Recent eats [Hull MA; Cumberland and PVD RI]

[digga]

We all had Juneteenth off so on that wicked hawt day, we took the MBTA ferry to Hull and ate at Shipwreck’d at the ferry terminal before taking the bus to Nantasket Beach (which was an ess show due to traffic but Spring Onion loved being in the water). Food was basic but they’re trying hard and the staff are really nice. The styrofoam made me sad as hell so I had to drown my sorrows in wine. I wouldn’t get the fried scallops again (a little too over exterior, yet under interior; glad I only got 6). Good fries to share. B enjoyed his chicken salad sandwich (which was also wicked cheap) and SO gobbled up the chicken tenders and side of bacon. Who does that?! SO does, that’s who!

Short 1-nighter at the RI vacay house on Saturday. We stopped at Phantom Farms Brewing in Cumberland on the way, which is close to where I grew up. Spiff space, not many people when we showed up. Beer was decent, not great, but we’d go back for the chill atmosphere and board game selection. Yagi Noodle food truck showed up at 2 pm which made us happy (we had fed SO McDonald’s in the car before we decided what we were going to do…good parents, aren’t we). I should have gotten the extra chili crisp on my ginger scallion noodles. B said the pork dumplings were tasty, but the skins looked a tad thick (not unexpected with the food truck situation, though). Fried tofu and cauliflower sides were expertly fried. Good sauces, nice guy.

Lunch on Sunday was finally at Pizza Marvin, which has gotten many accolades. SO sadly didn’t care for the grandma-style pepperoni slices (but he managed about 1.5 big slices). He did love the soft-serve elderflower/strawberry twist (which was really amazing…we all had a taste of that). B and I split the chowder pizza - wow. Amazing dough, everything salted just right, beautiful leoparding. Littlenecks in the shell, potato, bacon (I gave mine to B), red onion, parsley. B is looking forward to the leftovers tonight. Pizza wine in the can, Narragansett IPA. We participated in a fun puzzle event afterwards, near the cool pedestrian bridge, next to the PVD Flea Market.

In other news:

This past week, we bid goodbye to our dear neighbors who are moving to Toronto, so it’s been a sad week chez digga. We met for beers, Korean food, snacks, tears throughout the week. Didn’t take photos…too sad/gauche. It’s not farewell, though. We will head to Toronto maybe this fall to visit.

Some of you may remember that we have a friend who has ALS (I had queried about foods that are easy for ALS folks to eat). Here’s cool work at MIT on which he collaborated.

On Friday, we are heading to the latest edition of Solid Sound. Expect more exciting food reports!

[medgirl]

Great report!

The video of you linked to re: robotics work at MIT which your friend collaborated on - really interesting, thanks for sharing.

Side of bacon - my own SO would heartily approve. If he had his own way, everything would come with a side of bacon. Chicken tenders and bacon would be a dream meal for him.

That soft serve looked lush.

[MaxEntropy]

Thanks Digga - your reports always bring a smile.
That chowder pizza looks amazing.

[grumpyspatient]

Thanks for sharing…now I want chowder pizza!

[GretchenS]

Biggest soft-serve I ever saw!

[sciaccagirl]

That chowder pizza ! 10 littlenecks on it, why I love RI … more coast line, more little necks.

Thank you for post and the photos.

[uni]

We had occasion to be in Providence last week and had the opportunity to try Pizza Marvin. We went with full pies, not the Sicilian slices and liked it very much. The pies were slightly thicker than NY style, reminiscent of the better RI pies of my youth. The closest comp I can come up with in the Boston area is Picco.

We tried a plain pie and their pepperoni. The pies were crisp on the bottom which offset the slightly thicker (but delicious) crust, and their pepperoni was pleasantly spicy. My kids enjoyed the generous shower of full basil leaves on each pie (a bit heavy handed for me, but easy enough to pick off. The side of meatballs was excellent, I wonder if you could request this as a pizza topping (not listed). My kids wished they had fountain soda, rather than bespoke designer soda that was lacking in carbonation. I found $2 for dipping sauces to be a bit gratuitous, however the sauce from the meatballs was plenty for us to drag the crust through.

Atmosphere was old school and casual. Either the music was very loud or I may be getting old (probably a bit of both). Overall an excellent experience and we will be back, even if we need to go out of our way to do so.

I was reminded of how wonderful Providence is, so much of it reminded me of what I loved about Boston when I first moved into the city. Vibrant, walkable neighborhoods, beautiful architecture and not gridlocked at all times. My wife may or may not have been casually browsing real estate listings for the beautiful neighborhoods off Blackstone Ave.

[digga]

@uni

My wife may or may not have been casually browsing real estate listings for the beautiful neighborhoods off Blackstone Ave

@uni If you move here, I volunteer as your cruise director… but don’t move here until RI can get their $#!t together.

Now I want pizza.

[BobfromRIinVA]

Your wife has superb taste in real estate! I grew up about six blocks into Pawtucket; the nicest neighborhood in what is now known as Da Bucket – Oak Hill Plat. But still scoffed at by the Richie Riches across the city line. LOL We knew so many kids who lived between the river and Hope St. The area really hasn’t changed in 60 years (that’s a good thing)

For some food related content. The Sandwich Hut on North Main St is still my top pick for “Sangeweeges” when I visit RI.