Rue De L'Espoir

I went to Rue De L'Espoir on 04/14/08, a Sunday evening, for the first of many birthday dinners. It is often described as an American bistro, well known for its brunch. It was my first time dining here. Upon arrival, no employees were to be seen for a good 5 minutes to seat us. The decor was was casual and cozy; you could definitely tell this was a neighborhood joint [which I love].

Our first starter was spinach and mushroom raviolis with smoked gouda and ricotta cheese served with fresh fennel tomato sauce [$12.99].

The filling was a nice blend - good, but a bit on the boring side. I didn't think it went very well with the tomato sauce. The smokey / sweet combination may have been nice, but the sauce was too sweet for my personal tastes.

Was "The Rue" attempting to take al dente to a whole new level? The pasta was definitely undercooked around the edges. I thought it may have been my imagination, but my dining companion confirmed my suspicions. Of course, I ate it anyway.


Our next small plate was chicken liver pate served w/a cranberry, black olive & dried cherry chutney [$11.99]. Besides the desert, this was probably my favorite item out of everything we ordered. The pate was perfectly smooth and its savory flavors complemented the sweet chutney very well. The bread was also delicious to boot.

My friend had ordered the "duck duet." It consists of duck breast & sea scallops with a pomegranate syrup & balsamic vinegar reduction amd served with italian couscous and haricot verts [$27.99].


The duck was perfectly cooked and went well with the reduction. This dish would have been much better without the sea scallops, though. They were overcooked, thus having a rubbery texture and was a distraction to the dish. The couscous was plain, plain, plain! Completely underseasoned. The green beans were yummy, but that is pretty difficult to mess up.

I ordered "lamb served two ways." This dish is made up of baby lamb rack and lamb medallion dry rubbed with fresh herbs and finished with a roasted garlic demi-glace roasted new potatoes and haricot verts [$30.99]. I was slightly disappointed in this dish because I found the title to be terribly misleading!


Let's face it; the average Joe's hardly know the difference between cuts of meat. Beef is beef, lamb is lamb, chicken is chicken no matter where it comes from. True, texture may be slightly different but blindfolded, I doubt anyone could name specific cuts of meat.

So yes, technically in this dish lamb was served two ways, but I could really not tell the meat from the rack from the medallion apart. I wished that they were seasoned differently so I could get two experiences from my entree. Honestly, I thought, once again, mostly everything on my plate was underseasoned, leaving much to be desired.

Wow, I loved this cake! I forgot the exact name for it but it was almost like a dense mousse. I thought it would be heavy, but it wasn't at all. It was light, airy, creamy deliciousness. I also liked the chocolate merengue cookies that garnished it because of the tangy/sweet contrast.

As for the service, the waitress we had was very pleasant and nice [and gorgeous]. She was attentive, for the most part, but I thought she could have done better with keeping our wine and water. It's all all in the details!

In summary, the food was okay, at best. I went in with high expectations and was completely underwhelmed. They make the claim on their web site that the restaurant embodies creative bistro cooking, butI found it to be mostly bland and predictable.

I do not think I would go again during dinner - especially since there are so many restaurants in the same price range with much better food and service. I would consider going for brunch, which is what they are more known for.

Rue De L'Espoir is located at 99 Hope Street, Providence, RI 02906.

New Food Blog

Hello Everyone,

Some of you may be long time readers of the various versions of my weblogs. They have often been about nothing and everything at the same time. I never thought my ramblings were significant or interesting enough, and combined with lack of motivation, I always wound up taking the blog down.

This time, it's different.

I have always been a lover of food and have always loved to eat. I enjoy the whole experience from beginning to end - exercising my taste buds, the fine wine, the stimulating conversation between fellow diners, and creating intimate moments with friends and family...

The extent of my culinary training is home economics class in middle school. Oh, how I have fond memories of microwaving Velveeta to make a cheese and broccoli dish!

I admit I don't cook. At all. I mess up nearly everything I make. I suck at wine pairings. Oh yeah, did I mention I can't pronounce words like "confit" and "espresso"?!?

But that's okay with me. I know what I like and what I don't like, and more often than not, that's a good enough reason for me to give my opinion.

Since I moved to Providence, I have found a whole new appreciation of culinary creations. The food scene here, for a small city [180,000 people], is absolutely incredible. Providence's population is comparable to that of Hartford, CT where I am originally from, but yet the restaurants here are, not only more plentiful, but also 3o4,2o4,329,082 times better.

So, this blog is dedicated to my newly re-discovered passion: food. I will post up reviews of restaurants, from extremely casual to fine dining, both in and out of Providence. Perhaps I will even post a rare review of a recipe, in the off-chance that I decide to actually make something.

I present to you the chronicles of a wannabe foodie; cheers to the average Joe's and Josephine's of the world who just want to revel in a good meal.

A special thanks to Chef Mathew Shea aka Chef Boy Wonder who, through the sharing of his own fervor for food, has inspired me to enthusiastically write about all things edible.