You will find the great and now nationally famous (due to an appearance on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives on the Food Network) ITALIAN CORNER
located at 10 Boyd Ave., East Providence, RI 02914.
This local behemoth has been serving home-cooked Italian comfort food for a long time and after eating there, I can say they do it very well. No frills, and no extra garnish. The food here is made to please by only using the freshest ingredients (homemade sandwich bread, folks!) as well as all imported meats and cheeses. Not bad huh?
See, it's not particularly fancy, but how could I tell it's a local favorite? We got there around 11:45 (admittedly, early for lunch) and there were only a handful of customers. By 12:05, the line was out the door!
The Italian corner serves lunch, and I'm told dinner too (though that is not every day, and it's by reservation only.) But during lunch, they very smartly operate like a meat market of sorts. You place your order with a gentleman at his own station on the left, who then sends your order to the deli counter (and its huge kitchen in the back.) They slice the necessary meats and cheeses fresh after every ticket comes out, and then customers wait until their names are called for pickup while trying to find seating among the sparse tables and chairs
**Note: no receipt, no food pickup!
They weren't overwhelmingly friendly, which maybe is my only complaint. But at the same time, they were cordial and let the food speak for itself. They run a tight ship, and their process is streamlined. How else could they accommodate what seems like hundreds of diners a day? I'll give them a pass on their lackluster customer service, because, well, see for yourself below:
Their specialty: The Italian Brasato Grinder which consists of slow roasted beef, lettuce, tomato, and salsa Rossa.
Fresh mozzarella, pesto, tomato, and prosciutto. The bread was delicious! I usually don't rave about white sandwich rolls, but this one was goooood.
The Special of the day which was a chicken marsala sandwich. Juicy, flavorful, and just like a nonna would make.
And for dessert, Italian munchies. They actually have a specialty imported foods section in the back. All of their sweets, and even drinks like bottled iced tea are Italian brands. I liked that air of authenticity.
And lastly, I was very pleased with their homemade pasta, pre-packaged and sold for what I consider very reasonable prices. A winning meal and winning shopping experience. (In addition to the homemade spinach gnocchi and some prosciutto tortellini, I also walked away with some hot pepper antipasto, a delicious and fresh octopus salad, and two hefty frittatas.)
molto bene!
