Ellie's Bakery

     Among the many things that the French are known to excel at, you'll find just about any food related art, including wine making, cooking, cheese making, and of course, baking. For decades, tourists and locals alike have flocked to Parisian bakeries to enjoy decadent, sweet French pastries. Tarts, Petits Fours, Eclairs, madeleines, and so many more pastries can be found at small, artisan bakeries throughout Paris. But for Rhode Islanders, enjoying the delicious flavors and bright atmosphere of a French bakery no longer requires a trip to Europe, thanks to Ellie's Bakery, a new Parisian-style bakery that has recently opened its doors downtown.

     Ellie's was opened by the same people that brought us the adored Providence restaurant, Gracie's, so before I ever even stepped foot inside, I had high expectations for the food here. Our first visit to Ellie's was on a Tuesday afternoon for lunch. When we arrived, it was relatively empty, and we got served quickly. The staff members that have been working when I've been to Ellie's have always seemed pretty nice and been more than happy to assist customers. The selection of scrumptious looking treats was almost overwhelming, with elegant, bright glass cases packed with sweet and savory French foods. Various breads, fresh sandwiches, and a huge selection of pastries. The menu at Ellie's also features excellent coffee from local coffee roaster New Harvest.

     The sandwich with fresh mozzarella, sun dried tomatoes, olive tapenade, greens, and balsamic vinaigrette was a perfect lunch. The mozzarella was soft and tender, with a lightly spongy texture, cut in thick slabs, and was balanced perfectly with acidity from the vinaigrette, and brininess from the olive tapenade. The bread was reminiscent of a focaccia, and tasted buttery and salty. The ham, swiss cheese, baby spinach, mescaline mix, and red pepper jelly sandwich was equally delicious, served on a baguette. The sweet red pepper jelly was an excellent contrast so the savory, salty ham, and the spinach and mescaline mix added a very fresh element to the flavor of this sandwich. I also tried a lemon madeleine which was fluffy, spongy, moist, and sweet, with an almost floral hint of lemon. At only $1 each, a couple of these madeleines and a cup of New Harvest coffee or espresso would make a delicious small breakfast or early snack.

Ham, swiss, baby spinach, mescaline mix, and red pepper jelly sandwich 

Fresh mozzarella, sun dried tomatoes, greens, olive tapenade, balsamic vinaigrette sandwich

     The food and décor at Ellie's Bakery do a fabulous job at capturing the laid back, elegant Parisian lifestyle. Everything about this bakery was delightful and welcoming. If you're downtown for lunch or a quick snack, I would definitely recommend trying this wonderful new addition to the Providence food scene.

Small Point Café

       Established in 2010, Small Point is one of the newest additions to the Providence coffee shop scene. However, seeing all of the hard work that must have gone into creating such a well thought out, sustainable eatery, it's obvious that this café has been in conception for a long time. This is the type of place which makes you wonder why anyone would walk into the Dunkin' just a few blocks away.

     Small Point Café is a caffeine oasis, bustling with busy college students, typing away on their laptops, buried in a book, or just enjoying some delicious local food with their friends. With an Ipad-cash-register, Chemex filter-drip coffee pots, and robots drawn on the walls of the restroom, the décor screams post-modern in the best way. Upon walking in, you will be greeted by a plethora of chalkboards behind the counter which have all of the menu items hand written with care. Immediately to your right, there are booths lining a wall which doubles as a chalkboard. There are containers of chalk at each booth for anyone and everyone to leave their mark on the wall. Small Point has a pretty large amount of seating compared to some other coffee shops in the area, which is great, because no one likes the cut-throat competition between customers racing to acquire seats the instant they are cleared which seem to be the norm at other downtown cafes.

