I don’t live under a rock and had obviously heard of Al Forno. Since opening in 1980, it’s been a staple of the Rhode Island dining scene. It’s claim to fame: A grilled pizza/flatbread situation. Anywhoo, the wife and I were in need of dinner and we showed up without a reservation, deciding to tempt lady fate instead at one of the two bars in Al Forno. And after a round of Aviation cocktails, bam, we got seated at the lower bar, in a small room with a few tables and a fireplace. Decor is quirky and they are busy. Like insanely busy but we get taken care of and they take their time. They list all six daily specials and I am just drooling. To our left and right are other couples eating away and the food looks amazing. Everyone has pizza on their tables - clearly a must-order.
Our order wasn’t huge but was plenty of food - we split a fennel salad which features sliced oranges, some pomagranate seeds and a lot of delicious olive oil. It was scrumptious and one of the best salads I’ve had quite possibly ever. To follow we had their Pizza Duxelle, which as its name suggest featured duxelle dollops across the grilled dough as well as razor thin mushroom slices. It was so incredibly creatives and so deep in flavor and umami. The grilled pizza style was a first for me and while the shape of the pizza was undeniable wacky, it was awesome. We got a side of Brussels sprouts to round everything out and they were pretty good but some had way more char than others. Pretty good but nothing special.
To round everything off was a special they had, which was a chestnut flour and olive oil cake served with a creme Anglaise. It had the texture of a skillet cornbread and wasn’t too sweet. T’was pretty good.
All in all the place is great and the service at the bar was wonderful. They get absolutely hammered so I do recommend trying to get a reservation instead of showing up spontaneously trying to get bar spots. It’s not impossible but it took a bit of patience. The prices are a tad high for the dishes but I’d say that it’s definitely worth the occasional splurge. The Duxelle on the pizza blew my mind. May steal that next time we want to make some at home. Looking forward to returning.
