Dinner Tonight? Near PVD, but keep me away from Waterfire!

[GreenGal]

So I am a lunch girl, and despite living in Providence for years I still do not know where to have dinner. Nevertheless, we have decided that dinner out must happen tonight and I just don't know where to start, I have been out of the loop for a few years dinner-wise. An added difficulty is that tonight is Waterfire and I just cannot deal with all the crazy happening downtown.

So I was hoping you hounds can help.

We (2 of us) are looking for a casual-ish place for dinner that is on the nice side, but not too expensive. Like I said, we rarely go out to dinner so this is a bit of a treat, but we are used to our standard lunch budget (obviously dinner costs more). To give you a clue, we really wanted to go to Mike's Kitchen in Cranston, but they are closed Saturday nights. So really, the food is what matters, not the experience.

We are in Providence near the N. Providence line and are willing to drive a bit, just want to avoid Waterfire.

Thanks so much!
(would still love suggestions even if it is after tonight)

-----
Mike's Kitchen
170 Randall St, Cranston, RI 02920

[GreenGal]

Reporting back for the record: we ended up going to Los Andes after all. I know it is a far far cry from Mike's, but we did have a really great meal. I cannot remember what anything was called, off the top of my head, but it was all rather good. BF got the massive mixed grill skewer and the beef heart appetizer, both of which showed us that the grill was really the place to be - you could taste the seasoned grill itself in a very good way. The skewer was really just basic grilled meat, but there was something special about it, and we think it was just a really great grill. Also the marinade for the beef heart was veery good. My dinner was some sort of shredded chicken in a walnut cream sauce over fingerling potatoes. Pretty decent but nothing life changing. Serving size was large, an apetizer could reasonably be a meal (lunch definitely) and the prices were great. Overall, it was one of those meals where you spend the whole time excited about the fact that you can come back again and try more. Definitely looking forward to another trip.

Thanks everyone for the advice, will be trying out some of your suggestions when I get the opportunity. Have been wondering about Reali's for a while now...

-----
Los Andes
903 Chalkstone Ave, Providence, RI 02908

[Frobisher]

Probably a little late, but if you wanted Mike's, try Reali's. It's on Smith St./Rt. 44 in Johnston. About 5-10 minute drive from you. Great red sauce Italian.

[invinotheresverde]

Broadway Bistro, Loie Fuller, Julian's and Nick's are all far enough away from Downcity to avoid most of the traffic. None are expensive, IMO, but not cheap, either. I think they all have web pages.

-----
Broadway Bistro
205 Broadway, Providence, RI 02903

[GreenGal]

Ah, okay, I was thinking the crazy was a little more extensive than it actually is - good to know. We tend to just stay on the edges of the city from about 5pm on! (can you tell that I really don't like crowds).

[amerksmann22]

Huge fan if Julian's here.
I wanna try Nicks and Broadway but always end up at Julian's.

[GreenGal]

I'm thinking maybe Los Andes, presumably they are still top notch? Any favorites there?

-----
Los Andes
903 Chalkstone Ave, Providence, RI 02908

[trufflehound]

I've eaten at the Red Fez during waterfire and it wasn't too crazy, save parking

-----
Red Fez
49 Peck St, Providence, RI 02903

[GreenGal]

Thanks, have been meaning to get to Red Fez for a while but parking is definitely an issue.

-----
Red Fez
49 Peck St, Providence, RI 02903