEY
Mortadella in a Blanket
The iconic Providence late night spot Olneyville NewYork System—where you’ll get called out if you order a hot dog instead of a hot wiener—inspired the Mortadella in a Blanket dish Executive Chef Kyle Stamps serves at Giusto in Newport.
“Growing up in Rhode Island, if we ever went to Providence to see a concert or a basketball game, we’d always make sure we stopped there to eat,” says Stamps of New York System, a family-run restaurant that dates back to the 1930s.
Stamps’ take captures the flavor profile of the restaurant's hot wiener, a frank nestled in a steamed bun and topped with a spicy meat sauce, chopped onions, mustard and celery salt, but through Giusto’s modern Italian lens. The dish starts with a base of house beef and pork mortadella sausage, rolled into links the size and shape of a frankfurter. The links are poached, wrapped in puff pastry (pigs-in-a-blanket style), and served with a chile and 'nduja sauce, celery root purée and pickled onion. “They are little one-or-two-biters that fit into our snack menu very well because they are easy to share,” Stamps says.
Johnny Cake Red Lager
When Taproot Brewing Co. Head Brewer Kevin Beachem moved to Rhode Island from New Jersey, he set out to learn about some of the state’s local specialties, and was especially intrigued by the classic Johnnycake, a corn-based breakfast staple that traces back to the area’s indigenous people. Now, the dish’s flavors are in fluid form in Beachem’s Johnny Cake Red Lager. He incorporates freshly milled white flint corn, sourced from the state’s historic Kenyon’s Grist Mill, during the mashing stage of the brewing process.
The corn’s flavor is retained in the finished product.“It doesn’t taste like popcorn, or anything like that, but it comes through with a nice sweetness and a little bit of dryness,” he says. “It almost reminds me of really good grits.”
Available at the Middletown brewery around St.Patrick’s Day, the beer resembles an Irish red ale. It’s about four percent ABV, which is in line with Beachem’s preference for making low-to-mid ABV beers. It also pairs well with food, which is something Beachem likes to consider since the brewery has a full-scale restaurant on-site.
Pizza Strips
Rhode Island pizza strips are a staple snack, sold at mom-and-pop Italian bakeries, supermarkets, and even gas stations. Often served cold or at room temperature, they’re deliciously simple, not much more than a sweet sauce slathered on a thick, chewy dough that’s crisped at the edges (plus a sprinkle of Romano, if you’re lucky).
There, There Chef Brandon Teachout created his version of the “party pizza,” starting with a high-hydration, cold-fermented focaccia. He tops it with a San Marzano tomato and Calabrian chile sauce, and for added zing, guests can opt for a dab of house buttermilk ranch.
Teachout grew up in upstate New York and discovered the strips when he moved to Providence for culinary school at Johnson & Wales. He created his rendition of the dish during the pandemic when his restaurant was operating as a pop-up at breweries. The strips also have the added benefit of a higher profit margin than some of his other menu items. “After doing it for years, I decided that I’m really not into fine dining cooking,” Teachout says. “This dish is a great representation of my food because I took the focaccia technique I learned in fine dining kitchens and applied it to my own voice, which is heavily influenced both by Rhode Island and upstate New York,” he says.
Weenie Fries
At Providence’s Pizza Marvin, Chef Robert Andreozzi’s menu incorporates several references to nostalgic Rhode Island eats, both high-and-low-brow. Andreozzi, who has a background in fine dining but embraces the more casual side at his pizza spot, often sources from local purveyors, like Bristol-based seafood market Andrade’s Catch, which he has been visiting since he was a kid.
Just-pulled-out-of-the-water littlenecks from Andrade’s, along with his grandfather’s recipe, inspired Andreozzi to develop his baked clams, a take on Rhode Island’s classic “stuffie,” which is commonly made with larger Quahog clams. He steams the littlenecks, then shucks them before combining with breadcrumbs, Portuguese sweetbread, fennel, and ‘nduja to make a stuffing. They come five to an order, so they make a great starter for guests waiting for their pizza to come out of the oven.
Another popular app at the restaurant: weenie fries. To save Marvin’s cooks from the prep work involved with making fresh fries, Andreozzi buys frozen curly fries and sprinkles them with a spice blend reminiscent of what’s in Olneyville New York System’s wiener sauce (think cumin, chile, celery salt, and paprika). “We tested waffle and crinkle fries, but all agreed that the curly ones took on the spice blend the best,” Andreozzi says.