      The staff at Small Point are incredibly nice, and you'll often see even the owners, Anne and Adam, working behind the counter, personally preparing food and drink for their loyal customers. Everything that comes out of their tiny kitchen is made fresh, with hand-picked, local, organic(when possible) ingredients. Even the coffee and is all fair trade. The coffee beans here come from a few different roasters, including New Harvest, which operates out of Rhode Island, and Equal Exchange, which uses only fairly traded coffee beans in their roasts. However, coffee isn't the only beverage that Small Point serves. They also have excellent espresso drinks (made with beans roasted by New Harvest), various fair trade and organic teas, locally made soda from Yacht Club, and even fresh squeezed orange juice, made to order. Anne and Adam make sure that everything on their menu is as fresh and sustainable as it can be, and they won't serve anything that doesn't meet their high standards.

     One of my favorite things about Small Point are the Chemex coffee pots which they use. Chemex is a family owned company which makes an extremely unique coffee brewing system which is as much a work of art as it is a means of brewing up your daily dose of caffeine. In addition to being quirky, interesting showpieces on the counter here, these coffee pots make a perfect brew every time.

 

Chemex coffee pots

      Although there are other coffee shops in the area that can boast slightly lower prices, or in-house roasted coffee, Small Point Café has a unique charm to it that keeps me coming back almost every day. Thanks to the friendly staff, the quirky décor, the board games on the shelves for all to enjoy, and the dedication to sustainability, Small Point Café has earned the number one slot on my list of favorite cafés in Providence.

Farm Fresh Rhode Island Winter Time Farmers Market

     During the summer, Rhode Island becomes riddled with farmers markets. No matter what day it is, there's always at least one farmers market happening. During the spring and summer, the sustainability movement in Rhode Island is a roaring culture of diverse individuals working together for a good cause. Seeing the amount of people that frequent all of the farmers markets is a great and hopeful sight. Most of them are out doors at parks or other public areas. Unfortunately, once winter rolls around, all of the out door markets go into hibernation until spring, and farmers markets become a much rarer sight. However, there is one market that operates in Rhode Island, and being the only market that operates during the off season, it draws huge crowds of farm fresh food lovers from around the state every week. The winter time market is put on by an organization called Farm Fresh Rhode Island. Farm Fresh Rhode Island puts on many events throughout Rhode Island, including farmers markets, film screenings, community classes, art shows, and more. They are the glue that hold the incredible sustainability movement of Rhode Island together.
     The winter time market operates twice a week indoors at Hope Artiste Village in Pawtucket, RI. On Wednesdays, the market is open from 4:00pm-7:00pm, and on Saturdays, the market is open from 9:00am-1:00pm. I got a chance to go to the market this week, and it was absolutely wonderful. Whether you're shopping for produce, meats, eggs, baked goods, or just looking to strike up an interesting conversation with local farmers and business owners, this market is always a fun time.
     The whole market smells of warm, fresh baked bread, and earthy, locally roasted coffee which gives it a warm, comforting, homey feel, which is absolutely perfect during the cold, bitter winter season. There are over 50 vendors at this huge market, and some of my favorites include:
Seven Stars Bakery, Aquidneck Honey, Barden Family Orchard, New Harvest Coffee Roasters, Matunuck Vegetable Farm, Virginia & Spanish Peanut Co., Baffoni's Poultry Farm, Melville Grille, Taza Chocolate, Narragansett Creamery, New Urban Farmers, The Local Catch, and many more. I managed to get pictures of some of the vendors and their amazing products while I was there as well:

Wishing Stone Farm

Aquidneck Honey

Olga's Cup & Saucer

Narragansett Creamery

Baffoni's Poultry Farm

Virginia & Spanish Peanut Co.

Seven Stars Bakery

The Stirring Spoon

 

     I absolutely love Rhode Island's farmers markets, and this is one of my favorites. I've never been to the winter time farmers market without having at least one delightfully interesting and inspiring conversation with one of the vendors. You'll never find employees that are this passionate about their products at any super market. If you like fresh food, and friendly people, then take a trip to one of your local farmers markets. You'll see just how lovely of an experience it can be, and you'll be sure to walk away with some amazing food, whether it be fresh veggies, Warm pastries, or locally made organic peanut butter. You can't go wrong at this farmers market.

