Home Town Hop #2: The Food

After telling you all about the ocean last month on Hometown Hop [here is that post if you missed it], I thought I would tell you about my next favorite thing in Rhode Island: the amazing food.  Westerly is in the southwest corner of Rhode Island, about 20 minutes away from any major highway.  If you live in Westerly, you don't leave to go "out" to eat, nor do you go to any "chain" restaurants... since there aren't any.  When thinking about my favorite foods [that I not only go to when I'm home, but also bring back with me], I realized we really only have four types of restaurants: Italian, Chinese, beach shacks, and delis.

I'm sorry this post is so long [just look at the photos, if you want haha]... you know how much I LOVE food, plus add that to my favorite little corner of the Earth, and I have a lot to say :)

1. Italian
I am half Italian [well, half Austrian, but they lived on the Italian border, so they spoke and ate Italian... I've been over this before haha], and so is my town: split right down the middle with Italians and Irish.  I especially love the Italian restaurants because they tend to be cute little hole-in-the-wall joints.  They usually have a few tables or booths, but have the best food in the world!

DCP [Dunn's Corners Pizza]:
      Where? About two minutes from my parents' house
      Best food? Bacon chicken ranch pizza
      Why is it special? I've gone there my whole life, the entire restaurant is about 6 booths, and it's such a family atmosphere.

Yummmm: bacon chicken ranch - exactly like it sounds!

PizzaPlace:

      Where? Downtown

      Best food? Chopped pasta salad 

      Why is it special? My friends and I discovered this place when we used to spend our weekends studying across the street at the library in high school.  Now, when I go home, it's the expected place for us all to reunite and have dinner.  

I love our library - so much history - and right across the street.

chopped pasta, chicken, bacon, gorgonzola cheese with homemade creamy garlic dressing!

2. Chinese
We have a lot of Chinese food restaurants in Westerly.  Most of them have your typical foods, but there is one thing that makes them special.  When I was little, we used to go to a great Chinese buffet in the downtown, but it closed so this has become my favorite!

Chen's:

      Where? Down the street from my high school

      Best food? Duck sauce

      Why is it special? Just the best!  It's owned by one of my high school friends and everyone is just so friendly!

Last time my parents came up, they brought me a pint of Chen's duck sauce.  Have you ever seen duck sauce like this before?  Was that a no?  I bet - because no one [except for in my town] has ever seen duck sauce like this - soy sauce color but a little thicker and SO GOOD.  I make rice in my rice cooker and drench it with the sauce :)

3. Beach Shacks
We do have over 7 miles of beach, so there are a lot of them!  My parents and I went to the beach almost every summer day as I was growing up.  We usually always brought a lunch with us, but the days we got to eat there were so much fun!

St. Clair's:

      Where? Watch Hill [a section of my hometown]

      Best food? Popovers for breakfast and lobster rolls for lunch

      Why is it special? It's a family business and my family has known theirs forever.  It's a small table-service for breakfast and counter-service for lunch and dinner kind of place, plus all of the ice cream is homemade - over 25 flavors!

a winter shot of the little block it's on

lobster roll /// popovers [with homemade strawberry lemonade!]

4. Delis

Every town has to have some of these, right?  Well, remember how I said Westerly is half Italian/half Irish?  The Irish restaurants tend to be delis, but they are as good as any other Westerly food!

Kelley's Deli:

      Where? Down the street from my high school [next to Chen's]

      Best food? Sandwiches and their macaroni salad

      Why is it special? Every summer in high school, my dad and I used to go here every Tuesday and Thursday between playing golf together and my afternoon job. 

I usually don't like mustard or mayo but this macaroni salad is AMAZING - not sure what's in it [trust me I've tried to get their family recipe], but here's how much I bring back to CT with me :)

Bess Eaton:

      Where? A few locations around Westerly

      Best food? Tanks of iced tea and donuts

      Why is it special? Bess Eaton was a Westerly-based bakery chain with a location down the street from my babysitter growing up.  On special occasions we used to walk there and get mini donuts.  Then, early in high school, it went bankrupt and Tim Horton's streamed in.  My friends and I spent countless hours there eating, studying, and just chatting.  It was okay, but we all missed Bess Eaton.  Then, a miracle happened, a couple of years ago, someone bought all of the old recipes and it's back!

St. Patrick's Day donut from the last time I was in town!

Thanks for reading, and thanks to Heather and Ashley for hosting!

If you haven't, don't forget to go wish Heather a very happy birthday!!