Coffee Worth Wrting About (White Electric)

     A dreary, wet, cold day in New England. My long time friend Chris and I are roaming the empty city, shrouded in fog. On rare winter days such as these, Providence begins to feel like a ghost town, but luckily, Providence is riddled with coffee shops. Small, independently owned hang outs filled with artsy 20-something-year-olds serving up organic fair-trade coffee and espresso. A safe haven of warmth and comfort in even the coldest weather. Perfect for brightening any sunless, cloudy day. Usually, we're regulars at Small Point Café, a wonderful little coffee shop with amazing coffee and amazing food, but after having gone there almost every day for a month, we decided that today, we would switch it up and try a different café in the area. Within 5 minutes walking distance of Small Point Café, there is another coffee shop across the street from Classical High School called White Electric. We've been to White Electric once before, but it was years ago, and we have all but forgotten about it.
    After a short walk, we arrive at a small black sign, hanging from a building. on the sign there is a picture of a mug with "White Electric" written in black cursive letters. A perfect sign; simple and to the point. Upon opening the door, I'm almost knocked back by a wall of warm air, which carries the smell of hot coffee, fresh pastries, and comfort. One of the most powerful first impressions you can get of a restaurant is the smell of the air when you first walk in, and on a day such as this, that was the best scent I could imagine. The décor inside was beautiful and unique. The wall to the left was lines with strange stuffed animal heads made of various fabrics (A play of the term "stuffed" being used for taxidermy I'm assuming), and high above, hanging on the walls were various pieces of metal and yard tools which spell out the words "WHITE ELECTRIC." On the wall to the right, there were two giant letters (W E) hung on the walls, which look like they came straight from a late 19th century circus, covered in lights (About 1/4 of which were blown out, which had a surprisingly charming effect), and further along, there was a table with milk and sugar for your coffee. The wall above was covered in a layer of flyers so cluttered that the wall beneath could have been a different color than the rest and I wouldn't have noticed. The best way I could describe the décor would be: Artsy and strange, in a charming, homey feeling way.

The vintage letters on the right wall (Photo by Christian Castillo)

"WHITE ELECTRIC" spelled out is mismatched metal and yard tools (Photo by Christian Castillo)

Flyers for various local art and music events (Photo by Christian Castillo)

 

     At the front counter, there is a display case, bursting with fresh, flakey, sweet pastries, radiating with warmth. Just looking at them can warm your insides after coming in from the cold. There were three women working behind the counter, taking orders, pouring drinks, and making food. Regardless of the fact that they were pretty busy, when we stepped up to the counter, we immediately got service, and it didn't seem rushed at all. I ordered a dark roast coffee, and a bagel with avocado and cream cheese. It was just over $5, which is pretty reasonable for a coffee shop with local ingredients. The coffee is just a few cents cheaper than Small Point Café, and it is of similar quality. The dark roast is a special roast made by New Harvest in Pawtucket for White Electric, and it was excellent. As I took my first sip, a rush of flavor and aroma filled my senses which I can only describe as delightfully bitter and comforting. It was very bold and full-bodied. I even bought a pound of the beans for myself, which I've been grinding and drinking regularly since. I've always loved coffee from New Harvest, and the White Electric dark roast is no exception. This particular roast definitely makes my list of favorites and it is as good- in quality- as the dark roast by Equal Exchange which I got from Small Point Café a couple of months earlier. My bagel with avocado and cream cheese was a perfect contrast. The refreshing smooth avocado balanced out the bitter slight-acidity of the hot coffee.

      When it comes to coffee shops in Providence, White Electric is one of the best, along with other favorites of mine, such as Coffee Exchange, Small Point Café, and Blue State Coffee. The service is wonderful and friendly, and the coffee and food are delicious and competitively priced. I plan on returning regularly over the winter, and maybe longer. If you like other similar cafes and are looking for a cool spot with unique décor, friendly service, and exceptional coffee, I would absolutely recommend White Electric.